Washington improved to 5-2 after their 51-27 win over Arizona last Saturday. Here are my grades for UW’s units.

The Offense

It was a tale of two halves for Washington’s offense. In the first half, the offense looked like it did at Stanford – not good. The Huskies offense scored just six points in the first half. UW’s only TD in the first 30 minutes was a defensive TD. QB Jacob Eason and the passing game struggled to take advantage of UW’s great defensive start.

But something changed coming out of the locker room in the final 30 minutes. With the Huskies down 17-13 and the season hanging in the balance, UW’s offense exploded. Washington opened the half on a 75-yard TD drive – only facing one third down.

The Huskies would go on to score 38 points in the second half and blowout the Wildcats. Washington passed for 243 yards and ran for another 207.

So what changed for the Huskies? In the loss against Stanford, UW did not attempt a rush the entire fourth quarter. In the Huskies’ win at Arizona, UW ran the ball 42 times to just 22 passes. When the Huskies are at their best they have been able to run the ball to set up the pass. This is a veteran offensive line and UW must lean on them moving forward.

Husky fans have been calling for more playing time for the young wide receivers of late. And they got their wish last week, with highly touted true freshman Puke Nakua leading the Huskies with 97 yards receiving.

Overall, the first half was bad but UW’s offense clicked on all cylinders in the final 30 minutes. Whenever you put up 50 plus points, there isn’t much to complain about.

Grade: A-

Defense

Washington’a defense made Arizona’s talented QB Khalil Tate look lost most of the night in Tucson. Outside linebackers Joe Tryon and Ryan Bowman put constant pressure on Tate and forced him outside of the pocket a lot. Normally you want an explosive QB like Tate to stay inside the pocket but instead UW forced him outside the pocket but kept him back peddling.

Tate finished just 13-25 passing for 184 yards, one TD, and one interception. The Huskies also sacked Tate four times. UW forced a season-high four turnovers.

For the second time this season, Brandon Wellington scored a defensive touchdown. Wellington had a scoop and score after Khalil Tate fumbled when Ryan Bowman and Benning Potoa’e brought the pressure.

Overall, this was a very good defensive performance for the Huskies. They did give up 27 points but forced four turnovers, had four sacks, and scored on defense. Outside of a few defensive breakdowns it was a good performance.

Grade: B+

Special Teams

Outside of a muffed punt by Aaron Fuller, UW’s special teams played outstanding. Levi Ownzurike blocked a punt in the first quarter. The Huskies nearly blocked another punt later in the game. UW also recovered a fumble after a Joel Whitfield punt bounced off a Wildcats’ player.

Arguably the most important play of the game came in the third quarter. The Huskies had just taken the lead, 20-17, but were forced to punt on their next drive. Punter Joel Whitford, had an incredible 71-yard punt, that flipped the field position. UW would then force a turnover and score a few minutes later. That punt flipped the game as UW cruised to an easy victory.

Kicker Peyton Henry continues to be impressive. Henry made all three field goal attempts in the win over Arizona. Henry is 14-14 on field goal attempts this season.

Overall, this was another great performance by the UW special teams unit.

Grade: A-