PROVO, Utah – Such a near-miss might have been labeled a heroic effort for Washington last season, when the Huskies struggled to revive their winning legacy.
But Saturday’s outcome – a sputtering, season-opening 23-17 loss to Brigham Young in front of 63,771 spectators at LaVell Edwards Stadium – was a bitter pill to swallow.
Twice, the Huskies knocked on the door of victory in the fourth quarter. Twice, with the ball in the hands of star quarterback Jake Locker, who was never in rhythm and rarely sharp, they were rebuked.
It wasn’t all on Locker, though he surely will be the target of heavy criticism after his so-so, 20-of-37, 266-yard, one-touchdown effort because he was the one promoted all offseason to be UW’s X-factor in such close games.
Except for a few big-chunk runs, tailback Chris Polk (16 carries, 92 yards) was little or no factor. And the special teams – an area of special fall-camp emphasis – produced gaffes in virtually every corner of the field.
It all added up to the Huskies’ 13th consecutive road loss, dating back to the 2007 season.
“It felt like a first football game,” UW coach Steve Sarkisian said. “In a lot of areas, we were sloppy.”
Yet with all the mistakes, UW was in position to steal a game in Provo.
Locker converted a third-and-6 play with a 7-yard pass to Devin Aguilar. On the next play, he went back to his favorite target – Jermaine Kearse – on a slant pattern in the middle of the field, good for a 34-yard gain.
Suddenly the Huskies were stationed at the BYU 30-yard line, with more than enough time remaining.
And then it happened, as it had most of the night. Locker and company lost their hold of the moment.
Two consecutive Polk runs product little. On third down, Locker tried using a head fake to spring outside. BYU’s Jordan Pendleton had none of it, wrapping up Locker for a 2-yard loss.
With 1:55 to go, the Huskies called a timeout to devise a play for their fourth-and-7 predicament.
Sarkisian wanted Locker to look for Kearse, but the Cougars took him away with a double team. The secondary reads came in a flash – go to Aguilar or D’Andre Goodwin outside, or try tight end Chris Izbicki on a quick-hit pass up the left seam.
Locker chose Izbicki.
“I felt like he was open,” Locker said.
The pass was redirected by Eathyn Manumaleuna’s big paw in the middle of BYU’s defensive line, and the pass fell incomplete.
“You don’t usually worry about the defensive tackles,” Locker said.
With 121/2 minutes remaining, the Huskies faced a similar situation, trailing 23-17. They had a fourth-and-2 at the BYU 23. Sarkisian elected to go for it, but Locker’s pass to Kearse in the end zone was knocked away by BYU’s Brian Logan.
“We had to work so hard to drive the ball the length of the field, by the time we got down there (at the BYU 23) … I felt like, ‘I don’t know how many opportunities we were going to get,’” Sarkisian said. “I really liked our play call. We had something dialed up and went with it.”
The Huskies scored on their opening drive, going 73 yards in six plays. Locker found Kearse for a 19-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead.
Then the special-teams mistakes began piling up:
• Gregory Ducre was called for roughing the punter penalty in the first quarter that extended a BYU drive.
• A high snap went over punter Will Mahan’s head. resulting in a BYU safety.
• Twice on kickoff returns, Polk either slipped or failed to secure the ball inside the UW 10-yard line.
BYU, on the other hand, was crisp with Riley Nelson and Skyline High product Jake Heaps leading the way at quarterback.
Nelson threw a pair of touchdowns – both giving the Cougars leads.
The last one came with 41/2 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Nelson found running back J.J. Di Liugi in the middle of the field, alone, for what turned out to be the winning 48-yard touchdown.
“I was proud of our team tonight,” BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “It was a complete victory. Our offense played well enough to win, our defense played well enough to win, and we won the field-position battle.” todd.milles@thenewstribune.com
