While it wasn’t the apple cup that we had hoped for there is a lot of football ahead for the Huskies and with conference play starting today it’s crucial that the Huskies move past the previous loss and make a statement in conference play.

The opening match-up is a h0me game against Northwestern. The Wildcats are a good football team. They went 8-5 last season and beat Utah in a bowl game. While this is an opportunity to right the ship and start 1-0 in conference play this is also an opportunity for the Huskies to face some quality Big10 competition.

Here is what we should watch for as the Huskies host the Wildcats.

Establishing The Run: There is no doubt in my mind that this Huskies passing attack is incredibly potent. Will Rodgers has shown us the quarterback he is and the trio of Giles Jackson, Jeremiah Hunter, and Denzel Boston have proved to be very capable of stretching the field.

But this offense has looked best when it leans on the running game. Jonah Coleman has been a problem for opposing defenses when he has the ball and the Huskies offense benefits.

Not only does it give the Huskies offense a boost in points and time of possession but it makes life a lot easier on this offensive line that is still learning to play together.

We know what Jedd Fisch’s offense is supposed to look like, and there is definitely enough talent on this team to attack Northwestern through the air. But for today, and the rest of the conference schedule it is key that the Huskies can run the ball.

Get to the Quarterback: Northwestern has allowed just one sack this season. While they haven’t faced the best pass rushes in the nation their O-Line has been a solid unit. The Huskies have shown pass rushing ability but were unable to truly wreck the pocket against WSU.

Zach Durfee has been the leader of the pass rush as he has totaled 2.5 sacks in just three games so far. Durfee is far from alone though as Alphonso Tupatala and a handful of other Huskies have done their part of getting into the backfield. It’s going to be a team effort today if the Huskies want to throw off Northwestern’s game plan

Staying Disciplined: The killer last week was penalties. The Huskies out played WSU in pretty much every category, but penalties killed them. Northwestern has stayed out of trouble this year which means any bad penalties the Huskies take will cause an even bigger disparity.

Hopefully after last week some adjustments have been made. Part of it is so many new players in the system, but at a certain point there is too much talent on this team to continue to shoot themselves in the foot.

This game should tell us a lot about this season. How will the Huskies bounce back from a tough loss, how will they look in Big10 play, and what is the talent level of this team?

All of these questions plus so many more will be answered today on Montlake.