After going 9-4 and winning the LA Bowl in 2025, there are big expectations for the University of Washington football program in 2026.

And with a somewhat-favorable schedule and star quarterback Demond Williams Jr. back in the fold after a wild transfer portal saga, the big expectations are fair.

With spring practice just around the corner, we'll get our first looks at the 2026 Huskies in short order, and we'll get word on how Williams's teammates are receiving him after the transfer portal issue.

But this much is clear: Williams is projected to be one of the top quarterbacks in the country heading into the new campaign.

ESPN released its power rankings of the Top 68 power-conference quarterbacks on Thursday, ranking Williams at No. 20.

Williams showed epic potential as a first-year starter in 2025, and he has two tasks for going even bigger in 2026. First, he'll have to win the dressing room back after briefly entering the transfer portal following "really bad advice." Second, he'll have to figure out how to raise his game against great defenses. His overall stat line was great (UW averaged 45.1 points per game in nine wins), but against the four best defenses he faced last fall -- Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Oregon -- the Huskies offense averaged a dire 9.3 points per game and went 0-4. Time to learn some new tricks.

An Arizona native who is headed into his junior season, Williams threw for 3,065 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2025. He had eight interceptions and also used his legs well, running for 611 yards and six touchdowns.

To the point above: Williams won't have to see Ohio State, Michigan or Wisconsin in 2026, but he will have to play Oregon, USC, Iowa, Penn State and the defending champions from Indiana. Even though we described the schedule as "somewhat favorable," it's still a gauntlet. There's no escaping that in the Big Ten.

Quarterback Jayden Maiava is the quarterback at USC, who Washington will face. He's ranked at No. 5 while Dante Moore at Oregon is No. 6. Josh Hoover (Indiana) is ranked No. 13 and former Washington State quarterback John Mateer, now at Oklahoma, is ranked No. 19.

--The Washington women's basketball team opened up its Big Ten Tournament with a win over USC on Thursday. The Huskies got great performances from Elle Ladine and Avery Howell in the win and they'll take on top-seeded UCLA on Friday morning at 9 a.m. PT.

--The Huskies men will wrap up the regular season on Saturday night against Oregon. Here's where things stand for them with one game before the Big Ten Tournament seeds are released.

Remember to join our HUSKIES on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Washington fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!