What can Jedd Fisch do to win back Washington Husky fans after loss to Rutgers?
By Ethan Lee
After a disastrous loss to the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, the Washington Huskies are facing an uphill battle when it comes to getting back to a bowl game this year. The Huskies have played some pretty messy football to get this season started and that has been very evident in the two frustrating losses that have happened so far.
This season is far from over (and depending on how you look at that, that could be either a great thing or a horrifying thing). Jedd Fisch, who is following up the incredible job that Kalen DeBoer did on Montlake, is essentially tasked with a complete rebuild.
Following DeBoer’s departure to the Alabama Crimson Tide, Fisch was challenged with needing to replenish the roster. Thus, essentially half of Washington’s roster this season came via the transfer portal. These players are learning a new system and becoming familiar with their teammates.
That doesn’t excuse the sloppy play and abundance of penalties though. Washington shouldn’t be averaging 8.6 penalties and 80.8 penalty yards per game.
And Washington fans are pretty upset about this sort of mess that Washington is in right now.
Washington Husky fans upset with Jedd Fisch due to sloppy play vs. Washington State Cougars and Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Everything like the way the game ended against Rutgers and the poor clock management to the abundance of penalties that regularly plague Washington throughout a game. Husky fans are upset about that. Which isn’t unfair for them to be annoyed right now.
There are going to be folks who are upset with the current coaching staff given these issues. Especially when you consider that Washington is averaging just shy of 470 yards of total offense per game while holding opponents to 250 yards of offense per game and the Huskies are 3-2 on the year.
So, what can Fisch do to help win fans back?
It probably starts this weekend with the Michigan Wolverines. Finding a way to upset a flawed Wolverines team might make things a little more tolerable for Washington Husky fans. But it’s also plausible that Washington fans need to take a step back and acknowledge the pace in which Fisch is trying to rebuild this team.
Multiple things can be true at once. Washington fans may need to be patient. The Huskies should not be underachieving the way they are right now.
And Fisch absolutely has to find a way to reward Washington fans for being patient sooner rather than later. Proof of concept that you can win big games on Montlake with this team would go a long way to making this rebuild process smoother for everyone involved.