SEATTLE — The Washington Huskies football team put a nice bow on their spring schedule with its annual "Dawgs After Dark" spring game.

Team Purple beat Team Gold 27-10 in the finale to the spring football schedule.

The Huskies had several intriguing true freshman players and defensive stars that made an impact during the game. But for many, the biggest spotlight was on junior quarterback Demond Williams Jr.

Williams created many headlines this offseason after he announced his intention to enter the transfer portal in January after he had already signed a deal to return to UW for the 2026-27 season.

Williams soon backtracked from that decision and announced he would return to Montlake for '26. There were (and are) some lingering feelings from the fan base but the team and Williams seem to have completely put the situation behind them and are now focused on returning Washington to a contender status.

Williams, who quarterbacked Team Purple, started off the spring game rough. He threw an interception to sophomore Gold cornerback Dylan Robinson on a pass that was thrown behind redshirt junior wide receiver Rashid Williams.

Demond Williams bounced back in his next drive and hit Rashid Williams in stride for a 43-yard touchdown pass. It was the longest offensive play of the day of either team.

The Williams under center connected with true freshman receiver Jordan Clay for a 22-yard grab on the sideline before the touchdown pass.

Huskies coach Jedd Fisch has mentioned this spring how important the team's success is in relation to Williams development in his second full season as a starter. Specifically, Fisch has discussed how a point of emphasis for the third-year signal-caller is rising in the big moments.

The issue with that point of emphasis is that the only team Williams is facing this spring is his own. And although Washington's defense has the potential to be one of the most impressive units in the Big Ten this year, it's not the same as going against the top opposition in the conference.

Williams also hasn't had all his targets available. Transfer portal acquisitions such as senior wide receiver Christian Moss (Kennesaw State), redshirt freshman Bodpegn Miller (Ohio State), returning sophomore wideout Chris Lawson and Clay have been in-and-out of practice this season with various injuries.

Even still, Williams has made strides this spring, per Fisch. And the third-year head coach expressed confidence in his QB's abilities going into this upcoming season.

"What we've talked about is how do we find different ways to emulate difficult situations," Fisch said after the spring game Friday. " ... No. 1 is going against our defense when it's ones-on-ones. Because when you put out that 11, that's a challenge to go against and you got to be on top of your game to be able to do that. ... On top of it is experience. ... (Williams) played in a bowl game as a true freshman and goes out there and throws five touchdown passes. You see the plays he made against Michigan when we beat Michigan at home. He's one of 16 guys, I think, ever I think to have a (400 yards passing), (100 yards rushing) game. ... I think the bottom line is experience will help him get there. He's played 17 games or 16 games as a starter. Now he's gonna go out to Game 17. This is now a season where he should go shine."

Williams led the Big Ten with 3,676 total yards last season. He completed 69.5% of his passes for 3,065 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He ran the ball 143 times for 611 yards and another six scores.

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