UW Huskies land transfer QB Will Rogers from Mississippi State
Dec 15, 2023, 5:12 PM
(Justin Ford/Getty Images)
The UW Huskies appear to have their next starting quarterback after Michael Penix Jr.
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With Penix, who finished second in Heisman voting, out of college eligibility once UW’s season ends, the Huskies went to the transfer portal to add another quarterback. Pete Thamel reports that Will Rogers told ESPN he is committing to the Huskies.
Rogers starred at Mississippi State, appearing in 43 games and throwing for over 12,000 yards with 94 touchdown passes. He played in eight games in 2023 due to injury and entered the transfer portal late in November. He has one more year of eligibility left.
Rogers leaves Mississippi State as the program’s statistical leader in nearly every passing category, and he notably played for former Washington State head coach Mike Leach before his passing late last year.
He was a three-star recruit out of high school who chose to stay in-state in Mississippi and attend Mississippi State. His other top school was WSU because of Leach, who coached Gardner Minshew in 2018.
Rogers visited Washington on Friday before Thamel’s report that Rogers will be joining the program in 2024.
“He’s excited about playing in an offense that led the nation in passing in 2023 with 343.8 passing yards per game,” Thamel posted. “’I know I have one more crack at it,’ Rogers told ESPN. ‘I know I had to do what I had to do – win as many games as possible.'”
Rogers will look to follow in the footsteps of Penix, who has been one of the better transfer players in college football the last few years.
After injuries derailed his career at Indiana, Penix has played in 26 games for Washington, winning 24 of them under head coach Kalen DeBoer, his offensive coordinator in 2019. He finished second to LSU’s Jayden Daniels in Heisman voting, earning the highest finish of any player in UW history when it comes to the Heisman.
Penix has guided the Huskies to a perfect 13-0 record this season, including a 34-31 win over rival Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship.
Penix and the Huskies are the No. 2 team in the country and they will face No. 3 Texas in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, with the winner going to the national championship game against either No. 1 Michigan or No. 4 Alabama.
For more insight into Will Rogers, check out Brock Huard’s thoughts in the story below.