The Washington Huskies may have found their next head coach.
After former head coach Kalen DeBoer left to replace Nick Saban at Alabama earlier this week, a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Sunday indicated that Washington has targeted Jedd Fisch to be its next head coach.
Fisch spent the past three seasons as Arizona’s head coach. The Wildcats had won nine games over the past three seasons before he took the job, including a winless 0-5 year in 2020. Fisch could only manage a single win in his first year in 2021, but the team took leaps and bounds in each year of his tenure. After Arizona won five games in 2022, the Wildcats exploded onto the national scene with 10 wins this past season.
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
Arizona played a ranked team seven times in the 2023 season and won five of those games, including a dominant 42-18 victory over Utah and a 38-24 victory over Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl. For the season, Arizona only lost three games. They lost in overtime twice (against Mississippi State and USC) and fell to eventual playoff team Washington by just seven points.
Freshman quarterback Noah Fifita (who could be a transfer target if Fisch takes the job) emerged as a breakout star with 2,869 yards, 25 touchdowns, and six interceptions on his way to winning Pac-12 Freshman Offensive Player of the Year honors.