Rome: He is him. They call him uno for a reason. Because he’s the best in the country. Odunze is a Beltinakoff finalist, a locked in first round pick, and everything more. He is an NFL level receiver that any team would want to have. (Hell I’m looking to trade up in my dynasty league for him.) He is making plays everywhere on the football field. As a big play threat Odunze is averaging 18 yards a catch, and scoring touchdowns with ease. We all remeber the day he had against Oregon. Last week with the game on the line it was Odunze they called a play for, but he wasn’t running a route, Odunze took a sweep into Cougar territory to set up the game winning field goal. He can do it all, and he is. Rome Odunze will be the best player on the field tonight, and everyone will know.
Defensive Levels: Last time against Oregon we saw the Husky defense get torn up. The Ducks did whatever they wanted on route to 32 points, as a missed field goal won it for the Huskies. But this is a very different defense. In recent weeks they have been rock solid, holding Utah blank in the second half, and keeping both Oregon State and WSU below 23 points. Jabbar Muhammad will likely have the biggest role in slowing Troy Franklin and he seems up to the task. Muhammad leads the Huskies secondary in takeaways, a secondary that is ranked 8th in the nation for interceptions. Bralen Trice and Zion Tupuloa-Fetui seemed limited when they last played the Ducks, but in recent weeks the chains have seemed to come off as they are now combined for 8.5 sacks. With the Ducks offense red hot the Huskies defense will have the test of their careers in front of them.
Winning the Trenches: When the Huskies offensive line is looking good this is one of the best teams in the nation. They are able to run the ball with Dillon Johnson and control the game’s tempo and physicality. Troy Fautanu has been anchoring things down from left tackle and has led this group to protect Penix with their lives. The Huskies QB has only been sacked 9 times this season and some of those are no fault of the line. When he has time to throw Penix has been cutting teams up. The Ducks have excelled rushing the passer this season but only got one sack on Penix as he led the Huskies to 35 points in the win. If the Huskies O-line looks dominant tonight it will be a long night for duck fans.
Penix’s Rebound: The Heisman campaign is still very alive, but it will take a huge championship game from Michael Penix if he wants to have a case over Jayden Daniels. The Huskies quarterback was at one point the far and away favorite to win the Heisman trophy, but some recent struggles have brought him back to earth. It’s been confusing. The NFL level arm is still there, Penix can still throw the ball wherever he wants, but the decision making in the recent month resembles him at Indiana more than what we saw to start the season. He has taken his fair share of criticism, especially after that Apple Cup, but if he plays his A game tonight there will be nothing left to say. Except Heisman.
Big Game Players: The Huskies are underdogs in this game, and by a lot. But smart money is following the Huskies. In a game of this magnitude the team with the big game players is going to win. For comparison Bo Nix is 4-3 in one score games as a duck, and only 1-3 when facing a ranked team in the same situation. Michael Penix on the other hand is 10-2 (6-1 against ranked teams) in those games with 10 in a row since the ASU loss last year. Edefuan Ulufoshio has a game winning interception, and the Huskies defense has been rock solid in fourth quarters this year. Allowing just __ points since ____. And oh ya, Grady Gross has hit a game winner.
