There’s a version of college football where the weight room is the only room that matters. For years, that version existed at plenty of schools across the country, and some might argue it still does. But Jedd Fisch and the Washington Huskies have successfully broken that mold.

This past winter quarter, the Washington football team did something it had never done before. Twenty-seven Huskies earned a spot on the Dean’s List. This is the most in the program’s history. Moreover, the football team posted a 3.31 GPA, tied for the highest in program history. That record? They set it themselves, just one quarter earlier in autumn. Back-to-back record-tying GPAs. That’s culture.

When Jedd Fisch accepted the Washington head coaching job on January 14, 2024, signing a seven-year deal worth $7.75 million annually, he inherited a program in the middle of a seismic shift. The Huskies were transitioning into the Big Ten, and the 2024 season showed growing pains, ending at 6-7 with a Sun Bowl loss. But Fisch is a long-game coach.

He proved that at Arizona, where he turned a 1-11 disaster in 2021 into a 10-3 season two years later. The blueprint was about building people. He brought that same philosophy to Seattle, and the numbers are starting to tell the story.

By spring 2025, Washington football’s team GPA had climbed to 3.27. It was the highest in program history at the time. Then, autumn 2025 pushed it to 3.31. Then winter 2026 tied that mark again. Three straight quarters of program-defining academic performance. Meanwhile, on the field, the 2025 Huskies went 9-4, finishing the season with a convincing win over Boise State in the LA Bowl. 

“Be a Pro — on and off the field.” That’s the slogan in Fisch’s program. Increasingly, it looks like a promise that is being kept.

Of the 27 Huskies who made the Dean’s List this winter, one name stands out immediately: freshman placekicker C.J. Wallace, who posted a perfect 4.0 GPA in his first collegiate quarter. Wallace enrolled at Washington in January 2026 as part of the incoming freshman class. He comes out of St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, California, one of the most competitive football programs in the country. 

As a junior in 2024, he made 5 field goals and nailed 52 PATs. He arrived at UW with serious leg talent and, apparently, an equally serious work ethic in the classroom.

But the Dean’s List wasn’t dominated by skill-position players. It was the trenches that showed up most. The tight end room placed four players: Decker DeGraff, Kade Eldridge, Baron Naone, and Charlie Crowell. The offensive line had seven representatives: Champ Taulealea, Jake Flores, John Mills, Kodi Greene, Kolt Dieterich, Parker Cross, and Soane Faasolo. Special teams added Hunter Green and Tyler Robles to the list. Seven offensive linemen on the Dean’s List, and that too, in the same quarter. 

No conversation about Washington’s academic culture is complete without mentioning Jonah Coleman. The senior running back rushed for 1,621 yards and 22 touchdowns in his two seasons with the Huskies. But his formidable demeanor wasn’t limited to the field. In January 2026, he became the first Washington player to earn First Team Academic All-America honors since Rome Odunze after the 2023 season, and only the 16th Husky ever to receive that distinction.

Coleman was also a finalist for both the William V. Campbell Trophy (known as the “Academic Heisman”) and the Paul Hornung Award in 2025. His story of a captain, an All-Big Ten running back, and a first-team academic All-American is the dual identity Fisch is deliberately trying to make the norm at Washington.

The football achievement sits within a much broader department-wide wave of academic excellence. For the tenth consecutive quarter, UW student-athletes collectively posted a GPA above 3.35, finishing winter 2026 with a 3.49 departmental GPA. It followed a department record of 3.52 in autumn 2025. 

Across all 22 Husky sports, every single team earned a 3.0 GPA or better for five straight quarters. A total of 230 student-athletes made the Dean’s List university-wide this winter, with 26 achieving a perfect 4.0.

For football specifically, 43 players earned Big Ten All-Academic honors, and four Huskies were named to the Academic All-District Team. The Big Ten’s academic recognition standards are among the most rigorous in college football. 

Jedd Fisch doesn’t talk much about legacies. He talks about standards. Right now, in Seattle, those two things are starting to look like the same thing.

Spring for the Huskies

The Huskies are halfway through their spring practice, and the Dawgs After Dark is all set for April 29. Fisch did not take it easy on the boys this spring and held its most competitive practice so far.

Wide receiver Jordan Clay has shown commendable growth and stood out in practice. The former 4-star recruit from San Antonio completed all his reps in the first scrimmage of the practice. Yet another example that Fisch and his coaching staff have brought in a crop of freshmen that is ready to make an impact early.

As is often the case in football, the injury bug struck again during practice, this time sidelining running back Jordan Washington. He suffered a neck injury, and medical staff immediately immobilized him on a stretcher and rushed him to the hospital. He is out for the rest of the spring practice, a setback for the Huskies, as they lose one of their fastest runners. Fisch spoke about his RB’s condition on a radio interview.

“Jordan’s doing well right now, but there’s going to be some rehab and recovery involved here,” Fisch said. “So, we’re not going to see him the rest of spring.”

Moving forward, Fisch will have to keep an extra eye on his RB room. Any further injuries to them could be concerning for the Huskies’ upcoming season.