Washington took a tough loss at the hands of UCLA on Friday night but still showed the fanbase that there’s a lot to be excited about. There’s definitely a lot that needs to be cleaned up defensively, but the Huskies can clearly hang with just about anybody in the country on the offensive side of the football. Michael Penix Jr. still leads the nation in passing yards, and with another matchup coming up on the road against the Arizona State Sun Devils, Kalen DeBoer’s squad has a significant opportunity to bounce back. So without further ado, let’s get into it!

I– The defense needs to have a bounce-back week in the desert. Coming off of a game where they forced eight sacks and three turnovers, they didn’t get to Dorian Thompson-Robinson once in the backfield, and the Huskies also lost the turnover battle 3-0. They gave up a season-high in yards (499) and points (40) and gave up season highs to individual players in basically every stat category as well. Whether it’s a schematic or personnel change that needs to be made, the staff needs to make sure that gets figured out before the trip to Tempe.

II– Michael Penix Jr. was sacked for the first time on Friday, and went down three times throughout the game. The offensive line has been excellent all year, but played far and away their worst game on Friday, and got no help from the officials. It seemed like every big play in the running game drew a flag for holding, including a couple of very questionable calls. The unit will have a chance to get right against the ASU front, who’s tied for 127th in the country in sacks with just three through the team’s first five games, and 101st in the country in rushing defense, allowing 173.4 yards per game.

III– The 2020 recruiting class featured two elite receivers in Jalen McMillan and Rome Odunze, and in their third year on campus they’re coming into their own. McMillan leads the Huskies in yards (409) and catches (28), while Odunze is the team leader in yards per game (102.2) and tied with McMillan for the team lead in receiving touchdowns with four. Washington has two elite receiving threats that are going to cause problems for opposing defenses for the rest of the year.

IV– The coaching staff has a (seemingly obvious) decision to make with true freshman cornerback Jaivion Green. Green has played in four games this season, and stepping on the field for another snap would burn his redshirt. Green has been excellent in both Pac-12 matchups he’s played in, and looks like he could quickly be turning into a star in the secondary. DeBoer has said that if burning a player’s redshirt gives the Huskies the best chance to win then he’d consider it.