Jedd Fisch

Summary

Jedd Ari Fisch (born May 5, 1976) is an American football coach, currently the head coach at the University of Washington. He was previously the head coach at the University of Arizona for three seasons.

Jedd Fisch
Fisch in 2023
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamWashington
ConferenceBig Ten
Record0–0
Annual salary$7.75 million
Biographical details
Born (1976-05-05) May 5, 1976 (age 47)
Livingston, New Jersey, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Florida ('98)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1997P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School (FL) (DC)
1998New Jersey Red Dogs (WR/QC)
1999–2000Florida (GA)
2002–2003Houston Texans (DQC)
2004–2007Baltimore Ravens (offensive assistant)
2008Denver Broncos (WR)
2009Minnesota (OC/QB)
2010Seattle Seahawks (QB)
2011–2012Miami (FL) (OC/QB)
2013–2014Jacksonville Jaguars (OC)
2015–2016Michigan (QB/WR/PGC)
2017UCLA (OC/QB)
2017UCLA (interim HC)
2018Los Angeles Rams (senior offensive assistant)
2019Los Angeles Rams (assistant OC)
2020New England Patriots (QB)
2021–2023Arizona
2024–presentWashington
Head coaching record
Overall17–22
Bowls1–1

Prior to his tenure at Arizona, Fisch served as an assistant coach for the New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Michigan,[1] Jacksonville Jaguars, University of Miami, Seattle Seahawks, University of Minnesota, Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, and the University of Florida.

Early life edit

Fisch grew up in a Jewish family in Livingston, New Jersey and attended Hanover Park High School in nearby East Hanover Township.[2][3] He did not play football at the high school or college level,[4] but was an all-state tennis player during his prep career.[5]

Fisch graduated from the University of Florida in 1998 with a degree in criminology.[1] He attended Florida almost solely for the opportunity to someday work for Gators head coach Steve Spurrier,[5] and was college roommates with Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman.

Coaching career edit

Early career edit

Fisch embarked on a career in coaching while still in college as an undergraduate student. From 1997 to 1998, Fisch was the defensive coordinator for P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School in Gainesville, and he then spent one year (1998) with the New Jersey Red Dogs of the Arena Football League as a wide receivers/quality control coach.[6]

Fisch got his break in coaching when he was named a graduate assistant coach for the Florida Gators football team under Spurrier from 1999 to 2000. During this time, he earned his master's degree in sports management.

NFL assistant coach edit

Houston Texans edit

In 2002, Fisch was hired by the Houston Texans as a defensive quality control coach under head coach Dom Capers.

Baltimore Ravens edit

In 2004, Fisch was then hired by the Baltimore Ravens under head coach Brian Billick, where he first served as a general offensive assistant for the 2004 season before being named assistant quarterbacks coach and assistant wide receivers coach for the 2005–2007 seasons. Fisch would not be retained under new head coach John Harbaugh.

Denver Broncos edit

In 2008, Fisch was hired by the Denver Broncos as their wide receivers coach under head coach Mike Shanahan. Under his tutelage, Brandon Marshall finished the season ranked third among NFL wide receivers in receptions (104), seventh in receiving yards (1,265), fifth in receiving yards per game (84.3), seventh in yards after the catch (419), third in catches that led to first downs (65) and first in number of times targeted for the second consecutive season (181).[7] Marshall also finished first in fan voting for AFC wide receivers in the 2009 Pro Bowl.[8] Rookie second round draft pick Eddie Royal also had a career season in 2008. Royal's 91 receptions are second most in NFL history for a rookie, behind only Anquan Boldin who had 101 receptions in 2003. His 980 yards and five touchdowns are both Broncos rookie records, and sixth in the NFL in total yards. Fisch would not be retained under new head coach Josh McDaniels.

Seattle Seahawks edit

In 2010, after spending a year at the Minnesota Golden Gophers football, Fisch was hired by the Seattle Seahawks as their quarterbacks coach under head coach Pete Carroll. Fisch remained with the Seahawks for a season before returning to coach college football at Miami.

Jacksonville Jaguars edit

In 2013, Fisch returned to the NFL and was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars as their offensive coordinator under head coach Gus Bradley.[9] He was terminated from the Jaguars on December 30, 2014.[10]

Los Angeles Rams edit

On January 24, 2018, after stints at Michigan and UCLA, Fisch was hired by the Los Angeles Rams as a senior offensive assistant under head coach Sean McVay, adding Fisch to their deep group of offensive coaches. Fisch operated as the Rams' clock-management specialist. Fisch and the Rams appeared in Super Bowl LIII, where they lost to the New England Patriots 13-3 in what was both a rematch of Super Bowl XXXVI and the lowest scoring Super Bowl in NFL history.[11] He was promoted to assistant offensive coordinator for the 2019 season.

New England Patriots edit

On January 24, 2020, Fisch was hired by the New England Patriots as their quarterbacks coach under head coach Bill Belichick.[12] 2 months after Fisch's arrival, long-time quarterback Tom Brady announced his departure from the Patriots after 20 years and would sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on March 20, 2020. In April it was revealed that Fisch's title would be quarterbacks coach.[13] In his lone season in New England, Fisch coached quarterbacks Cam Newton, Brian Hoyer, and Jarrett Stidham.

College assistant coach edit

Minnesota edit

In 2009, Fisch returned to the college game, serving a single season as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team under head coach Tim Brewster.

Miami edit

In 2011, Fisch joined the Miami Hurricanes football team as their offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under head coach Al Golden after a year with the Seattle Seahawks.

Michigan edit

On January 9, 2015, Fisch was hired by the Michigan Wolverines to serve as their quarterbacks coach, wide receivers coach, and passing game coordinator.[14] Fisch stated that he was drawn to a job at Michigan despite not having ties to incoming head coach Jim Harbaugh, the University, or the area.[15] However, he does have a long-standing coaching relationship with Vic Fangio, Harbaugh's defensive coordinator for four years with the San Francisco 49ers and one year with Stanford.[16]

UCLA edit

On January 5, 2017, Fisch was hired by the UCLA Bruins as the offensive coordinator under sixth-year head coach Jim L. Mora.[17][18]

Following the firing of Mora, Fisch was named interim head coach on November 19 for the remainder of the 2017 season. With the Bruins at 5–6, he guided them to bowl eligibility with a 30–27 win over the likewise 5–6 California Golden Bears. At the Cactus Bowl in Phoenix on December 26, UCLA was defeated 35–17 by favored Kansas State and finished at 6–7.

Head coach edit

Arizona edit

On December 23, 2020, Fisch was hired as the 30th head coach at the University of Arizona.[19] At the time, he was believed to be one of a handful of head coaches never to play college football,[20] and had spent the previous three seasons as an NFL assistant.

In his third year in 2023, Fisch led the Wildcats to a 9–3 regular season (7–2 in Pac-12, third), and defeated Oklahoma 38–24 in the Alamo Bowl to finish at 10–3 (.769). Arizona was ranked eleventh in the final AP Poll, their highest finish in a quarter century.

Washington edit

On January 14, 2024, Fisch became the 31st head coach at the University of Washington, accepting a seven-year contract at $7.75 million annually.[21][22]

Head coaching record edit

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs Coaches# AP°
UCLA Bruins (Pac-12 Conference) (2017)
2017 UCLA 1–1 1–0 4th (South) L Cactus
UCLA: 1–1 1–0
Arizona Wildcats (Pac-12 Conference) (2021–2023)
2021 Arizona 1–11 1–8 6th (South)
2022 Arizona 5–7 3–6 8th
2023 Arizona 10–3 7–2 3rd W Alamo 11 11
Arizona: 16–21 11–16
Washington Huskies (Big Ten Conference) (2024–present)
2024 Washington 0–0 0–0
Washington: 0–0 0–0
Total: 17–22

References edit

  1. ^ a b "University of Michigan Official Athletic Site". www.mgoblue.com. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  2. ^ O'Halloran, Ryan. "Inside the game: Entry-level spot with key duties for Jaguars", The Florida Times-Union, November 19, 2013. Accessed December 31, 2014. "Fisch attended Hanover Park High School in East Hanover, N.J., when Sorrentino’s father was the football coach."
  3. ^ Cohen, Ben Z. (October 25, 2012). "Notre Dame Coach's Jewish Past". Tablet. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  4. ^ Gorten, Steve. "Jedd Fisch has infused life into Miami Hurricanes offense; First-year offensive coordinator has been key to quarterback Jacory Harris' success", Sun-Sentinel, October 21, 2011. Accessed September 12, 2015. "Fisch never played high school or college football, but has coached for several NFL teams under coaches such as Mike Shanahan, Brian Billick and Pete Carroll. From the time he was an 8-year-old ballboy, he has studied the game. His mentor was a high school coach in his hometown of East Hanover, N.J."
  5. ^ a b "Fisch's Journey". July 10, 2010. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  6. ^ "Jacksonville Jaguars: Jedd Fisch". Archived from the original on March 13, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  7. ^ 2008 NFL Sortable Receiving Stats. SI.com. Retrieved February 28, 2009.
  8. ^ Kuharsky, Paul (December 11, 2008). "Final fan voting for Pro Bowl". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  9. ^ "Jaguars hire Fisch as new offensive coordinator". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 19, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  10. ^ Jaguars.com "Jaguars part ways with offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch" Archived January 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ^ @CourtneyRCronin (September 25, 2018). "Pretty interesting nugget Sean McVay..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. ^ Mason, Chris (January 24, 2020). "Former Jaguars offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch joins Patriots coaching staff (report)". Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  13. ^ O'Malley, Nick (April 14, 2020). "Patriots coaching rumors: Jedd Fisch will coach QBs; Mick Lombardi moves to WR coach (report)". Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  14. ^ FoxSports.com "Ex-Jaguars offensive coordinator Fisch to join Harbaugh's staff at Michigan".
  15. ^ "New U-M coaches look to bring 'precision,' 'excellence'". Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  16. ^ "Jedd Fisch says Michigan's NFL staff experience should give team a recruiting boost". January 20, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  17. ^ "Jedd Fisch Named UCLA Offensive Coordinator". UCLA Athletics. January 5, 2017.
  18. ^ "UCLA hires Jedd Fisch as offensive coordinator". OC Register. January 5, 2017.
  19. ^ "Arizona Wildcats hire New England Patriots' Jedd Fisch as new football coach". ESPN. December 23, 2020.
  20. ^ Feldman, Bruce (December 29, 2020). "Super Bowl winners vouch for new Arizona coach Jedd Fisch". The Athletic. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  21. ^ "Washington is hiring Arizona's Jedd Fisch to be head coach, replacing Kalen DeBoer, AP source says". AP News. January 14, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
  22. ^ https://x.com/UW_Football/status/1746688849450094864?s=20[bare URL]

External links edit

  • Washington Huskies bio