Inside The Huskies

Mohammed Chooses Bay Area to Be His Post-Husky Destination

The running back will have two seasons to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Dan Raley|
Running back Adam Mohammed warms up for the LA Bowl, his last game as a Husky.
Running back Adam Mohammed warms up for the LA Bowl, his last game as a Husky. | Dave Sizer photo

In a move that remains as puzzling as ever with every turn, former University of Washington running back Adam Mohammed signed with California on Tuesday, according to multiple news outlets.

Not with Texas A&M or Virginia, which were his other options, but with the Golden Bears, who are coming off a 7-6 season and rebuilding under a new coach in Tosh Lopoi, who was the UW defensive-line coach in 2012-13.

No disrespect to the Cal program, but Mohammed's signing is still as surprising as his departure was nearly a month ago, when the 6-foot, 220-pound junior-to-be indicated he was entering the transfer portal.

He exited Jedd Fisch's roster after spending much of two seasons backing up veteran Jonah Coleman and indicating he was quite content to patiently wait his turn before becoming the Huskies' No. 1 running back in 2026.

Adam Mohammed celebrates after scoring one of his three first-half touchdowns.
Adam Mohammed celebrates after scoring one of his three first-half touchdowns. | Dave Sizer photo

Instead Mohammed walked away from a 9-4 team poised to become a Top 25 entry and one that returns its elusive quarterback and four of five starting offensive linemen, manpower that would have greatly benefited his efforts.

Yet somewhere along the line, there was a disconnect between the promising runner from Glendale, Arizona, and the UW, which had carefully groomed him to be the guy carrying the football for the next two seasons.

Mohammed either was irked that he still received minimal carries while rushing for 108 yards against UCLA and 105 against Oregon, or the Bears, with their new coach, made him a financial offer he couldn't refuse.

Lopoi's Ducks defense, it should be noted, was on the receiving end of the running back's engaging 100-plus performance in a 26-14 Husky loss in Seattle.

With the portal in full swing, the UW coaches haven't been made available to address Mohammed's departure.

He'll join a Cal roster that last year added a pair of his one-time Husky teammates in edge rusher Jayden Wayne and safety Tristan Dunn.

Wayne, in particular, seemed to revitalize his career after transferring, coming up with 25 tackles, 2 sacks and 5 quarterback hurries while becoming a starter at times.

The UW's Adam Mohammed hits the hole while freshman tackle John Mills gives him a helping hand.
The UW's Adam Mohammed hits the hole while freshman tackle John Mills gives him a helping hand. | Dave Sizer photo

Mohammed, with his blend of size and speed, stands to be a fairly intriguing player for the next two seasons in Berkeley and the Atlantic Coast Conference.

At the UW, the well-muscled back rushed 148 times for 716 yards and 5 touchdowns in two seasons, and caught 23 passes for 179 yards. He also returned 16 kickoffs for 416 yards, with a long runback of 41 yards.

He was always one step from breaking one. In his first game as a freshman against Weber State, Mohammed snapped off a 32-yard gainer on his second career carry.

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

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