As Michael Penix Jr. waits for his name to be called in April’s NFL Draft, the Husky faithful has wasted no time etching his name into the history books on Montlake. But Penix has one more entry to write when he’s officially selected: he’ll become the 15th Washington quarterback to have his name called in the common era of the NFL draft (since 1967).
That number will tie the Huskies with LSU and Tennessee, assuming that Jayden Daniels and Joe Milton are also drafted this year, for fifth most all-time. Florida State will maintain a one player lead over the trio if Jordan Travis is selected in April.
The top three are USC (19 without 2024’s projected No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams), Stanford (18), and Ohio State (17), three schools that have been widely lauded as quarterback factories. Washington has received little such praise despite hitting similar numbers.
USC = QBU?⚔️ pic.twitter.com/nmgfyWVcQs
— PFF College (@PFF_College) March 22, 2024
Maybe the Huskies have flown under the radar because there is just one first round pick among that bunch – Jake Locker, regarded as a draft bust after landing in Tennessee with the No. 8 overall pick in 2011.
Penix could change that in April, but it’s equally likely that he slips to Day 2. USC has produced 5 first rounders in that same time, plus Williams, Stanford 3, and Ohio State 4.
Washington’s most successful passer in the league, Hall of Famer Warren Moon, went undrafted and doesn’t count towards this list, making 1993 fifth rounder Mark Brunell the most accomplished drafted Husky quarterback in the pros. He finished his 17-year NFL career with over 32,000 passing yards in 151 starts.
The Huskies began this run in 1976, when Chris Rowland was drafted in the 17th round by the Seattle Seahawks. Rowland broke a 24 year drought at the position – prior to his selection, Washington’s last quarterback selected was Don Heinrich in 1952.
Despite Rowland’s selection, former Moon understudy Tom Flick was the first drafted Husky to play in an NFL game after he was drafted in the fourth round in 1981.
Steve Pelluer took over for Flick in Husky Stadium but could not better his draft position, going to the Dallas Cowboys in the fifth round in 1984. Husky signal-callers landed in every even-year draft for the rest of the decade from there: Hugh Millen and Chris Chandler went in the third round in 1986 and 1988 respectively, and Cary Conklin went in the fourth round in 1990.
Brunell entered the league in 1993, but was actually the second Husky quarterback to come off the board that year. Billy Joe Hobert, who lost his eligibility midseason due to receiving improper benefits, was drafted in the third round.
The quirk of that 1992 season means the Huskies are one of only a handful of teams to have multiple quarterbacks drafted in the same year.
While Damon Huard went undrafted in 1996, his younger brother Brock was a third round pick by Seattle in 1999. He was quickly followed by Marques Tuiasosopo, a second round pick in 2001, and Cody Pickett, who went in the seventh round in 2004.
Isaiah Stanback was a fourth round pick in 2007 and while he was technically drafted as a quarterback after playing the position on Montlake, the Cowboys converted him to wide receiver before his first NFL game.
That brings us to Locker, the No. 8 overall pick in 2011 and the first Husky quarterback drafted in seven seasons. He stands on an island in the 2010s, as quarterback #15 Jacob Eason was not selected until the fourth round in 2020.
While Washington has produced NFL quarterbacks in spades, they’ve primarily been mid-round picks, with 10 of the 14 were selected between the third and fifth rounds.
Penix will likely tip that trend in a positive direction and could end up as the second-highest drafted Husky quarterback since 1967.