If you want to lose the Apple Cup as Washington, you do what the Huskies just did.
You shoot yourself in the foot. You commit 16 penalties for 135 yards, make questionable play calls, and let your little brother out-compete you in the biggest game of their season.
You also call a pitch option play on the short hash with the game on the line after inconsistent run blocking all game.
Yes, this is mostly a rant article. But it will also dive into more of the nuances and potential outcomes of UW’s program for years to come. It’s almost paradoxical that UW had every right to win and most definitely deserved to lose this Apple Cup.
By the same token, if you allow only 24 points you should expect to win a football game. If you spot the opponent 135 yards in penalties, you can safely expect defeat.
Watching the game as objectively as possible, there is still a firm belief that UW might be favorites if the game was played again, but there is no doubt that WSU deserves the victory on Saturday.
Saturday’s game was not on Will Rogers, and it was not on the defense either. The mistakes that doomed Washington to defeat were all coaching decisions and inexcusable errors. Exhibit A: extending WSU drives by committing penalties over and over again. It is poetic justice that UW ended the game by committing two straight boneheaded penalties that allowed Washington State to run out the clock and allow the Cougars to win their 2nd Apple Cup in 11 tries.
This game was a step back for optics in the first losable game in Jedd Fisch’s short tenure. Not since 2021 have the Huskies displayed such ability to come short when victory was so attainable. If UW does not fix its undisciplined play, Huskies fans can expect more games that will have them rewatching 2023 highlights instead of this year’s game recaps.
Let us reiterate that the players did not play particularly poorly, but that the coaching staff made the wrong choice in one too many crucial moments.
Here’s the thing though: This is Jedd Fisch’s first season, and fans do not need to be reminded how much of 2023’s team did not return for this season. There were numerous occasions in 2023 in which the presence of elite talent carried the Huskies to victory, and talent acquisition is Jedd Fisch’s strength to this point in his career. There is every reason to believe that it is only going to go up from here, even if bowl eligibility for the 2024 season just became that much more difficult.
Now, onto a Bible verse to rest your weary minds: Ephesians 7:4: that was an interception.
