Random Thoughts™ on Huskies vs. Boise St.

[kearly]

38 to 6. Midway through the 3rd quarter, it was 10-6. According to USA Today, it was the worst loss of the Chris Petersen era at Boise St.

-Joe Southwick is the most extreme dink and dunk QB I've ever seen. Suddenly his meager 215 yards per game average from last season makes all the sense in the world. He has some Jim Harbaugh in him. Very competitive. Irritable. Smart. Mobile. Precise. Poised. Fiery. And though it didn't really show itself in this game all that much, I sensed the "clutch" gene in him. If only he didn't suck so badly on his deep throws and if only his OC would call more intermediate passing, I'd actually be a pretty big fan of his. But the way he is now, or at least the way he was in this game, it was like Andy Dalton and Matt Flynn had a baby.

-Even though UW rushed for 268 yards, I was very impressed by the job BSU's defensive line did winning the battle at the LOS. Sankey and Washington are an awesome RB duo and both earned every yard and TD they got in this game. Lots of broken tackles, making defenders miss. BSU must have had at least 20, maybe 30 times they stopped a run for 2 yards or less, but UW's RBs made some great individual plays and kept pulling big runs out of thin air at times. Also, I think the no huddle and read option obviously played a part here as well.

-Glad to see that Dwayne Washington is the #2 RB ahead of Callier. He's far more explosive and runs tougher. Purely in terms of talent, I think both Sankey and Washington look like they should be on 53 man NFL rosters some day in some capacity.

-Keith Price needs to work on his slide.

-You could clearly tell that UW is really going out of their way to protect Price from injury. The read option handoff almost felt like a formality as Price only kept it for himself a few times the whole game. UW rushed the ball 54 times, but only 5 of those carries were runs by Price (and that includes QB scrambles). When Price did run, he seemed to be prioritizing his safety, other than his inability to slide. And when Price was scrambling to buy time, he had quite a few throwaways out of bounds even when there were a few yards there to be had had he rushed for them. The fact that they rushed the ball 54 times is in itself is a way of protecting Price.

-So why did UW look so amazing in this game on offense? For me the biggest reason is that the no huddle read option makes rushing the quarterback a lot harder to do and it also gasses defenses. You may have noticed there weren't a ton of sacks in this game (UW had 1, BSU had 0). There wasn't even a lot of pressure. Defenses were so focused on defending the run and protecting the short pass that blitzing was never really a smart option and the front four being relied upon for base pass rush were obviously gassed as there was a whole lot of hurry up offense in this game. UW's biggest weakness for years, ESPECIALLY last season, has been pass protection. This new Oregon styled offense masks that weakness. UW had 85 offensive plays, and surrendered zero sacks. That would have been completely unthinkable a year ago, even against a team like Portland State.

-It's amazing to think that a couple years ago, Bishop Sankey was basically Leon Washington 2.0. He was fast, and he was dangerous in the open field, but he struggled to break tackles and didn't have much power. He was a pretty strong contrast with Chris Polk. But ever since the read option was put in it's almost as if some kind of beast mode switch got flipped, and now he's breaking tackles and pushing defenders around. I am starting to see a lot of Ray Rice in Sankey- as it's not every day you see a RB who can break tackles and be as physical as Sankey is at just 195 pounds.

-The biggest pleasant surprise of this game was UW's WR corps. Last season it felt like our passing offense began and ended with ASJ. If a pass was thrown to a WR, it was usually to Kasen Williams, who looked just okay. Mickens dropped a ton of passes and looked completely lost running routes down the field last season. But in this game, Seattle had a deadly looking quartet of WRs, two possession guys in Williams/Smith and two Percy Harvin / Reggie Bush type guys in Mickens/Ross. Mickens looked incredibly dynamic on bubble screens, and Ross (a freshman) flashed very good speed after the catch as well.

-You factor in ASJ and our RBs to go with those WRs, and UW is in the discussion for having the best arsenal of weapons in college football. And with the no-huddle masking UW's pass pro weakness, it's no wonder that Keith Price is back to putting up silly video game type numbers (10.5 YPA). Price's YPA was almost triple Southwick's ( 3.8 ).

-This was the first game where Keith Price truly looked comfortable in a pure read option offense. If this is a sign of things to come, that's a pretty big deal, IMO.

-What's kind of neat too is that like Oregon, UW has stockpiled quite a bit of speed. Sankey, Washington, Mickens and Ross are all very fast athletes.

-UW appears to have a fairly fast defense now, too. I thought our D-line looked athletic and did a decent job generating pressure given circumstances, but the real stars of the game were the back seven who made several big hits for clutch tackles. It actually reminds me a little of Seattle's defense: it's super bend but don't break. They didn't even seem to care about getting off the field until it was 3rd and 8 or 3rd and goal. BSU had several long drives, but never once reached the endzone. And like Seattle's defense, it can look pretty good even without generating a ton of pressure.

-Boise State failed to score a TD for the first time since 1997.

-I would love to be wrong, but I think Wilcox is coaching himself into a 2014 head coaching job.

-Fun fact: Boise State won time of possession.

-The new stadium is much cooler than I thought it would be. The plasma screen type line thingy that keeps changing colors while spanning across the stadium between the levels, it looks pretty cool. Reminds me of Mile High stadium 2.0. They did a great job of keeping the better features of the old stadium while giving the place a very modern, very cool feel. It felt like UW was playing in a nice NFL stadium.

-As if this game experience couldn't have been any better, the game was called by Gus Johnson with the insightful Charles Davis doing commentary. If Johnson's called a UW game before I don't remember it. Been waiting for him to call a Seahawks / UW game forever. It wasn't his very best effort by any means, but it was still completely awesome. I hope we get him to cover a UW/Hawks game again sometime soon.

-Remember when Dallas came in to Seattle last year expecting to win and looked like they had their spirits broken with like 10 minutes still left in the 4th quarter? That's how Boise State looked late in this game. Frustrated. Moping around. Tired. Shell shocked. Boise State may not be what they used to be but they are a respectable team. It been a very, very, very long time that I've seen a UW opponent look so wounded on the sideline. Boise State never gets their asses kicked, ever. It was a very new experience for them.

 

[Tech Worlds]

I didn't get to watch or listen as I am out on the boat. Thanks for cranking this out.

Soapbox.... You rock!

 

[JSeahawks]

Can't really argue with anything you said. How does "Justin Wilcox, head coach Oregon State Beavers" sound?

I can definitely imagine that scenario. Beaver fans are getting pretty sick of Mike Riley.

 

[cover-2]

I agree with your take on the players. The high tempo of the offense and the team speed on the offensive side of the ball was fun to watch. I think CB Marcus Peters looks great, he has very good ball skills, good size, and he is physical at the LOS and in run support. Peters is only a red-shirt sophomore and I think he has the potential to be the Huskies next 1st round draft pick. LB John Timo is another player who stood out to me, he had 13 tackles. Timo maybe is the lesser known of the LB, as far as being a big time recruit. He looks to have very good quickness and speed.

 

[Happypuppy]

The Catch by smith was very nice. I though he had overthrown it by a lot. The young man has some wheels. The defense does very well at swarming the ball carriers. That was good to see

 

[Fudwamper]

To add to your observations I noticed was how well the WR's blocked. Pretty solid.

 

[chris98251]

This was just game one, I saw Sark on the sidelines pushing Price to speed things up a few times, they are going to get faster and better at this as their conditioning improves and they are more comfortable. I also think that Price will get better at reads and get the play going faster rather then wait for the defense to set.

 

[JSeahawks]

This was just game one, I saw Sark on the sidelines pushing Price to speed things up a few times, they are going to get faster and better at this as their conditioning improves and they are more comfortable. I also think that Price will get better at reads and get the play going faster rather then wait for the defense to set.

On the flip side of that though this was game 1 and Boise State had no film at all on what to expect. it will be interesting to see what happens in 3 or 4 weeks once coaches have a chance to break down the film and really prepare for what UW is going to do.

Also playing at that fast pace, as the season goes on your depth will be more important then its ever been for UW in the past, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. Not sure how good your depth is (it might be great, I am literally saying not sure how it is... not implying that its not good).

I'm definitely looking forward to October 12th. Should be an epic game up there in that new stadium. My money is still on the Ducks winning their 10th straight, but it will be no easy task.

 

[chris98251]

This was just game one, I saw Sark on the sidelines pushing Price to speed things up a few times, they are going to get faster and better at this as their conditioning improves and they are more comfortable. I also think that Price will get better at reads and get the play going faster rather then wait for the defense to set.

On the flip side of that though this was game 1 and Boise State had no film at all on what to expect. it will be interesting to see what happens in 3 or 4 weeks once coaches have a chance to break down the film and really prepare for what UW is going to do.

Also playing at that fast pace, as the season goes on your depth will be more important then its ever been for UW in the past, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. Not sure how good your depth is (it might be great, I am literally saying not sure how it is... not implying that its not good).

I'm definitely looking forward to October 12th. Should be an epic game up there in that new stadium. My money is still on the Ducks winning their 10th straight, but it will be no easy task.

Agreed about the first game catching Boise flat footed, but by design doesn't this offense say we don't care if you you have film, if you can't keep up with us it doesn't matter if you know whats coming, you can't stop it if your guys are bent over gasping for air.

 

[Jazzhawk]

It was finally a FUN game to watch. Kept me looking the whole game.

 

[Fuzzman55]

I'll give a shout out to Shamburger at safety. He's a senior but he's clearly taken a step forward this year. I think you're starting to see improved defensive coaching helping players develop. Also...man's game. There's some size and strength we haven't had in the past. Good to see Hau'oli Kikaha *aka Jamora* back. And yes, had to look it up.

The hurry-up spread isn't my favorite offense. To me it's about execution, no matter what you're running. But there's some strengths to it and it very obviously wore down the Broncos late in the game. As an aside, I hated that the Broncos have been reduced to running that unimaginative mess. What is their playbook, 4 plays now? This was a team that shifted and created matchup difficulties for every opponent they faced. Peterson get back to what you're good at so you're not just another face in the crowd.

I have some hope this season, mainly because of the defense. That should travel anywhere, when and if the offense struggles. Should be a fun year.

 

[CPHawk]

This was just game one, I saw Sark on the sidelines pushing Price to speed things up a few times, they are going to get faster and better at this as their conditioning improves and they are more comfortable. I also think that Price will get better at reads and get the play going faster rather then wait for the defense to set.

On the flip side of that though this was game 1 and Boise State had no film at all on what to expect. it will be interesting to see what happens in 3 or 4 weeks once coaches have a chance to break down the film and really prepare for what UW is going to do.

Also playing at that fast pace, as the season goes on your depth will be more important then its ever been for UW in the past, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. Not sure how good your depth is (it might be great, I am literally saying not sure how it is... not implying that its not good).

I'm definitely looking forward to October 12th. Should be an epic game up there in that new stadium. My money is still on the Ducks winning their 10th straight, but it will be no easy task.

Agreed about the first game catching Boise flat footed, but by design doesn't this offense say we don't care if you you have film, if you can't keep up with us it doesn't matter if you know whats coming, you can't stop it if your guys are bent over gasping for air.

Good theory, but isn't the goal to beat Oregon? Don't fool yourself thinking Oregon will get tired, they won't and they see the best daily. I wonder if Sark will change it up for the UO game.

 

[Dawgs0]

Good theory, but isn't the goal to beat Oregon? Don't fool yourself thinking Oregon will get tired, they won't and they see the best daily. I wonder if Sark will change it up for the UO game.

The goal is to win a PAC 12 title. That can be accomplished without beating Oregon. The goal is never to beat one team, whoever the team is. But, it would be good to get the monkey of UW's back. Either way, if UW continues to improve, then they'll put points on the field on Oct. 12. Lots of points.

The key factor will be the defense. If Wilcox can contain Oregon's offense, like Stanford did last year, then UW will have a very good chance to win. If not, then UW will lose. It's all on Wilcox. The offense can't be expected to put up 40-50 points against a good Oregon defense or to win a shootout. It's almost impossible to beat UO in a shootout.

 

[HawkWow]

-"Fun fact: Boise State won time of possession".

And also ran more plays. Both stats surprised me. Great write up per usual, Kearly. Mahalo. GO DAWGS!!

 

[HawkWow]

This was just game one, I saw Sark on the sidelines pushing Price to speed things up a few times, they are going to get faster and better at this as their conditioning improves and they are more comfortable. I also think that Price will get better at reads and get the play going faster rather then wait for the defense to set.

On the flip side of that though this was game 1 and Boise State had no film at all on what to expect. it will be interesting to see what happens in 3 or 4 weeks once coaches have a chance to break down the film and really prepare for what UW is going to do.

Also playing at that fast pace, as the season goes on your depth will be more important then its ever been for UW in the past, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. Not sure how good your depth is (it might be great, I am literally saying not sure how it is... not implying that its not good).

I'm definitely looking forward to October 12th. Should be an epic game up there in that new stadium. My money is still on the Ducks winning their 10th straight, but it will be no easy task.

One thing on the side of Oregon is the law!
Seattle is forbidden from having two great sports teams at the same time. Upsetting Oregon (after beating Stanford) would launch us into the Natty conversation. With the Hawks headed to the SB, by law, it just can't happen (this year). Go Dawgs (anyway).

 

[kearly]

This is the first year in ages that I think UW could actually beat Oregon if they play a perfect game. I wonder, has Oregon ever faced an opponent that is a total copy of themselves before? Should be interesting to see what that kind of game looks like.

 

[HawkWow]

This is the first year in ages that I think UW could actually beat Oregon if they play a perfect game. I wonder, has Oregon ever faced an opponent that is a total copy of themselves before? Should be interesting to see what that kind of game looks like.

Ping pong.

 

[CPHawk]

Arizona, ASU, ark st and Auburn. UO D has done well vs other teams who run a similar O, even in the loss to AU we actually shut Cam Newton down and held him to his worse game of the year. We lost because of Fairley dominating the oline.

 

[kearly]

Those are all similar styles (esp. Arizona), but I think UW copies Oregon much more than those teams did. Those other teams had read option, sure. But UW had read option with hurry up / no-huddle, having tons of speed at the skill positions, fast defense, etc. And unlike a lot of other read option type teams, Oregon is somewhat unique in that they use read option to set up the run more whereas teams like Arkansas State and Auburn used it to set up the pass more. UW ran the ball 54(!) times against BSU against just 31 pass attempts. Chip Kelly would be proud.

I love the irony. If UW actually becomes a great team for the long term because of these changes, it will all be thanks to Oregon. I've always liked the Ducks, so I don't mind that my team is blatantly ripping them off. I'm guessing a lot of Ducks fans are ticked by the idea though, that UW is benefiting so much from concepts their team pioneered.

 

[justafan]

I loved the butt whoopin they put on Boise but I really didnt like the pace of the game.I enjoy watching replays.There wasnt time to have many of those.I have always followed the ball on the actual play then looked for the less obvious reasons the play might have worked on the replay.A good commentator can point things out that are easy to miss and he was practically useless.
The talent Sark has been recruiting on the outside showed in that game now if he can really beef up the trenches we will have something going.