According to a tweet by Mike Vorel of the Seattle Times, Jedd Fisch of Arizona and Lance Leipold of Kansas football are the two names to watch while the Washington Huskies search for their next head coach.
The report was made more credible when ESPN senior writer Chris Low confirmed Leipold and Fisch could be hired. If the KU coach were to leave, a domino effect would ensue, with many members of the coaching staff and players on the team following him to Seattle (the same occurred when Kansas landed him in 2021).
Leipold was mentioned in an article by The Athletic's Bruce Feldman as a potential candidate once Kalen DeBoer announced he would succeed Nick Saban at Alabama. However, there was not much concern around the Jayhawk fanbase until the past 24 hours when OC Ryan Grubb disclosed he would not be the next Husky head coach.
Two names I'm hearing consistently for Washington: Kansas' Lance Leipold and Arizona's Jedd Fisch. Not saying they're the only two ... but worth noting that both currently coach star QBs from the west coast with multiple seasons of remaining eligibility. Just saying.
— Mike Vorel (@mikevorel) January 14, 2024
"Of course, you don't hire a coach because of the ~possibility~ they bring a quarterback. But if it ends up being Leipold or Fisch, focus would quickly shift to whether Jalon Daniels (KU) or Noah Fifita (Arizona) would follow," Vorel later added on X.
Fisch, like Leipold, took over a winless team after the 2020 season and led his respective program to a terrific season in his third campaign at the helm. Arizona finished with its first 10-win season in a decade and an Alamo Bowl victory, while Kansas ended the year at 9-4 with a win over UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl.
Besides Fisch and Leipold, K-State's Chris Klieman and Iowa State's Matt Campbell had been in the conversation. However, Klieman reportedly turned down the opportunity already, and Campbell is not supposed to be as high on UW's list. It's time for Kansas football fans to start worrying if they haven't already.