SEATTLE — On Nov. 11, Jedd Fisch said he was confident Jonah Coleman was going to return to Washington in 2025.
“I’m going to say it’s on the high end of 90%,” Fisch said. “But we’ll see.”
Less than three weeks later, the junior running back proved the UW coach right.
Coleman, the 5-foot-9, 229-pound tailback from Stockton, Calif., announced he will return to the Huskies for his final season of eligibility on Thursday. In a video posted on his social media accounts, Coleman pulls up to Husky Stadium in a car with a license plate that reads “I’m back.”
“He’s joyful,” Fisch said on Nov. 7. “He’s a great recruiter. He’s the best speaker on our program.”
Coleman has been Washington’s most consistent offensive player since transferring to UW from Arizona to follow Fisch and running backs coach Scottie Graham.
He’s racked up 1,008 yards and nine touchdowns on 173 carries during his first season on Montlake — all career-high marks. Coleman’s averaging 5.8 yards per carry, No. 28 in the country, and his 91.6 yards per game ranks 29th nationally. He also has 21 catches for 160 yards this season and has not fumbled.
Coleman has 792 yards after contact and 4.58 yards after contact, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s forced 61 missed tackles, ranking ninth nationally and has 36 rushes of 10 yards or more, No. 8 in the country, while gaining 56 first downs. PFF grades Coleman as UW’s best offensive player this season.
During Washington’s 31-19 win against UCLA on Nov. 15, Coleman reached the 1,000-yard threshold for the first time in his career. It’s the 24th time a player has achieved the milestone at UW with Coleman becoming the 15th player to reach the mark.
He can now become the first UW player to rush for 1,000 yards in multiple seasons since Myles Gaskin did it in four-consecutive seasons from 2015-18.
Fisch has also repeatedly praised Coleman’s leadership this season, despite having a limited amount of time to get acquainted with the roster. The UW coach also called the junior running back the best representative of his program, considering Coleman is nearing the completion of his third full season with Fisch and his staff.
It’s been a steady progression for Coleman, who spent the first two seasons of his career playing for Fisch and Graham at Arizona. He had 75 carries for 372 yards and four touchdowns as a true freshman in 2021, then was selected as a 2023 All-Pac-12 honorable mention after taking 128 carries for 871 yards and five scores.
Coleman’s return for 2025 reinforces a running back group that will lose sixth-year senior and captain Cameron Davis and fifth-year senior Daniyel Ngata, a special teams standout, following the 2024 campaign.
Junior Sam Adams II, along with true freshmen Jordan Washington and Adam Mohammed — who has 33 carries for 169 yards this season — can all return with Coleman.
Washington also expects to sign two high school running backs on early signing day Dec. 4: Julian McMahan, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound tailback from Monte Vista High School in Danville, Calif., and Quaid Carr, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound running back from Servite High School in Anaheim, Calif.
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