The Washington Huskies are coming off a disappointing 6-7 campaign in Jedd Fisch’s first season as head coach. But even after a rocky start, there’s reason for optimism in Seattle.
That optimism comes from a complete roster overhaul — one that was necessary after Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama just days after leading Washington to the national championship game. When Nick Saban retired, Alabama came calling, and Washington suddenly found itself in a state of transition.
Both programs had their share of growing pains last season, but national analysts aren’t ready to give up on Fisch’s Huskies. For many, it’s not just about improving on last year — it’s about actually making noise in a loaded Big Ten Conference.
Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt is one of them.
"Watch out for the Washington Huskies,” Klatt said. “They're my pick for the dark horse in the Big Ten.”
Klatt pointed to Washington’s experienced offensive line, key transfer additions at the skill positions, and a defense that should take a big step forward in Year 2 under Fisch. In his eyes, those upgrades make the Huskies far more dangerous than their 6-7 record suggests.
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"The more I looked at Washington," Klatt added, "the more I thought to myself, if they get any momentum whatsoever, if they protect their quarterback whatsoever, if they protect their home-field advantage whatsoever, this is a team that could absolutely, absolutely, be a 9-2 team hosting Oregon the last week of the season.”
In fact, Klatt believes Washington could be this year’s version of last year’s Indiana — a program that sneaks up on the rest of the league, strings together a few statement wins, and suddenly finds itself in the national spotlight.
"If they're in that boat," Klatt said, "they could absolutely claim that if they win that game, they would go to the College Football Playoff. This is a team I'm bullish on."
If that happens, the Huskies would go from a rebuilding project to a legitimate Big Ten contender in just one year.
In a league now filled with national brands and weekly high-stakes matchups, they’d prove they can do more than just survive in their new conference — they can thrive. For Fisch, it would validate the aggressive roster rebuild and his work in the transfer portal, showing that Washington’s return to the national stage didn’t have to take years.
For the rest of the Big Ten? It would be a loud reminder that sleeping on the Huskies could be a costly mistake.