There were few bright spots for the Huskies in Saturday’s sixth straight loss to Oregon. The Ducks proved their superiority as they managed to bottle up Jake Locker, and on the other side of the ball they were able to carve their way through a struggling Husky defense. In the first half, they Huskies actually looked like a team that could compete with the Pac-10 leading Ducks.
The score was 15 to 6 at halftime, not a good position to be in for the Huskies, but the Huskies were competing. However, the game began to get out of hand in the second half; anytime the Ducks can put in Nate Costa with about seven minutes to play in the fourth quarter, it is fairly clear how the game went. At times, Washington looked more like the Huskies of old.
Once the game started to get away from them, they found no way to regain their composure and get back in the game. It will certainly be hard for the Huskies to forget this game. After the game Steve Sarkisian said, “We are going to rethink everything we do and how we do it,” which definitely seems like an appropriate course of action after Saturday.
The momentum shifts in the first half of the game had a huge influence on the rest of the game. Before the blocked punt in the early minutes of the second quarter, Washington was winning three to zero. The defense had played particularly well in the first quarter, containing LaMichael James and Jeremiah Masoli.
The offense, on the other hand, was somewhat stagnant, but a decent drive to put the Huskies up three was somewhat promising. However, after the blocked punt that put the Ducks up eight to three (because of a run by Nate Costa for the two-point conversion), everyone was wondering how the offense and defense would respond. For a few minutes, the answer seemed clear.
Washington drove down the field with purpose as they started with a 34-yard rush by Chris Polk, and a 26-yard pass from Locker to Jermaine Kearse successively. UW seemed to be taking the momentum from Oregon, but then the goal-line woes for the Huskies began. Polk was forced to come out of the game for a moment because of an injury, and this meant Demetrius Bronson had to come into the game on this crucial goal line series.
On second and third and goal, the Huskies gave the ball to the freshman Bronson, who couldn’t get in. Sarkisian was determined to get six however, and the Huskies went for it on fourth and goal. Locker rolled to the right and was forced to try a lob to Kavario Middlelton, but the two were not on the same page as Middlelton cut to the left and Javes Lewis of the Ducks intercepted Locker’s pass.
This questionable decision to not take the three points seemed to deflate both the offense and the defense as the Ducks responded with a touchdown, and the Huskies were outplayed the rest of the game.
Locker Under Pressure
The pressure on Locker throughout the game was also a key factor. The front seven of the Ducks made trouble for the Husky quarterback sacking him four times and forcing him to either throw bad passes or scramble out of the pocket. The pressure really made Locker struggle for most of the game. He threw two interceptions, and he never seemed to have the timing with his receivers necessary to move the ball down field. His accuracy at times suffered as well. Locker missed numerous open receivers and threw two picks. The Oregon defense deserves a lot of credit for forcing one of the best quarterbacks in the nation out of his game.
Struggling Defense
On the defensive side of the ball, the Huskies played one of their worst games of the season. The Ducks rolled over Washington for 264 yards on the ground, including a dominant performance by LaMichael James for 154 yards. Even when UW got some initial pressure on James, he still found a way to elude tackles for a gain. Let’s however give some credit to James; he is one of the best running backs in the nation. The secondary actually played fairly promisingly though against the pass. Although Masoli ran for 54 yards, he only passed for 157. Also, Ed Dickson, one of the best tight ends in the country, only caught two passes for 29 yards. However, the inability to stop the run far overshadowed the play in the secondary.
Stinger
So yes, this means six straight losses against the Huskies’ I-5 rival Oregon. The last time Washington beat Oregon was in 2003 by a score of 42 to 10. It seems the tables have turned in a quite definitive manner, leaving the Dawgs to sulk for yet another year.
Optimism
It wasn’t all depressing though; let’s look at the few glimpses of promise in this dismal loss. Chris Polk played another solid game, and if he had better offensive line play and hadn’t struggled with an injury, he could have rushed for miles. Even with lots of initial pressure on Polk, he was still able to break big gains, and he finished with 104 yards and a touchdown. He is a freshman with huge upside. Jermaine Kearse made probably the best catch of Pac-10 play thus far for a 47-yard gain. This play gave a spark to an aching Husky crowd. Lastly, the Huskies managed to cut their penalties from 12 last week, to 4 this week. At least they improved in one category.
Just keep in mind the Huskies played a great team in Oregon; the Huskies did not play their best against a great team, and the result followed. The game in the Rose Bowl in two weeks against a struggling UCLA should be an easier match up for the Huskies, and look for them to respond well coming off their bye week.
The score was 15 to 6 at halftime, not a good position to be in for the Huskies, but the Huskies were competing. However, the game began to get out of hand in the second half; anytime the Ducks can put in Nate Costa with about seven minutes to play in the fourth quarter, it is fairly clear how the game went. At times, Washington looked more like the Huskies of old.
Once the game started to get away from them, they found no way to regain their composure and get back in the game. It will certainly be hard for the Huskies to forget this game. After the game Steve Sarkisian said, “We are going to rethink everything we do and how we do it,” which definitely seems like an appropriate course of action after Saturday.
The momentum shifts in the first half of the game had a huge influence on the rest of the game. Before the blocked punt in the early minutes of the second quarter, Washington was winning three to zero. The defense had played particularly well in the first quarter, containing LaMichael James and Jeremiah Masoli.
The offense, on the other hand, was somewhat stagnant, but a decent drive to put the Huskies up three was somewhat promising. However, after the blocked punt that put the Ducks up eight to three (because of a run by Nate Costa for the two-point conversion), everyone was wondering how the offense and defense would respond. For a few minutes, the answer seemed clear.
Washington drove down the field with purpose as they started with a 34-yard rush by Chris Polk, and a 26-yard pass from Locker to Jermaine Kearse successively. UW seemed to be taking the momentum from Oregon, but then the goal-line woes for the Huskies began. Polk was forced to come out of the game for a moment because of an injury, and this meant Demetrius Bronson had to come into the game on this crucial goal line series.
On second and third and goal, the Huskies gave the ball to the freshman Bronson, who couldn’t get in. Sarkisian was determined to get six however, and the Huskies went for it on fourth and goal. Locker rolled to the right and was forced to try a lob to Kavario Middlelton, but the two were not on the same page as Middlelton cut to the left and Javes Lewis of the Ducks intercepted Locker’s pass.
This questionable decision to not take the three points seemed to deflate both the offense and the defense as the Ducks responded with a touchdown, and the Huskies were outplayed the rest of the game.
Locker Under Pressure
The pressure on Locker throughout the game was also a key factor. The front seven of the Ducks made trouble for the Husky quarterback sacking him four times and forcing him to either throw bad passes or scramble out of the pocket. The pressure really made Locker struggle for most of the game. He threw two interceptions, and he never seemed to have the timing with his receivers necessary to move the ball down field. His accuracy at times suffered as well. Locker missed numerous open receivers and threw two picks. The Oregon defense deserves a lot of credit for forcing one of the best quarterbacks in the nation out of his game.
Struggling Defense
On the defensive side of the ball, the Huskies played one of their worst games of the season. The Ducks rolled over Washington for 264 yards on the ground, including a dominant performance by LaMichael James for 154 yards. Even when UW got some initial pressure on James, he still found a way to elude tackles for a gain. Let’s however give some credit to James; he is one of the best running backs in the nation. The secondary actually played fairly promisingly though against the pass. Although Masoli ran for 54 yards, he only passed for 157. Also, Ed Dickson, one of the best tight ends in the country, only caught two passes for 29 yards. However, the inability to stop the run far overshadowed the play in the secondary.
Stinger
So yes, this means six straight losses against the Huskies’ I-5 rival Oregon. The last time Washington beat Oregon was in 2003 by a score of 42 to 10. It seems the tables have turned in a quite definitive manner, leaving the Dawgs to sulk for yet another year.
Optimism
It wasn’t all depressing though; let’s look at the few glimpses of promise in this dismal loss. Chris Polk played another solid game, and if he had better offensive line play and hadn’t struggled with an injury, he could have rushed for miles. Even with lots of initial pressure on Polk, he was still able to break big gains, and he finished with 104 yards and a touchdown. He is a freshman with huge upside. Jermaine Kearse made probably the best catch of Pac-10 play thus far for a 47-yard gain. This play gave a spark to an aching Husky crowd. Lastly, the Huskies managed to cut their penalties from 12 last week, to 4 this week. At least they improved in one category.
Just keep in mind the Huskies played a great team in Oregon; the Huskies did not play their best against a great team, and the result followed. The game in the Rose Bowl in two weeks against a struggling UCLA should be an easier match up for the Huskies, and look for them to respond well coming off their bye week.
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