Yes, the Washington Huskies used 16 first-timer players Saturday in their 30-27 victory over Eastern Washington.
The most anticipated debuts were by Gig Harbor’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Sammamish’s Kasen Williams – two high-profile recruits in UW coach Steve Sarkisian’s 2011 recruiting class.
The two receivers hauled in passes – Williams had two catches for 6 yards, including a 6-yard touchdown reception, and Seferian-Jenkins had one reception for 10 yards – but the Eagles had them scouted well, and guarded them closely.
Maybe it wasn’t the impact some UW fans were expecting, especially after all the spectacular, acrobatic plays they made during fall camp.
But Sarkisian had this assessment of his blue-chippers: “They weren’t perfect. They functioned.”
Now that the teenagers know what college football feels like, should one expect a hike in production this week against Hawaii? Sarkisian isn’t sure.
“They’re all different,” Sarkisian said. “Every guy’s growth is different. Some guys do, some guys, it might take, two, three, four, five weeks.”
Williams was targeted four times. Two passes from Keith Price hit his hands and fell to the ground. A third – his first career reception in the second quarter – went for no gain.
Finally, in the third quarter, Price connected with the former Skyline High standout in the back of the end zone for the short touchdown.
“Any time you get the production of a touchdown reception your first game, that’s a great first start,” UW offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier said. “He’s got a lot of things he can get better at … and every day is a learning experience, just getting the timing of his routes, understanding the adjustments.”
Seferian-Jenkins was the first red-zone target of 2011, hauling in a pass in the right flat after splitting out wide. He rumbled 10 yards to the Eastern 8, setting up Price’s 8-yard scoring toss to fullback Jonathan Amosa on the next play.
After that, no passes went in Seferian-Jenkins’ direction.
“I didn’t know how it was going to go, but it was fun,” Seferian-Jenkins said. “I have a lot of room to grow in the passing game.”
Sarkisian expects their progress to continue.
“They’ll get better …,” Sarkisian said. “They’re better than (what they showed against Eastern), I know that, that’s for sure.”
EXTRA POINTS
Cornerback Quinton Richardson (ankle), linebackers Cort Dennison (thigh) and Garret Gilliland (head) and receiver Jermaine Kearse (ankle) have been full participants all week and are expected play. The question mark is safety James Sample (shoulder), who was injured on Eastern’s final drive. … Sarkisian said the Huskies will play cornerbacks Desmond Trufant, Gregory Ducre and Richardson together quite a bit against Hawaii’s high-octane passing attack. … As previously reported, Sarkisian held a closed practice Thursday because he wanted it to be a “hard one,” – not the usual tuneup workout before a game. “I didn’t need people out there with our guys,” Sarkisian said. “I wanted us really locked in sharp and hard, and it was.”
Todd Milles: 253-597-8442 todd.milles@thenewstribune.com
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