Washington Huskies Make a Statement at Home

Hopefully someone with influence in the College Football Playoff rankings saw the Washington Huskies defeat Cal 38-7 in Seattle.

The Washington Huskies needed to at least cover the 28.5 point spread against Cal, and they did, winning 38-7 at Husky Stadium.

The game went exactly as you might have thought by the final score. Huskies tight end Hunter Bryant was uncoverable at times, even wrestling the ball away from a defensive back who had him well covered on a throw in the first half by Jake Browning.

The Washington Huskies defense held Cal to 46 total yards in the first half, including -19 rushing yards (that ‘-‘ is a negative symbol). Cal quarterback Ross Bowers was sacked four times by four different Huskies in the first half. It was 24-0 by halftime.

A few numbers before we get to ESPN’s war on Washington:

-Bryant finished with nine catches for 121 yards and a touchdown. He battled tight coverage and at-times inaccurate passes from Browning to catch all but two of his targets on the night.

-Browning didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard, completing 27 of 40 passes for only 215 and two touchdowns. (He’s two TDs from setting the career UW passing TD record). That’s only 5.4 yards per attempt. Browning did scramble for a touchdown as well.

-Running back Myles Gaskin ran for two TDs despite only averaging 3.8 yards per carry.

-The Washington Huskies defense might have been better last night than at any point last season. They swarmed the Cal offensive line, generating eight sacks on the day and blanketed Cal receivers all night. Vita Vea looked like the best player on the field, and the Huskies’ front four had no trouble swallowing up run plays and getting pressure. It was very impressive.

Okay, now a word about the obvious East Coast bias building against the Washington Huskies. ESPN’s announcers actually called the Huskies ‘soft’ and even obtained real cupcakes to represent easy wins over nonconference foes on-screen. I realize that no one is staying up till 1 a.m. in the East to watch this game, but come on! After Kirk Herbstreit called out Huskies coach Chris Petersen on College Football Gameday, this disrespect and clear bias is getting ridiculous.

I’ll have more about the East Coast bias and how it might affect the Washington Huskies going into bowl season after the latest rankings come out, but don’t be surprised to see UW at 5 despite their latest beatdown of a conference foe.

Next: Seahawks Matchup Spotlight: Seattle RBs

Ironically, it might be the Washington State Cougars that help the Huskies the most. With the way Mike Leach’s team is playing right now, the Apple Cup could be the play-in game for serious bowl exposure.