HOUSTON– When Michael Penix Jr. arrived at Washington as a transfer from Indiana, he was trying to resurrect his career from the ashes of the B1G.Two years later, he has put the Pac-12 on the national map again with a spectacular season.
Penix put together a brilliant performance to lead the unbeaten 14-0 Huskies to the national championship game against top-seeded Michigan Monday night at sold out RNB Stadium. He completed 29 of 38
passes for 430 yards and two touchdowns as the Huskies outscored Texas, 37-31, in the national semi-finals at the Sugar Bowl. It was enough evidence for Washington coach Kalen DeBoer to call him “the best player in college football.”
If Washington wins and the Heisman Trophy balloting was held after the end of the season, it’s a reasonable assumption.
As things stand, Penix finished runner-up to LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels in the Heisman Trophy balloting.
But, if Washington wins, a strong case could be made for Penix as the most valuable quarterback in the country.
“I don’t know if you can transfer the Heisman Trophy and how that works, but man, he’s the best to do it in the nation, and I’ve known that for a long time”’ Washington receiver Rome Odunze, “Unfortunately, I feel like the media and everybody on the outside hasn’t paid close enough attention. he’s special and he’s fought through adversity, and here he is shining on the biggest stage.”
Penix; has suffered from playing for a team in a conference that hasn’t been to a national championship since 2014 and plays its games three time zones away from the East Coast media capitols. USC– which has produced seven Heisman winners– has been the lone exception to that perception because its biggest games against Notre Dame and UCLA attract national attention.
But this year, the Pac-12 has produced multiple elite quarterbacks, including 2023 Heisman winner Caleb Williams, Penix and Bo Nix of Oregon– it has become impossible to ignore, even if some late-night games end after 2 am. Eastern time.
“The Pac-12, I feel like in my opinion was the toughest conference this year all around,” Penix said. “At one point in time we had eight teams ranked in the Top 25. We had a lot of
competition, a lot of good opponents each and every week.”
Sadly, this is the last hurrah for the league, which will disappear after this spring with Washington, Oregon UCLA and USC headed for the B1G and Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah going to the Big 12 and Stanford and Cal resurfacing in the ACC.
Penix, who has thrown for over 4,500 yards this season, made it a season to remember.
Penix didn’t waste much time making an impression on Texas, hitting Ja’Lynn Polk for a 77-yard bomb on his first attempt, then consistently taking advantage of down field mismatches with Odunze, Polk and Jalen McMillen, who gained 305 yards on 16 catches.
Washington has been an undervalued team all season.
The Huskies were picked to finish behind USC pre-season. They were underdogs in both games against Oregon and again against Texas.
But here they are, standing at the doorstep of the throne room.
“I mean, we see that stuff that’s out there, but we don’t really let it bother us,” Penix said. ”We have an us vs. us mentality. That’s kind of been our motto all year, because we know that people don’t believe in us. But for us, within our doors, within our team, we’ve got to have that understanding that nobody can shape our future. Only we can”
It’s been a long six- year trip for Penix, who started life as a three-star recruit from Tampa, Fla. He was committed to Tennessee and Butch Jones ahead of early national signing day but once a new regime took over in Knoxville, he had his offer pulled.by new coach Jeremy Pruitt. Penix took to social media to inform Tennessee fans he wasn’t wanted in Knoxville. and signed with Indiana. He flashed during his brief stint with the Hoosiers, helping the Hoosiers upset Michigan in 20002. But injuries derailed his career in the Big Ten and he entered the transfer portal and has exploded into a star at Washington, playing for Kaelen DeBoer, who was the offensive coordinator at Indiana in 2019 when the Hoosiers offense averaged a B1G leading 414 yards a game and became a friend. Penix has helped lead the Huskies to a 25-2 record.
Washington will enter Monday night’s game against the Wolverines as a five-point underdog. But Penix is an x factor who always gives the Huskies a chance, especially if they can score early and change the tempo of the game so Michigan can’t crush their defense with its offensive line and rushing game.
Undervalue him at your own peril.
