It was an emotion-driven rollercoaster ride for the undefeated Washington Huskies this season, with multiple near-heartbreak moments that ended in heartwarming victories. Many moments had Husky fans holding their breath this season, and it’s difficult to pick from the best of them.

Here are the top five most pivotal plays for the Huskies this season that helped pave their way to the National Title game in Houston on January 8th. 

Honorable Mention – Penix Heisman-moment touchdown to Devin Culp versus USC

As soon as the first drive started, everyone could feel that the November 4th matchup against USC was going to be a shootout. The Trojans took a 14-7 lead over the Huskies as the second quarter began, and all of a sudden Penix and company were looking at a crucial 3rd and 18 from the 22-yard line. 

Every drive was going to count, and there was growing concern that a field goal on this drive would cost the Huskies down the stretch. Penix hiked the ball and immediately felt early pressure from a four-man rush, and it looked like he was likely going to get sacked.

Penix escaped from the pressure and ran to the sideline before delivering a perfect spiral to the only spot where Devin Culp could jump up and make the play. This was the moment Husky fans knew they had a magician at quarterback who could make the big-time play in big-time moments.

Had he won the award, that replay would be played nonstop as Michael Penix Jr’s Heisman moment.

Number Five – Quentin Moore touchdown vs Oregon to take a ten-point lead in the Pac-12 Championship

The Huskies had just chunked away over six minutes of the game clock with a beautiful mix of play calls that featured seven passes and four carries. Suddenly, it was third and goal from the two with 2:47 to go, and kicking a field goal to take a six-point lead surely wouldn’t be enough for the Huskies.

Ryan Grubb went deep into his bag of play calls to find the perfect third down play, finding Quentin Moore wide-open for his first career touchdown reception and a two-possession lead for the Huskies. All of Husky nation went ballistic as the dream of reaching the College Football Playoffs had finally arrived. Las Vegas turned into the party zone that it was expected to be.

Did Oregon proceed to score immediately and give all Husky fans a near heart attack? Maybe. But it didn’t matter as the cushion was just enough for Washington to run out the clock on the following possession and punch its ticket to a semifinal matchup in the Sugar Bowl.

Number Four – Rome Odunze’s 4th and 1 trick play in the Apple Cup

This was as terrifying as it gets for Husky fans. With the entirety of Husky Stadium expecting a blowout against the Washington State Cougars, the entire game was on the line on 4th and one at the 29 yard line. A failed conversion would give the Cougars the win, and nobody in the stadium except for Kalen DeBoer wanted to go for it.

That’s probably why nobody else but Kalen DeBoer is the head coach of the 2023 Washington Huskies.

What looked like a terrible inside run that was immediately stuffed by the Cougars defensive line turned into a masterful 23-yard run down the sideline for Rome Odunze. The cheers of relief echoed through Husky Stadium, as the Huskies drove into field goal range and delivered a 24-21 victory over their bitter rivals.

Had the Huskies missed that fourth down, the perfect season would have come to an end and the Huskies potentially would miss the College Football Playoffs. It sure is a good thing the Huskies converted!

Number Three – Elijah Jackson PBU to win the Sugar Bowl versus Texas

Washington should never have been in this situation. They had an opportunity to run the clock to under twenty seconds and win the game. However, Husky fans should have known that it is never that easy with this team.

An injury timeout gave Texas the ball with 45 seconds, and a personal foul on the punt gave Texas a reasonable opportunity to get down the field. With 28 seconds remaining, Texas launched a 41-yard completion that brought them up to the 28, and a few plays later it was 4th down at the 11 with one second remaining.

Quinn Ewers tossed up a jump ball in the endzone, and Elijah Jackson delivered the biggest defensive play of his life, swatting the ball away cleanly and sending the Huskies to the National Championship game. Husky fans everywhere were living in a nightmare on that entire drive, and Jackson swatted us back to life.

Number Two – Rome Odunze scores the late touchdown to give the Huskies a 36-33 lead versus Oregon

Oregon was driving down the field with a chance to end the game if they converted on fourth down. The crowd at Husky Stadium could barely watch as the biggest play of the season commenced. The defense made the stop, and Washington suddenly had the ball back with just under two minutes to play.

The Huskies needed to drive 53 yards to score a touchdown and win the game. On first down, Penix delivered a laser to Polk for 35 yards, and the crowd was electrified. It felt like all hope was lost at the end of the game, yet Penix and the Huskies offense only had 18 yards to go to take the lead.

Penix immediately recognized the one-on-one coverage and threw a dart to Odunze’s back shoulder, and the rest is history. Husky Stadium exploded, with 70,000 fans on their feet screaming as Rome Odunze caught his second touchdown pass of the day to give the Huskies a 36-33 lead.

Oregon eventually missed the field goal, and Washington became 6-0.

Number One – Mishael Powell pick-six versus Arizona State to give Washington the lead.

Sometimes, teams have letdown performances after big wins. Whatever happened to Washington against Arizona State after defeating Oregon was on another level.

The Huskies offense simply couldn’t do anything. Penix had a couple of turnovers and never found the endzone. The run game was non-existent. There was a very unsettling feeling in Husky Stadium that Washington might lose this game and its chances of a National Championship.

After the Huskies scored a field goal to cut the deficit to a 6-7 ballgame, the Sun Devils drove down the field on the Huskies. Their offense was outplaying the Huskies offense, and the defense was getting exhausted. With over eight minutes left, the crowd gave it everything they had on third and ten when the defense stopped the Sun Devils short of the first down.

On fourth and three at the 12, Arizona State decided to go for it. Washington needed a stop to save the season.

The crowd was screaming before the snap, but there was a quick moment of silence after the snap as the entire crowd watched the play develop in what felt like slow motion. The ball was thrown to the curl route on the right side of the field, but Mishael Powell knew the play better than the receiver did.

He jumped the throw perfectly in stride and took it to the endzone for a 90-yard interception return for a touchdown. The crowd was as loud as it had ever been at Husky Stadium, with the Huskies taking its first lead of the game and completely flipping the momentum that the Sun Devils had all game. Without this play, there’s no telling how differently the season would have ended.

Despite all of the big moments throughout the season, the Washington Huskies will look to have the biggest moment of them all as they face Michigan in the National Championship in Houston on January 8th.