Washington’s offense has the potential to be the best in the Pac-12 this year. Why?

The ESPN hype machine (or should we say the NIKE hype machine) is gushing this year about how Oregon’s offense will be stellar this year because of their offensive line and Justin Herbert.

What most are overlooking, however, is that the fact that the Ducks had to sign five wideouts last year and none of these guys have played a down of college football.

Washington, on the other hand, has a guy named Jacob Eason who is slated to take the helm and is 6-6, 235 to 240 (depending on how many Dicks burgers he eats on any given day).

So, where Oregon is concerned, take away the hype over Justin Herbert — remember that Eason was, at one time, the number-one quarterback in the country. He was a five-star, can’t-miss, NFL first-rounder, according to all the pundits while still just a recruit.

Herbert? 6-6, 240 lb. 3-star that no one had ever heard of because he was a local Oregon kid — and he was an after-thought for Oregon at the time.

If you look at pure, raw talent (not experience), Eason is clearly head and shoulders above Jake Browning (not just in stature). He has a cannon arm, and one year of SEC football under his belt. He has the potential and gifts to stretch the field in ways Browning couldn’t.

To paraphrase Hugh Millen, only three of four players in the NFL could throw the ball like Jacob Eason did in one particular game while he was at Georgia.

Running backs

Myles Gaskin is gone and will be missed. He got more out of his body and stretched his talent to the max. But when it comes to pure potential as a running back, let’s talk about Salvon Ahmed.

Pac-12 network analyst, Yogi Roth has said that Ahmed is “elite”, and is the best “athlete” on the field at Washington.

Potentially, look for an uptick with the tailback play at Washington — and a big year for Ahmed to take it to the next level.

Offensive line

Oregon’s hype about their o-line is intense. One publication has them as the top in the country for 2019. But Washington is actually a tick better, and here’s why:

The two most critical positions on the o-line (and you can ask any coach) are the center, and the left tackle.

Trey Adams, before he got hurt, was projected as a first-rounder (top 15). He’s better than Penei Sewell right now, period. End of story. Sewell played six games, and he has the potential to be a great one, but right now Adams is better and has a much more impressive game resume having gone up against Alabama, Penn State, and Ohio State.

Sewell got hurt against the Huskies last year, and didn’t return. He has the upside, but as of this moment he is not as good as Adams.

As for center, Nick Harris…first-team all Pac-12 center, voted the best center in the conference, started since he was a true freshman. Has gone up against some of the best of the best in the country and the Pac-12.

Tight end

Hunter Bryant…freak. Nuff said.

Although one thing we can say is that Bryant is such a rare tight end he has the ability to take over a game if you feed him the ball. He is the unicorn of college football’s tight ends.

Receivers

While some were very critical of the receiving group last year at Washington, part of the problem was the vertical game and that was on the shoulders of Jake Browning.

Aaron Fuller has deep-threat potential and can stretch the field.

Ty Jones is coming back. Quinton Pounds. Andre Baccellia…these guys all have bunches of experience between them.

Austin Osborne redshirted last season but he had a terrific spring and the word on the street is that he’s definitely going to see the field this year and has made huge strides, as well as Marquis Spiker.

Chico McClatcher is returning, but also look for Trey Lowe to bust out this season.

It’s unknown right now as to whether or not the incoming freshmen from the 2019 class will redshirt or play. We will know more about their status following those first two weeks of fall camp.

Perhaps the biggest upgrade for the receiving game is the hiring of Junior Adams — this guy has already made a huge difference in the outlook and mind-set of these receivers.

Offensive coordinator

One thing about the offensive coordinator that needs to be said right off the jump is that, if a play doesn’t work — everyone on the net knows better and is a critic. Usually, it’s the opposite if the play does work. Criticizing OC’s is futile because until a play is actually executed correctly, how can we judge?

When a play such as a 25-yard out is called, there are so many variables and things can go terribly wrong. Did the quarterback throw the ball in time? If not, it won’t work. Did an OL miss a block to hurry-up the quarterback? Did a running back miss a block that was supposed to help out on a blitzing defensive end?  Did the receiver run the route properly?

Or is it possible that the defensive player just made a great play?

There are so many things that need to happen for a play to come together.

Bush Hamdan was in year one last year, and will be an upgrade in year two.

He has to have faith in his quarterback and his quarterback has to have faith in him — Browning was Jonathan Smith’s guy, and it’s not a stretch to believe that he and Hamdan weren’t on the same page last season.

Also, remember that Hamdan had just one year with Browning, this will be his second year with Eason.

In conclusion

Chris Petersen is a guy who knows how to put pieces together in order to build a champion. This is why he is listed alongside the best coaches in college football in the 21st century. Petersen has a formula, and it has proven time and time again to work. As long as there is talent and coaching at Washington, under Chris Petersen the bar will be set very high every single season.

As for Oregon and their hype machine, Mario Cristobal has proven nothing yet. He has a losing record as a head coach and will rely heavily on his assistant coaches to develop the talent they bring in to even have a hope of rising to the level of a Chris Petersen-coached program.

And the reason we’re even talking about Oregon in this article, is because they were picked to have the best offense in the Pac-12 last year (after having only scored seven points in a bowl game last year and their best wideout is gone). They have a lot to prove.

Also, Herbert has been hurt two years in a row — he missed half the season in 2017 and was dinged up last year.

Washington has much more going for them than most realize — and with Pac-12 Media Day coming in two days, just be prepared to see the Oregon hype (NIKE) machine on full display.

Don’t drink the kool-aid.