Welcome to the Top 5 Washington Huskies.
After an impressive win over the Oregon Ducks, UW looks well on its way to a Pac-12 Conference Title Game.
With a Top 3 matchup in Columbus, Ohio between the Buckeyes and Penn State, a convincing win by the Huskies could move even higher in the AP Poll come Sunday morning.
Buy first must host Arizona State for homecoming weekend. On paper this game looks like it should be all Huskies, the history against ASU is not so kind.
Washington is favored to win its 15th consecutive game, but there’s something about the Sun Devils that mystifies the Huskies.
Penix4Heisman: He’s officially the man. After a dominant performance against Oregon Michael Penix is the new favorite to win the Heisman trophy. He now gets to build upon his already stacked resume against a Sun Devils defense that has had its issues this season. Penix is going up a secondary that is still waiting on their first pick of the year.
This could easily be a game in which Penix is done by half-time, but he had his share of struggles against this team last season. There has been a lot of growth in the Huskies QB1 since that game and from that point on Penix has been the best QB in the country, and kept the Huskies unbeaten. In front of the home crowd the Heisman favorite should be firing on all cylinders, putting up a dominant performance and leading the Huskies one step closer to a playoff bid.
The Defensive Line’s Impact: With 22 sacks allowed this year ASU has fewer than only Colorado. This is one of the worst offensive line the Huskies will face this season and the defense should be expected to make an impact.
UW has the fewest sacks in the conference this season with only 7. If the defensive line is going to get going in any game it should be tonight. There’s too much pass rushing talent between Bralen Trice, Zion Tupuola-Fetui, and Voi Tunnufi for this team to not be getting consistent results.
The D-Line will also be tasked with containing junior running back Cam Skattebo, who despite the poor numbers has showcased talent in the desert. If the defense holds the running game like we hope they can, Trice and ZTF should get the opportunity to truly pin their ears back and get after the quarterback.
Energy Levels: The label for this game has been a potential “emotional let down,” coming off a huge win It’s understandable to see that things could feel different. Arizona State has not been good this year, and that is part of the trap.
The Sun Devils have found a way to beat the Huskies in all but two meetings since 2002. Maybe that will help prevent that emotional let down, the fact that most of this team is the same players that lost that game in Tempe, and haven’t experienced one since. This is a revenge game for DeBoer’s boys, and for all of Husky nation.
On homecoming, in front of a packed Husky Stadium, the risk of that emotional let down is their, but given the circumstances, and given the group of players and coaches I don’t see that happening.
The Offense: It’s what we are all here to see. It’s what the whole country is watching. This Husky offense is different. That’s the best way to put it. With a stacked wide receiver room featuring Rome Odunze, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Giles Jackson and tight ends Devin Culp and Jack Westover it’s not ridiculous to say there are five NFL talents out there everyday.
Dillon Johnson has taken the reigns out of the backfield, and the offensive line has quietly become one of the best units in the country. This Sun Devils defense is not on the level to stop the Washington attack. Today will be a day for Ryan Grubb to dial up everything they’ve got, and importantly for the players in the field to execute.
This game, and pretty much every game from here on out is in the hands of this offense. And they usually meet expectations.
Big Day For the Secondary: Trenton Bourget will be under center again for the Sun Devils. He’s the starter this time, but when he came off the bench last season he had maybe the game of his career against Washington. But this is a different game. UW’s secondary struggled last season, this group has imposed their will on opponents.
The mistakes have been cut down by a more experienced group, and the ball hawking culture has thrived. Bourget has struggled with turnovers this season and the Huskies should be able to exploit this. With a laundry list of players capable of making big plays in the secondary there’s really no where for ASU to target. T
he Sun Devils have struggled to run the football, and in a game that will be high scoring the ball will be in the air a lot. Meaning that the Huskies secondary will have a big impact on how close this game ends up being.
Final Word: Washington is favored, but with the uncertainty with the availability of Jalen McMillan and Germie Bernard, and the potential for a letdown the fans will be very important, especially for the defense. But the Huskies will also have to bring their own energy.
