As soon as Kalen DeBoer was tied to the Alabama job, Washington athletic director Troy Dannen had to act fast. Dannen just recently took over in Seattle, as his long-time predecessor Jennifer Cohen left for past, present and future conference rival USC. With the best internal candidate to replace DeBoer actually going with him to Tuscaloosa in Ryan Grubb, Dannen opted to go with an outside hire.
Nothing is official until it is, but the presumptive favorite to replace DeBoer has emerged: Arizona Wildcats head coach Jedd Fisch. He was one of three outside candidates with potential ties to the Washington job, with the other two being Kansas head coach Lance Leipold and Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell. Leipold reaffirmed that he was staying put in Kansas earlier Sunday afternoon.
Fisch just completed his third season at the helm of Arizona. The Wildcats went 10-3 and were one win away from playing for a Pac-12 championship. He has gone 16-21 overall in three years in Tucson. This is historically a basketball school, but Fisch had U of A on the precipice of being a major power in the new Big 12. So why would he go to a harder conference in the revamped Big Ten? Money, duh!
All expectations are that Fisch will eventually put pen to paper and be the next head coach at U-Dub.
Sources: Arizona coach Jedd Fisch has emerged as Washington’s top target for the head coaching job. He’s the only candidate Washington officials have engaged with after their initial phone calls. Expect clarity in the near future. pic.twitter.com/ZifyWHJ558
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 14, 2024
Washington may be perceived as a stepping stone job to some, but this is a Big Ten program now.
Washington football rumors: Jedd Fisch tied to Huskies' HC opening
Honestly, I like this potential hire more than I like DeBoer going to Alabama. While both can have great success simultaneously, the expectations in Seattle are far more forgiving than they ever will in Tuscaloosa. Although I would attest that Alabama and Washington are among two of the 12 or so teams in the SEC and Big Ten vying for upwards of eight playoff spots annually, the SEC can be brutal.
What I like the most about Fisch is he has shown us that he can build a culture worthy of talking about out of seemingly nothing. What he inherited from Kevin Sumlin was a complete and utter mess. Although he did not play college football at Florida, he is one of Steve Spurrier's greatest disciples. He has also work with the likes of Brian Billick, Jim Harbaugh and Bill Belichick. Good company, I'd say!
From Washington's perspective, they would be getting an ascending head coach with an offensive leaning who can build a culture. It may take a year or two, but I think Fisch could be fantastic at Washington. As far as Arizona is concerned, the Wildcats' potential replacement for Fisch is crucial. I would think that U of A will value football now in a very winnable Big 12 conference, but we shall see.
If Washington were to land Fisch, it would be one of my favorite hires of the coaching carousel cycle.