If you've ever been flipping through the channels on a Saturday afternoon looking for that killer matchup between two top ranked teams but couldn't find it because instead NBC was broadcasting Notre Dame vs. Army then you know the answer to this question.

Notre Dame is probably the most hated college football team in America. And for good reason. Although most of those reasons are beyond Notre Dame’s control. Wouldn’t any school kill for the kind of coverage they get? The Gipper was a long time ago. Let it go. For the good of the country. Please.

But again, it’s not really their fault. And in fact, if you’ve ever been to a game in South Bend, you know that they might have the best fans in the country. Even if you’re decked out in the opposing teams colors they are determined to put a beer in your hand. It’s literally the exact opposite experience from going to an Oregon game in Eugene where they’re more apt to pour a beer over your head than put one in your hand. God I hate Oreon.

So while I’ll be rooting my little Husky heart out for the Dawgs on Saturday and I’ll be annoyed the next time I’m stuck watching Notre Dame play some damned Academy school - Notre Dame fan, this Bud’s for you.

I’m not making any predictions as that would only serve cosmically somehow to backfire. But, here is what has to happen for the Huskies to leave South Bend with a W.

1. ND goes into the game with a run heavy game plan and looks more like USC did 2 weeks ago than Stanford did last week.

2. Charlie Weis just looks heavy with his pants up to his nipples. He’s the poster boy against gastric bypass. It clearly doesn’t work. Get on the Jared diet already.

3. Mason Foster and Donald Butler lead an impressive defensive effort frustrating Jimmy Clausen all day long.

4. Charlie Weis eats Jimmy Clausen during a TV timeout late in the third quarter.

5. Jake Locker is allowed to be a little more like the Jake Locker of 2007 instead of being forced into the Plamer/Leinart/Sanchez mold and runs for 90 yards and 2 touchdowns on top of throwing for 230 and 1 TD.

Huskies win 31-28 for the first time in 8 tries against the Golden Domers.

Go Dawgs!

Jake Locker will be the second QB taken in the 2010 NFL Draft. Seriously. Seriously?

McShay has Jake Locker ranked as the second QB off the board in the 2010 draft behind Sam Bradford. He went so far as to say Locker could jump Bradford if he continues to play as he has so far early in the season AND BE THE #1 OVERALL PICK.

Todd McShay…shut the hell up.

As a Husky fan this makes me think 3 completely different things at the exact same time:

1. Shut up Todd McShay – Locker is twice the man Bradford is or ever will be. Locker should be #1.

2. Shut up Todd McShay – Quit talking about our boy, he needs to come back for his senior year. Particularly because I don’t think we’re ready for a Ronnie Fouch redux.

3. Shut up Todd McShay – Even as a Husky fan I’m not sure I buy it. Locker has had one amazing drive against USC. Is this the NBA now where we draft on potential alone? I call this the Jrue Holiday effect.

Now I love Jake Locker in an unhealthy way just as much as any other Husky fan and I’m ready to let Jake unseat Tui as my favorite Husky QB of all time with a 2011 Rose Bowl victory. But that means you have to come back Jake. Shut up Todd McShay.

The one thing we (Husky Nation) have going against us is there is talk of a rookie salary cap taking effect with the 2011 class. This means a guy that forecasts as a first rounder in 2011 would be better off entering the 2010 draft and going in the second or third round.

Yikes. McShay might be wrong about where Locker gets drafted but it’s starting to look like Jake might be wearing a different colored jersey this time next year. Can’t the Huskies fly under the radar for another year or two? Geez.

Maybe Nick Montana is the second coming of Tate Forcier.  (Apologies for the creepy picture)

One more thing…shut up Todd McShay.

It took me a few days to recover from the ass whooping Stanford put on my dear Huskies. This wasn’t a case of the Huskies coming in over confident after the huge USC upset. Stanford is just a damned good team.

Little known fact #1: Stanford has only trailed for a total of 2 seconds all season after Wake Forest took the lead in week 2 on a last second touchdown.

Little known fact #2: Stanford RB Toby Gerhart is actually a midget wearing an Ironman uniform. It’s the only explanation for how he ran for 200 yards. That or Stanford has an offensive line that’s ready for the NFL.

Widely known fact #1: The Stanford Tree is the worst mascot in the history of sports. Are you f*%king kidding me with this thing?

I said going into the game that if the Huskies could win on the road at Stanford and Notre Dame then we had a legit shot at contending for the Pac-10. A bit too optimistic to have even had the thought but I’m still hopeful we can get to 6 wins and go bowling. Get ready Emerald Bowl – here we come.

Ted: In Seattle. Tried to get tickets, ended up at the Ram
Adam: I'm there in spirit. At Green's
(fast forward to fourth quarter)
Adam: Please dear god
Ted: I'm either going to be super happy wasted or very very surly drunk
Ted: Thank god Kate isn't here
(hope that doesn't get you in trouble)
Adam: I would've settled for a close game before but now I need the win
Ted: I'm queasy
Adam: Oh god oh god oh god
Ted: USC puts Barkley back in and with Jesus on his shoulders USC wins
(Husky fans have seen this too many times)
Adam: Shut up
Adam: I'm going to cry either way this ends up
Ted: yes
Ted: F*%k it, I am
Ted: Ugh
Adam: Dude - the legend of Jake Locker is born
(Folk hits the field goal to win the game)
Ted: F*%king F*%k
Ted: Mayehm
Adam: I'm going to set my Smartcar on fire
Ted: (text removed to protect Ted but it was drop dead hilarious)
Adam: That's what I always did after a win
Ted: Holy s*%t dude. Holy s*%t.
Adam: That just happened
Adam: I love everyone. Except for the Ducks. I still hate the Ducks.
Ted: Now what?
Adam: WTO part 2?
Adam: I'm actually on the sidewalk in front of Green's not sure what to do with my life. It's like losing my virginity all over again.
Ted: You can go play with our cats if you want to calm down
Ted: Looked through schedule. We go 8-3.
(You have to love how quickly a fan can go from total doubt to total confidence. And he meant 9-3)
(Next morning)
Ted: We're ranked!!! #24!!
Adam: Shut up
Ted: Crazy s*%t
Adam: Dude

1. 1992 Rose Bowl, 34-14 win over Michigan - no arguing this one as it gave us a share of the National Championship

2. 2000, 34-29 win over Miami - helped us get into the Rose Bowl where we beat Purdue 34-24 and finish #3 overall - and it may have been the loudest Husky Stadium has ever been

3. 1991, 36-21 win over Nebraska at Nebraska - put us on the map on our way to a National Championship

4. 2009, 16-13 win over USC - first Pac-10 win since 2007 and against the #3 team in the country

5. 1994 "The Whammy in Miami", 38-20 win over Miami - Miami hadn't lost at home since 1985 and this showed which program was the rightful owner of the 1991 National Championship

Sure there have been other great Rose Bowl victories and beating Michigan at home in 2002 was great but we didn't go to a Rose Bowl that year and it wasn't a program changer. IF, and I know this is a big IF, the Huskies are back and a legit threat in the Pac-10 to even make a bowl game, then this win against USC is bigger than just about any other because it means 7 years of futility are over. No win over WSU or Oregon can count as big because we should beat them every year.

Did that really happen? That's the question every Husky fan has been asking themselves since 3:50 Saturday afternoon. I woke up on my couch at around 8:30 pm Saturday night in a bit of a haze. I wasn't sure if I was waking up from a crazy Friday night and dreamt the whole thing or if it was real. A quick glance at my cell phone helped clear things up although the tequila shots left my motor skills slower than desirable. The Washington Huskies had indeed defeated the #3 USC Trojans 16-13.

This wasn't like those other USC upsets. Stanford was a fluke in 2007 and Oregon State had legitimate bowl contending teams in 2006 and 2008. This wasn't as shocking as Stanford as there were sports writers across the country warning of a potential Husky upset. While Husky Nation enjoyed the coverage each of us grimaced when seeing those headlines. We knew we were on our way back to some level of competitiveness but we weren't ready to beat #3 USC, were we? We out played LSU in a close loss and throttled Idaho as we were supposed to but come on, we just broke a 15-game losing streak.

No, Husky Nation wasn't ready for a win like this. We certainly deserved it after the Neuheisel/Gilby/Willingham trifecta of doom. And we certainly wanted it after staying committed to a program through embarrassing losses many of us traveled to against Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Hawaii. But once it was here we simply didn't know what to do with it. Other than to completely lose our s*%t. And lose our s*%t we did. For those of you not in the stands on Saturday or in a bar surrounded by Husky fans, it looked something like this:

The scene on Husky field as the final 3 seconds ticked off the clock and the Trojans were stopped for the final time is a scene that is now part of the fabric of Husky sports. Thank you Steve Sarkisian, Nick Holt, Scott Woodward, Jake Locker, Chris Polk, Jermaine Kearse and Donald Butler for breathing life into a program that felt more like a patient of Dr. Conrad Murray (too soon?) than one that was the team to beat in the Pac-10 from the late 80s through the early 2000s.