With the commitment of four-star quarterback Blake Roskopf in Washington’s class of 2027, a clear trend is beginning to take shape. The style of quarterback that head coach Jedd Fisch has traditionally utilized during his five years as a head coach is evolving. Roskopf stands at 6’-5” and is a pure pocket passing quarterback. The dual-threat nature of Fisch’s current and past quarterbacks has allowed his offenses to open up in terms of versatility. But with Roskopf, the passing game itself can become more multifaceted.
UW Quarterback Evolution
Jedd Fisch’s QB Blueprint
Fisch inherited a depleted roster in 2021 when he became the head coach of Arizona. Will Plummer, at 6’-1” and 205 pounds, started the final six games of that season in which the Wildcats finished 1-11. The next year, Fisch picked Jayden de Laura out of the transfer portal from Washington State. The 6’-0” and 205-pound quarterback started all 12 games, leading the team to a 5-7 record. De Laura passed for over 3,600 yards with 25 touchdowns, adding four rushing scores to his total. The dual-threat quarterback rushed for 331 sack-adjusted yards with an average of 5.8 per carry that season.
Noah Fifita was a true freshman in 2022 and was elevated to the starting role as a redshirt freshman when de Laura suffered an ankle injury in late September. Fifita ended up starting the final nine games of the season, including the Alamo Bowl win against Oklahoma. The 5’-10” quarterback helped lead the team to its first 10-win season since 2014 with 2,800 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. Fifita had only 80 sack-adjusted yards on the ground in 2023. But he’d go on to rush for 219 yards in 2024 and 404 yards in 2025 as a dual-threat signal caller.
Washington Quarterbacks
At Washington, Fisch started from scratch again. Another depleted roster left no returning experience at any position. This time, however, Fisch had secured the commitment of Will Rogers out of the transfer portal, who would become a veteran voice in the locker room in 2024. The 6’-2” and 216-pound former air-raid quarterback was not the ideal fit for Fisch’s traditional scheme. But the leadership qualities and quarterback talent were an essential component of the Huskies’ six-win season in 2024. Rogers completed over 70% of his passes for 2,500 yards and 14 touchdowns to finish out his career as one of the most statistically accomplished passers in college football history.
But Fisch had recruited Demond Williams, a 5’-11” quarterback with an elite dual-threat presence under center, the ideal quarterback for Fisch’s offense. He played all 13 games as a true freshman alongside Rogers and started the final two. Williams’ statistics as a first-year starter in 2025 speak for themselves. Over 3,000 passing yards with 25 touchdowns, 775 sack-adjusted rushing yards with six scores on the ground.
Williams is again primed for a prolific season as a rising junior and second-year starter for Fisch. But a notable transfer portal addition took place during the 2026 offseason with the acquisition of Elijah Brown.
Pocket Passing Presence
Brown’s experience was the primary reason for his addition to the young quarterback room. But the former Stanford Cardinal brings a different skillset to Montlake. At 6’-2” and 205 pounds, Brown is a pocket passer who doesn’t look to run as frequently as Williams. During his 2025 season, Brown scrambled on just three of the 56 times he was pressured in the pocket (5.3%). Williams scrambled 65 times on 184 pressures a year ago (35.3%). Brown is not going to look to run until it’s absolutely necessary. Instead, he relies on his downfield accuracy and decision-making in the pocket.
The projected backup quarterback has shown consistency in completing passes over the middle of the field. On throws between the numbers of 20 yards or less last season, Brown totaled 398 of his 829 passing yards with 44 of his 74 completions. In fact, the short middle of the field (between the numbers on throws of 10 yards or less) was the only quadrant of the field where Brown had double-digit completions. And he had 33 in that area.
Middle of the Field
Statistically, Williams hasn’t been bad in this category. His completion percentage between the numbers is extremely high. The rising junior completed 158 out of 180 throws (87.7%) between the numbers on passes less than 20 yards. However, Williams has put the football in harm’s way the most when he throws over the middle.
Six of his eight interceptions were thrown between the numbers last year, and seven of his nine “turnover-worthy” throws were in this category. Williams is good over the middle, but he tends to force throws in this category more than any other portion of the field. This spring, the offense spent a lot of time working on these kinds of throws to strengthen its passing consistency over the middle. Listed at 5’-11”, Williams doesn’t see the field the same way a 6’-2” Brown does, or the way a 6’-5” Roskopf would. That’s where this quarterback trend is becoming the most easily observed.
Prototypical Quarterback
Out of Desert Ridge High School in Goodyear, Arizona, Roskopf will bring a prototypical quarterback frame to Montlake. At 6’-5” and 235 pounds, the rising high school senior threw for 2,800 yards and 37 touchdowns as a junior with eight interceptions. He’s currently a four-star and the 14th-ranked quarterback nationally in his class. While he’s not a runner (1.5 yards per carry as a junior), Roskopf possesses quality footwork and maneuverability in the pocket to create passing windows downfield. He excels in his touch with throws in the deep-third of the field, and most importantly, delivers strikes over the middle with exceptional vision.
When you evaluate the trend of how Fisch has approached the quarterback position throughout his five years as a head coach, you can start to see how it’s evolving as he enters year six. Williams embodies everything Fisch prioritizes out of his quarterback. And that dual-threat nature opens up offenses in various ways. But now with the addition of Brown in the transfer portal, and the commitment of Roskopf in its class of 2027, Washington is beginning to implement another way to attack Big Ten defenses.
Main Image: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
