Will Washington Huskies be part of potential college football super league?

[DerekJohnson]

Washington runs out of the tunnel before its regular season finale against 5th-ranked Oregon, Nov. 29, 2025, at Husky Stadium in Seattle. (Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times)

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By
Jon Wilner

Bay Area News Group

The Hotline mailbag publishes weekly. Send questions to wilnerhotline@bayareanewsgroup.com and include “mailbag” in the subject line. Or hit me on the social media platform X: @WilnerHotline. Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Will Washington be part of the eventual 40-team super league? — @_Redda17

Washington’s participation seems likely even if the super league includes just 32 schools — and we believe the number will be closer to 30 than 50 — but it should not be assumed.

The current trajectory works. As long as the Huskies win eight or nine games per year and finish in the top half of the Big Ten, we like their chances to make the cut.

The Seattle market would be desirable to whatever media and private equity companies broadcast and fund the super league. And while the Huskies aren’t a true blue blood of the sport, their brand is indisputably on the next tier.

But if the super league is just 28 or 32 teams and UW experiences a multi-year slippage in performance, attendance, TV ratings, etc., the situation could get dicey.

Our slight skepticism on this matter is rooted in the financial challenges facing the athletic department — specifically, the combination of debt, half shares of Big Ten media revenue, stout intra-conference competition and a solid-but-not-ideal NIL game.

That combination could serve to undermine football success.

To be clear: We don’t expect that scenario to play out. But if you’re ranking the likelihood of super league participation for the West Coast schools in the Big Ten, the Huskies would be a clear third behind USC and Oregon, but ahead of UCLA.

A question to ponder: If a super league is inevitable and history could be reversed, would Washington have been better off remaining in the Pac-12 and dominating (along with Oregon) than joining the Big Ten as a perennial fifth- or sixth-place finisher?

 

[BleachedAnusDawg]

I'm trying to decide how much that last sentence will ring true. Maybe not the part about staying in the PAC with Oregon, because I think the conference still would've failed, but I don't think Wilner is being a UW hater when he says the school is a perennial fifth or sixth place finisher. UW has never had a long-lasting will to succeed at all costs.

 

[haie]

The answer is a simple yes and his dumb ass has to admit that at the start. I don't care about any of Wilner's other butthurtisms after that.

 

[flatus]

Wow, ballsy to call UW a perennial 5th-6th place finisher in the B1G.

Does this guy have some beef with UW or what?

 

[theknowledge]

@haie is right. If Wilner comes out and basically says yes, Washington is in, then it’s a forgone conclusion. He still hates UW and he basically should have ended the response after the first three paragraphs. Instead he likes to smell his own farts and kept stinking up the answer with what he wishes will happen instead of the cold reality that UW is firmly a top 20-25 program even when they only kinda care.

 

[WoolleyDoog]

Having some teams in the Pacific Time Zone would be a good idea for a super league. People forget that.

 

[BleachedAnusDawg]

I don't think many people in NFL towns are going to care about the NFL-lite that CFBis turning into.

Also, what are the "traditional powers" of CFB, and their fans, going to do when they no longer have the bottom-feeder schools around to pad their win totals every season? Texas fans will be hilarious to watch when their team is 6 - 6 every season.

I really don't see any way that a super league is a long-term positive for CFB. IMO the sport was built upon regional rivalries and it will die without them and fan travel. UW should start making plans to shrink seating capacity at Husky Stadium down to about 35,000.

 

[WoolleyDoog]

I don't think many people in NFL towns are going to care about the NFL-lite that CFBis turning into.

Also, what are the "traditional powers" of CFB, and their fans, going to do when they no longer have the bottom-feeder schools around to pad their win totals every season? Texas fans will be hilarious to watch when their team is 6 - 6 every season.

I really don't see any way that a super league is a long-term positive for CFB. IMO the sport was built upon regional rivalries and it will die without them and fan travel. UW should start making plans to shrink seating capacity at Husky Stadium down to about 35,000.

This is a good breakdown. Seems like they are on a mission to try and appeal to Zynz FanDuel fantasy football bros. It's going to keep working for them until the bottom falls out on a TV contract because advertisers have to eventually decide there's little point to spend on TV advertising. I'm surprised they haven't already.

 

[haie]

Ugh no it's the off-season and my engagements are down, better bring up the Super League again! Go hawks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

 

[BleachedAnusDawg]

Do you think a super league is not going to happen?

 

[haie]

How it's described by people that keep trying to wish it into existence? Nope.