As Washington prepares for a College Football Playoff showdown with Texas, the program is considering its future without Michael Penix Jr.
After finishing second to Jayden Daniels in the Heisman Trophy voting, Penix will look to culminate his final year of collegiate eligibility with a national championship. Meanwhile, the Huskies are already eyeing a possible 2024 replacement from the transfer portal.
According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Washington is considered a “strong favorite” to land Will Rogers. The Mississippi State quarterback is scheduled to visit the campus on Friday.
“There’s strong mutual interest between both Rogers and Washington and a very good chance he could be Michael Penix’s replacement in Seattle after the Huskies CFP season is over,” Thamel said on College Football Live, courtesy of On3’s Nick Kosko.
Sources: Washington will host a pair of Mississippi State transfers this week – both quarterback Will Rogers and tailback Jo’Quavious Marks are slated to visit Seattle on Friday. The Huskies are considered the strong favorite for Rogers.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 12, 2023
Rogers has completed 69.4 percent of his passes for 12,315 yards over four seasons with the Bulldogs. He tossed 36 touchdowns in 2021 and 35 in 2022.
However, Rogers stumbled this year. His completion percentage dipped to 59.9, and he finished five of eight games below 200 passing yards.
Rogers returned from a shoulder injury to throw two touchdowns in a 41-20 win over Southern Miss before losing the Egg Bowl to Ole Miss.
Transferring to Washington paid major dividends for Penix, who has posted 8,859 passing yards and 64 touchdowns in two seasons after injuries derailed his Indiana tenure. He could make a case to go in the first round of next year’s NFL Draft.
Rogers could try to forge the same path if aligning with Kalen DeBoer for the Big Ten-bound program next season.