Washington Huskies QB Demond Williams’ saga continues to take dramatic turns since his controversial decision to enter the portal. The quarterback’s agent forfeited his representation, only for his new attorney to step in and issue a public statement in his defense.

Doug Hendrickson, the president of Wasserman Football, shared a short memo announcing that he’s parting ways with Demond Williams.

Moments after Hendrickson’s announcement, attorney Darren Heitner, who had represented Xavier Lucas in a similar case, announced that he will be representing Williams as his attorney.

“I have been retained as legal counsel for Demond Williams Jr.,” wrote Darren Heitner on X. “We have no public comment at this time. Updates will be provided as appropriate.”

The entire situation began after Demond Williams announced his entry into the transfer portal, just four days after signing a $4 million NIL deal with the Washington Huskies to return for the 2026 season. The agreement was approved by the Big Ten, which prohibits Williams from entering the transfer portal and restricts his NIL rights from being used by another school. The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman reported that Washington is planning to pursue legal avenues against Williams.

“UW has prepared to pursue legal action to enforce the terms of the contract,” Feldman reported. “Could lead to a messy debate over the circumstances surrounding Williams’ status.”

Meanwhile, the QB’s agent, Hendrickson, opted out. It is noteworthy that he is also the agent for Washington’s head coach, Jedd Fisch. On the other hand, attorney Darren Heitner is hired to defend Williams. He was the one who represented Wisconsin’s Xavier Lucas, who had the same tension between NIL contracts and moving to Miami.

However, another prominent lawyer has already given her opinion on the situation, keeping Washington on high notice.

Washington cannot force Demond Williams’ decision

While the Huskies threatened legal action against the sophomore quarterback, a prominent lawyer, Michelle, with over 101k followers on X, stepped in to share his verdict. Michelle quoted the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which prohibits forced labor. She also brought the Xavier Lucas case to defend Williams.

“First and foremost. Washington cannot force Demond Williams to play football there,” Michelle said in her January 7 video on X. “Nobody in the United States can force anybody else to actually do work. It technically violates the 13th Amendment of the Constitution, which prohibits involuntary servitude, so that can’t happen here.

The second thing you need to know is. This contract is probably not an actual pay-for-play. It seems like it was a media rights contract, and if it was modeled off the contract at issue and the Xavier Lucas dispute. So, there’s absolutely nothing in there requiring him to play football in the first instance or seemingly prohibiting him from playing anywhere else.”

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With that being said, Washington officials were expected to communicate with Williams’ representatives regarding next steps. With the new representation being hired, it would be interesting to see how the case unfolds.