Lot of Changes for Huskies, But They Still Have a Southern Quarterback

Will Rogers succeeds Michael Penix Jr., looking for similar success.

The University of Washington offers the northernmost college football program in the country, but lately it has leaned heavily to the Southern quarterback to get things done.

Mississippi native Will Rogers, the Mississippi State transfer, has the job now, succeeding Michael Penix Jr., the two-year UW starter, Heisman Trophy runner-up and Florida transplant, with both of them providing that slow, easy drawl when calling plays in the huddle and barking out a cadence at the line of scrimmage.

Two players before that at the UW was Jacob Eason, a Northwest native for sure but a Georgia quarterback for the first two seasons of his college career.

Then there's 2020 and 2021 Husky starter Dylan Morris, who's gone the other direction and now plays in Virginia for James Madison.

Rogers comes to the UW as one of the most storied quarterbacks to emerge from the highly competitive and always overly emotional Southeastern Conference (SEC) after throwing for 12,315 yards and 94 touchdowns while starting 40 games. He's both a confident player and a realist.

"I'm not Michael Penix or anything like that," he said. "I'm not going to be able to make some of the thows or the plays that he made. I'm my own self. With that being said, there's just a confidence between myself that a lot of quarterbacks have. When I'm between the white lines, I like myself."

The Brandon, Mississippi, product, who carries a 6-foot-2, 204-pound frame, intends to be an NFL quarterback someday, all of which prompted him to make the 2,467-mile move from Mississippi State to the UW.

Rogers grew up watching Mississippi native Brett Favre and Drew Brees of the nearby New Orleans Saints throw the ball around the NFL. He's also attended the Manning Passing Academy for the past three years run by Archie, Eli and Peyton, with those first two Mannings playing for the University of Mississippi before becoming pros.

Will Rogers stretches out at UW spring practice.

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He initially was drawn to the Huskies when Kalen DeBoer was the coach because of the rapid-fire success enjoyed by the team, which won 25 of 28 games over the past two seasons; the development of Penix, who twice led the nation in passing; and the career advancement made by running back Dillon Johnson, a former teammate who likewise transferred from Mississippi State to the UW and turned in an 1,195-yard, 16-touchdown rushing season.

"I had to make sure I could get No. 7 from him," Rogers said of Johnson. "Number 7 went good for him and hopefully it will do the same for me."

While Rogers checks all the boxes as an able leader and proficient passer, the Huskies under the new management of Jedd Fisch still need to come up with an offensive line that provides ample protection for this trusting quarterback. Currently, he's working only with all sophomores and freshmen, a situation that has prompted Fisch to vow that he'll hit the transfer portal hard over the next couple of weeks to bring in some seasoned blockers.

"I don't really try and think about it too much," Rogers said of a possible new line for the fall. "I obviously know with the state of college football things can change really quickly after the season, before spring ball, after spring ball, whatever the case may be. I don't know. I really don't know how to answer that question. I don't know the state of the future of our offensive line."

To the contrary, the Huskies are about as well-stocked in quarterbacks these days as they have been in some time with Rogers, the proven SEC player, taking snaps alongside a pair of 4-star recruits and newly arrived freshmen in 6-foot-5, 187-pound Dermaricus Davis and 5-foot-11, 185-pound Demond Williams Jr.

While Rogers settles in at UW quarterback, he also feels the responsibility to share what he knows with his younger peers, mentor them and get them ready to take over once he's done in Seattle.

"They're just really talented guys," he said. "Mar Mar obviously is a big guy, really, really strong in the weight room and can really throw the football. Obviously, Demond is pretty special, really twitched up and fast, and can really throw the football. I'm just trying to help those guys any way I can. I've obviously played a lot of football."

Four practices into spring ball, the Huskies have the makings of a competitive team, especially if they can adequately upgrade the offensive line later this month.

Even when DeBoer left for Alabama, Rogers stayed the course with the new Husky coaching staff run by Fisch. The way he looks at, he couldn't lose with either one of these quarterback-centric coaches. The Southern guy came north to enable himself to go in any direction the NFL decides for him.

"Everybody wants to play football at the next level ," Rogers said, "and I think coach Fisch is the best person for that, especially for quarterbacks."

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