In the end, the scoreboard read 56-19, and that’s the true measure of Washington’s season-opening victory, but there were some early struggles.

After a slow start in the 1st quarter against Boise State the Washington Huskies found their stride and never really looked back. The Dawgs went up twelve points when Michael Penix, Jr. connected with Ja’Lynn Polk on a 44 yard bomb to go up 21-9 the Broncos never came closer than two scores the rest of the game. 

The great news for the Huskies is that they put a bunch on tape.  It is all fixable.  They showed things that can be cleaned up all while making a statement by dismantling a quality team that will be in the mix to win the Mountain West conference.

Quarterback: Michael Penix Jr. showed off his elite arm and doctorate level understanding of the offensive schemes. The first two drives UW tried to establish the run and were covered deep. Penix and the offense exploited the intermediate level for explosive plays with yards after the catch. In the second quarter and beyond Penix was masterful with the deep ball with some throws that were in the perfect spot. Dylan Morris and Jalen McMillan were both 1-1 on the day with Morris throwing a fastball to Josh Cuevas for the final touchdown of the day. 

Grade: A-

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Running Back: The game plan to establish the run on the first two drives was unsuccessful. There were no holes, and the backs had multiple tacklers on them in the backfield. Will Nixon finally found some success on the fourth possession on a 21 yard gain. The backs were factors in the passing game with 20 yards from Dillon Johnson. Washington was finally successful on a fourth and short for a Johnson touchdown, an area of concern from last year. 

Grade: C+

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Receiver and Tight End: Jalen McMillan was the spark that finally ignited the Husky offense when he caught a slant and took it 35 yards. He finished off the drive with a 7 yard touchdown. Rome Odunze, Polk, and Germie Bernard ran free most of the three quarters. Jack Westover led the tight ends with 59 yards and a touchdown. With some many weapons deep Westover exploited the intermediate with catches with no defender close. 

Grade: A

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Offensive Line: The theme of the days stays the same throughout every position group; after the first two drives everything looked really good. The O-line struggled early with unique pressures from Boise State. The running game was unable to find success and Penix was harassed early. Communication improved and the O-line was masterful in their pass protection. The fact that three fifths of the line is new to the starting lineup it’s pretty impressive that it only took them two series to fine tune to become a well-oiled machine. 

Grade: B

I again, it was not a clean game, it was not a perfect game, but it was a resounding victory over a quality opponent