SEATTLE — There was a time, about a year ago, when the Washington Huskies could be fairly optimistic about their chances of landing one of the top 2023 quarterback recruits on the West Coast.
Jaden Rashada visited for the Huskies’ junior day in January 2022, in conjunction with an official visit by his older brother, Roman, then a junior college prospect in the 2022 recruiting class who also held a Washington offer. Six of the schools in Rashada’s early top 10 were in the Pac-12. Neither Miami nor Florida were in the picture yet. Rashid Williams, a four-star receiver and teammate of Rashada’s at Pittsburg (Calif.) High, wound up committing to Washington in May.
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There were enough connections to think the Huskies could be a major player in his recruitment, and they were among the group of schools pursuing him the hardest, says Charlie Ramirez, the longtime defensive coordinator at Pittsburg who was recently promoted to head coach.
“There was definitely a top four — it was Washington, Arizona State, Cal and probably Oregon State (talking to him the most), if I remember correctly,” Ramirez said. “It was definitely Washington and another set of teams that were getting after him the hardest.”
As everyone knows by now, though, the narrative came to center on NIL, and Washington fell out of the picture in a recruitment that has become the story of the offseason. There was a commitment to Miami, then a decommitment from Miami, then a commitment to Florida. The Athletic and other outlets reported that Rashada agreed with Florida’s independent donor group, the Gator Collective, on an NIL deal worth $13 million, presumably spread over multiple years. The collective reportedly terminated the contract, though, and while Rashada did sign his national letter of intent with Florida, he did not report to campus in January as planned.
He has since requested and been granted his release from his letter. 247Sports and ESPN each have mentioned Washington as a potential suitor, and California, Arizona State, Colorado and TCU also have been mentioned as possibilities; Rashada visited ASU last weekend and will visit TCU this weekend, per ESPN.
How viable is the Rashada-to-Washington buzz? What are the considerations, and what’s possible on the NIL front? Here’s what I’ve gathered:
• Every conversation about a school’s NIL philosophy should come with a “subject to change” disclaimer. Also, there is no way to know how much money any given collective has in its coffers, just as there is no way to know how much money any player might be earning (and why should there be?). Mostly, there are reports and rumors and outright lies. Rarely, there is something more concrete, such as when The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel reported on a seven-figure NIL contract after reviewing a copy of the document. Thanks to those fleeting, fact-based reports, we know that in at least some instances, certain high school prospects are signing seven-figure deals, and Rashada’s deal with Florida has been reported by enough credible sources (including this one) that it’s fair to say he believed he was in line for a big payday.
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• Washington’s approach to NIL, generally, has been to reward players already on the roster (such as, say, a sixth-year senior quarterback who led the nation in passing last season). Athletic director Jen Cohen said in May that more than 50 football players had some kind of NIL deal, and it’s fair to assume that number is higher now. The Huskies notably retained every underclassman who might have considered entering the NFL Draft this year and haven’t lost any key contributors to the transfer portal. There is little doubt that Montlake Futures, Washington’s primary independent donor collective, played a role.
• When I’ve asked recruits about Washington’s pitch to them on NIL, the responses are generally pretty similar. Here’s how 2023 signee Landen Hatchett, a three-star offensive lineman from Ferndale, answered after his official visit in June: “Their thing is, they’re doing it the right way. They’re not jumping on board and giving (recruits) millions of dollars. Obviously, the guys are making money, through Montlake Futures and their own (deals). I think they’re headed in a good direction, and I like they’re doing it the right way.”
• And three-star linebacker prospect Victory Johnson, who visited the same weekend but eventually signed with Colorado: “You can earn good amounts of money, but you have to work for it, like by running camps or signing autographs. You can’t just sit there and earn money just because you play football for Washington.”
• Then you have the comments made by Lincoln Kienholz, the four-star quarterback prospect from Pierre (S.D.) T.F. Riggs who committed to Washington in June but flipped to Ohio State a week before signing day. In a local TV interview in December, Kienholz turned some heads when he said: “I think Washington had better NIL than Ohio State. I think I can go to Washington and get money, or I can go to Ohio State and get developed, and then potentially reach my goal of going to the NFL.”
• It’s unclear whether Kienholz was referring to a specific deal or rather Washington’s comprehensive approach to NIL and the potential earning power its coaches might have communicated. It’s possible he didn’t mean it the way it came out. Regardless, it indicates some belief that Washington has money to spend — and is effectively leveraging that message in recruiting — which I don’t think will hurt any feelings on Montlake.
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• I believe Washington is interested in Rashada, but I also believe there are other schools in position to make him a higher priority. New Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham, for example, has a preexisting relationship with him from his time as Oregon’s offensive coordinator, and Rashada’s father, Harlen, played at ASU. Plus, the Sun Devils could really use a splash as they transition to a new era, fresh off a 3-9 season, even if Notre Dame transfer Drew Pyne offers a multiyear solution at quarterback.
Washington also has its quarterback for 2023, with Michael Penix Jr. returning, but does need a third scholarship QB to round out the depth chart following Sam Huard’s decision to transfer. From that perspective, Rashada would be a perfect fit, as he could redshirt in 2023 while learning from Penix, then compete for the starting job in 2024. Landing him could potentially solve two problems at once.
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• You never say never in the lawless (or at least enforcement-less) realm of NIL, but there is no reason at present to believe Washington would proffer a seven-figure deal for a high school recruit. I base that on just about every public word spoken by anyone associated with NIL at Washington and the fact that none of the Huskies’ 2023 signees were believed to be seeking a major paycheck in their recruitment. I think Huskies coaches want to demonstrate to prospects that yes, you can make money at Washington, and they are eager to promote the various resources the school can provide in that endeavor. There are plenty of players on the roster earning money through Montlake Futures and other sources, and the idea is that recruits will understand they will be in line for a similar payday (or, ideally, a better one, as the school’s NIL efforts continue to grow).
You’ve heard coaches and administrators talk a lot about locker room politics with regard to NIL, and that is a very real consideration. Some coaches are wary of directing more NIL money to a recruit than what most, if not all, of the players on the roster might be receiving from the same source, and my guess is Kalen DeBoer falls in that category.
The Huskies also are pursuing 2024 quarterback Austin Mack, a four-star prospect from Folsom (Calif.) High who visited over the weekend, and they already have a commitment from Seattle Garfield quarterback E.J. Caminong in the same class. Coaches need to figure out a third-string solution for 2023, but the Huskies’ offensive performance in 2022 should have put them in a favorable big-picture position with regard to quarterback recruiting, which should allow them to be pretty particular about the degree to which they press for any individual prospect, Rashada included.
• So in a world where Rashada takes his visits and weighs his options and winds up enrolling at Washington, it can be safely assumed that while there is no way of knowing what kind of NIL money the Huskies might arrange for him, it won’t be anywhere near the reported value of his ill-fated Florida deal. That likely will be true for any school he might sign with, especially those which have been discussed publicly. Because of the role NIL has played in Rashada’s recruitment, though, the perception might be that whichever school he signs with is paying him a large sum, regardless. I don’t think that’s lost on Washington’s coaches. I don’t think it’s a deal-breaker, either, but it’s part of the equation.
• None of that, however, should be interpreted as any kind of slight on Rashada’s character. Those who know him rave about him, and Washington’s coaches think highly of him. Obviously, there are factors at play in his recruitment that have turned it to a melodrama, but that doesn’t mean Rashada wouldn’t be a great fit once he gets to campus.
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“A lot of times, the kids that have a lot of ability, you never know whether you’re going to get somebody who takes their talents for granted,” Ramirez said. “Jaden is definitely the guy that’s always trying to get as much out of his ability as he possibly could.”
For example, Ramirez said that if Rashada missed team workouts while taking a recruiting trip, he would return “and work just as hard, and put in the extra work every time he missed, to help lead his teammates — with no entitlement whatsoever.”
• Considering that Rashada has reportedly scheduled a couple of visits and neither is to Washington, I wouldn’t install the Huskies as the betting favorite to land him at this point. But as long as he remains a free agent — and reciprocates interest, of course — I expect Washington to at least maintain contact and evaluate whether the factor that led Rashada away from Florida (NIL) can be adequately resolved at Washington without eschewing established philosophy.
(Photo: Stephen M. Dowell / Orlando Sentinel / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
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