Assessing Washington's opposing quarterback slate in 2026
A team-by-team look at who will play quarterback for each of the Huskies' opponents.
With Washington’s 2026 schedule set, it’s a good time to assess the quarterback situation for each of the Huskies’ opponents.
Of course, when I sat down for this exercise last year, Joey Aguilar still played for UCLA, and Ryan Browne was at North Carolina, so things can always change. With no spring portal window, though, this projection feels a bit more settled than it might have a year ago, even if there is some guesswork involved for a handful of opponents who will hold legitimate QB battles this spring and summer.
Let’s start with some assorted facts about the QBs on Washington’s schedule:
Five of UW’s 2026 opponents are projected to start new transfers at quarterback, but only three in Big Ten play. However, the total number of projected starting QBs on Washington’s schedule who arrived at their school as a transfer — either this offseason or some previous offseason — is eight, including six in Big Ten play, leaving only three who were recruited to their respective programs out of high school (and one of those, Browne, did spend last spring at a different school).
Last season, 17 Big Ten quarterbacks played enough to qualify for the official passer-rating rankings. Washington faced eight of them. Four ranked in the top seven — Ohio State’s Julian Sayin, Oregon’s Dante Moore, Illinois’ Luke Altmyer and Athan Kaliakmanis — while none of the other four ranked higher than 12th (Michigan’s Bryce Underwood). Wisconsin did not have any quarterbacks play enough or attempt enough passes to qualify for ranking in that metric.
Washington’s 2026 schedule includes four returning full-time starting quarterbacks from last year — including two of the five most efficient passers in the Big Ten — and another, Michigan State’s Alessio Milivojevic, who became the starter by year’s end.
Two of the four newcomers were among the top quarterbacks in the Big 12, while another was Offensive Player of the Year in the Mountain West.
Here’s who to expect at quarterback for each of Washington’s 2026 opponents: