Jedd Fisch explains adjustments Will Rogers will have to make after career in Air Raid under Mike Leach
In two years as Mike Leach’s starting quarterback at Mississippi State, Will Rogers flourished in the Air Raid offense. He threw for 4,739 yards in 2021 and 3,974 in 2022 while averaging nearly 647 passing attempts over those two seasons.
Following Leach’s sudden death, Rogers had to adjust to a pro-style scheme in less than a season under Zach Arnett in 2023. He then entered the transfer portal and committed to Washington, where he stuck around after Jedd Fisch took over for Kalen DeBoer.
It will once again be a pro-style system in Seattle, but Fisch called it one made for a quarterback. That was part of his pitch to Rogers after he took over.
“When I talk to quarterbacks, I talk to them all the same way,” Fisch said during a breakout session with reporters. “I say to them, ‘Why would you not want to play in this offense?’ I know it’s arrogant and I know it’s not necessarily what everybody wants to hear.
“But if you’re a quarterback, you should want to play in this offense. We throw the ball about 58-60% of the time, we’ve been in the top five in throwing offense every year. … There’s a lot of good evidence about playing quarterback in this offense that if there’s one position you should want to play, it’s that.”
The scheme won’t be the Air Raid, though. That’s why Fisch said Rogers will have some adjustments to make – particularly when it comes to play-action.
“We don’t throw it the same way. We’re not really Air Raid,” Fisch said. “We have, probably, more under center, play-actions, some of the things that they don’t do over there. He’s gonna have to learn how to turn his back to the defense and flip his head around. That’s a little bit unique for guys that played in that Air Raid. The third-down package, the drop-back package.
“I think Will’s ability to just throw the ball 50 times a game, we’re not gonna do that. We’ll throw it about 38 times a game, 40 times a game, max. Hopefully less. We’d love to be about a 32-run, 38-pass team. We’ll see if that fits him. But I think it will.”
That ratio is similar to what Fisch did at Arizona last season with Noah Fifita and Jayden de Laura at quarterback. The Wildcats averaged 35.7 pass attempts and 30.6 rush attempts en route to a 10-3 record. Aspects of that West Coast-style are sure to follow Fisch to Washington as he takes over, in his words, “a brand new team” after DeBoer’s departure.
Rogers is sure to be the focal point, bringing plenty of experience to the quarterback position. But when it comes to how many times he has to throw, Fisch said he hopes it doesn’t reach the numbers from Mississippi State. However, in college football, nothing is a certainty.
“Well, he’s certainly done that,” Fisch said when asked about Rogers’ volume of pass attempts. “Throwing the ball is not an issue for Will.
“His arm is one that’s accustomed to a lot of attempts. I don’t think we’ll have to attempt it that much. I would hope we don’t attempt it that much, but you never know.”