SEATTLE — Demond Williams Jr. remembers nerves.
What else would a true freshman feel at his very first college practice, particularly one taking place while most everyone else his age is still in high school? Like most modern college football players, Williams was a January enrollee — initially at Arizona before transferring to UW when coach Jedd Fisch took the job here — ahead of his first spring practices in 2024.
So just today, the junior quarterback said, he mentioned to January enrollee Derek Colman-Brusa: “I know exactly what you feel. I’ve got your back if you need anything, any help.”
Then Colman-Brusa took the field and lined up at defensive tackle … with the No. 1 defense, next to fourth-year junior Elinneus Davis and accompanied by senior edge rushers Jacob Lane and Isaiah Ward.
Opposite that defensive front was Kodi Greene, the five-star freshman left tackle. Further down the line of scrimmage, freshman Jordan Clay lined up at receiver. When the second-stringers took the field, freshman Ramzak Fruean stood at edge rusher, and freshman defensive back Ksani Jiles played nickel.
"There's certain guys that just based upon their physical skill set, we're giving some opportunities to," Fisch said, answering a question about Fruean but speaking more generally. "Then we'll rotate through that and make sure as the spring goes, different guys will get different opportunities."
These were far from the only new faces at Washington’s first spring practice of 2026. Twenty of the Huskies’ 25 signees in their 2026 recruiting class have enrolled, along with 15 transfers, several of whom also slotted into first-team roles on Tuesday. But it was hard not to notice the rookies with the first unit at their first college practice, duty that even Williams wasn’t assigned upon his arrival.
"The incoming class we've got is really good," Williams said. "I can't wait to see them continue to perform throughout the spring."
Here’s what else to know about Washington’s first spring practice of 2026.