Report: Mississippi State QB Will Rogers commits to transfer to Washington
TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 02: Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Will Rogers (2) makes a pass attempt during the ReliaQuest Bowl between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Monday, January 2, 2023 at Raymond James Stadium
Mississippi State quarterback Will Rodgers told ESPN on Friday that he intends to transfer to play for the Washington Huskies after making a visit to the campus.
"I know I have one more crack at it," Rogers said, via Pete Thamel. "I know I had to do what I had to do -- win as many games as possible. It's a place I feel like they throw the ball around a lot, as we did my first three years at Mississippi State. That's something I'll be excited about coming in."
Rogers was in Seattle on Friday making a visit to the school. He made a post to his instagram stories with a photo overlooking Husky Stadium.
Rogers was a three-year starter under former Washington State head coach Mike Leach at Mississippi State and put up fantastic numbers in Leach's pass-heavy offense. Under new head coach Jeff Lebby last season, the Bulldogs offense regressed significantly.
Over the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Rogers started 26 games for Mississippi State with 8,713 yards, 71 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. That came from Rogers competing 71.2 percent of his passes and averaging 334 yards per game. Rogers ranks second all-time in SEC passing yards with 12,315 for his career.
The Huskies will need a quarterback to take over for Heisman Trophy finalist Michael Penix Jr. as he graduates and heads to the NFL.
Penix was the runner-up for the Heisman Trophy behind LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels. Penix led the nation in passing yards (4,218) and passing yards per game (324.5). He threw 33 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games played for the Huskies this season while completing 65.9 percent of his passes with a 9.1 yards per attempt average, both of which are career-highs.
Penix was just the second Husky ever to be a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. Defensive tackle Steve Emtman finished fourth in the balloting for the 1991 trophy that was won by University of Michigan wide receiver Desmond Howard.
With backup quarterback and former starter Dylan Morris entering the transfer portal as well, Washington was seeking options to take over at quarterback for next year.
"Obviously how Coach [Ryan] Grubb runs his offense, it's one of the tops in the country with how they score points and how quarterback friendly the system is," Rogers said, via ESPN. "People started to catch on to them in 2022, that's when the whole nation took notice. Things didn't go as planned this year (for me), and I entered the portal. I had hoped that they would reach out."
Washington running back Dillon Johnson was a former teammate of Rogers at Mississippi State as well before transferring last year. Johnson rushed for 1,113 yards and 14 touchdowns this season in helping UW reach the College Football Playoff.