SEATTLE

At some point during the whirlwind of the past few days, Kalen DeBoer grabbed the phone and, for the first time in his coaching career, had a conversation with Chris Petersen.

One of DeBoer’s big questions for the successful former coach and someone he admired from afar: How do you best make the transition from a coach in a school in Mountain West to a head coach in Washington?

“I think his experience of moving from Boise (State) here, I think, is very much related to my situation. … I’m going to get his brains and others on what worked here and how to attack him. It was just a really good dialogue and an understanding of Washington in general, ”DeBoer said Tuesday.

Washington is hoping that returning to the Mountain West Basin by hiring DeBoer will help the school replicate the success it enjoyed when Petersen left Boise State to join the Huskies in 2013.

After two seasons as the Fresno State head coach, DeBoer agreed to a five-year, $ 16.5 million contract with Washington. The contract starts at $ 3.1 million in guaranteed compensation, grows by $ 100,000 per year, and is surprisingly similar to the deal former coach Jimmy Lake was working under before his sacking in mid-November.

Washington will also pay Fresno State $ 1.5 million to cover DeBoer’s contract buyout with the Bulldogs. It’s not a bang like USC gets Lincoln Riley, but looks like a rental that suits the Huskies.

“I really trust his abilities, I love his background, I also love his leadership abilities,” said Washington athletic director Jen Cohen. “I just think he’s a great candidate and he’s going to do a great job here.”

Petersen, who was at the back of the room for DeBoer’s introductory press conference, was cited by Cohen as a valuable resource when searching for coaches. DeBoer said in addition to talking to Petersen, he had conversations with trusted mentor Jeff Tedford, who spent 11 seasons as the Pac-12 head coach in California and worked as a consultant for Washington. in 2016.

“I think first of all he (Tedford) just said it’s an amazing place. And I didn’t really have to ask why, ”DeBoer said. “I think it always comes down to the things I talked about – the community, the people around you. He felt very strong about it and he knew it was a great opportunity for me.

While Tedford was a mentor, DeBoer is more likely to be compared to Petersen as they were both Mountain West coaches, their backgrounds as offensive innovators and their bases as players and young coaches in small colleges.

Petersen was more successful nationally when he came to Washington, where DeBoer is missing. But the 47-year-old has won almost every stage along the way, including a 63-7 record and three NAIA Championships in five seasons as the head coach at Sioux Falls, his alma mater.

DeBoer was 12-6 in his two seasons at Fresno State, including a 9-3 this season that included a win at UCLA.

DeBoer met with the Washington players on Monday night following the hiring announcement and reunited again on Tuesday as he begins to lay the groundwork for what he believes could be a quick turnaround for the Huskies, who finished 4-8 for their first losing season since 2009.

“You have to go there every day with everything you have. It starts with me, because I understand these guys, the head coach is who they come to play for, ”DeBoer said. “So it’s a daily thing, and we all have to be aligned to do a good job with our evaluations, but working extremely hard to build those relationships with these players, with everyone.”