The sun actually came up on Sunday for the Washington Huskies and continued to drench the team in rare fall warmth Monday when they returned to the practice field after Saturday’s 65-21 loss to Stanford.
Of course in the waning hours after losing to the now No. 4 Cardinal, it seemed as though the entire world was crashing down on them.
It’s one thing to lose. But to get physically hammered on both sides of the ball – including a squirm-inducing 446 yards allowed – made the loss difficult to swallow.
“I wasn’t expecting to lose like that and any time you go in expecting to win and the results are that far off, it’s tough,” quarterback Keith Price said Monday. “The game was just humbling, just getting our butts beat like that. I saw tears. I saw it all.”
The reaction indicated the depth of his teammates’ disappointment,
“I’m happy about that,” Price said. “That people actually care about that.”
Typically, coach Steve Sarkisian believes in a 24-hour rule when it comes to outcomes. Win or lose, use the ensuing 24 hours to celebrate or lament, and then move on.
But on Monday after the Stanford loss, the dissatisfaction wasn’t completely gone.
“Everybody’s definitely bitter about the loss,” receiver James Johnson said. “No one likes losing, a loss is a loss, but to take a loss like this, it really hurts.”
Even Sarkisian had a tinge of pain in his voice while rehashing the loss.
“I’ve said this before: Losing sucks. None of us like it,” he said.
But he was adamant the team will follow his rule and move forward.
“We can sit and dwell on it and feel sorry for ourselves, but the reality is we are 5-2. We are 3-1 in conference play and there’s a lot of football left to be played,” he said. “We need to get right, and we need to get right today. We can’t afford to sit in a lull right now of feeling sorry for ourselves and let this one ballgame linger … We need to get this right, get it fixed and get … our mojo back. Today.”
The players are already embracing the idea.
“Everybody is going to be more fired up,” Johnson said. “We have guys in our locker room who are going to be motivated. We’re going to be looking forward to playing these guys.”
Most of the team’s upper classmen know what it’s like to return to work following a lopsided loss. A year ago, the Huskies were beaten almost as badly by Stanford, 41-0, then lost again at Oregon, 53-16, and then won four straight games, including a win over Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl.
Sarkisian doesn’t think his players will let one frustrating loss doom their season. He admitted the team’s psyche might have been a little bruised after the game, but it can be healed.
“It’s started already,” he said. “We have to understand where we’re at. … We’ve lost to two pretty dang good teams on the road. So the process has started, and it’ll be better today after I get a chance to be with the guys again.”
BLACKOUT PLANNED
Sarkisian announced on his Twitter feed that the team will be wearing all black uniforms for Saturday’s game.
“It just feels fitting,” he said. “It’s homecoming. We are excited about it. I know our kids love wearing them. I think the fan base is excited about it and our students.”
While some traditionalists dislike the new look, the UW players embrace it.
“It’s going to be fun with the blackout,” Price said. “It’s going to be fun in the all-black uniforms. It’s going to be sweet.”
Sarkisian tweeted to fans to also wear all black for a “blackout,” similar to what they did last season for last the Thursday night game against UCLA.
“Just to get the messaging out today that we are wearing the all blacks, to get the blackout for Saturday night and get people excited,” Sarkisian said. “… We expect Husky Stadium to be rocking. It’s just one more reason to do that,” Sarkisian said.
FINALE UNDER LIGHTS
The last game at Husky Stadium will be played under the lights. The school announced the Nov. 5 game against Oregon will kick off at 7:30 p.m. and will air live nationally on Fox Sports Network and locally on Root Sports. Kickoff times for the Nov. 19 game at Oregon State and the Apple Cup on Nov. 26, have yet to be announced. They will likely be determined 12 days before the games.
HUSKIES' OPPONENT THIS WEEK
ARIZONA (2-5 OVERALL, 1-4 PACIFIC-12 CONFERENCE)
7:30 p.m., Husky Stadium, FSN/ROOT Sports, 950-AM
Coach: Tim Kish (1-0 as interim coach)
Against the Huskies: The Wildcats are 9-17-1 against the Huskies in the all-time series, but Arizona has won three of the last four. Last year the Wildcats crushed the Huskies, 44-14, with backup QB Matt Scott starting. Two years ago at Husky Stadium, the Huskies rallied for a 36-33 win.
Washington connections: Arizona fullback Taimi Tutogi, who scored two TDs last week, is the older brother of Washington linebacker Thomas Tutogi. The Wildcats have only one player from the state of Washington on its roster – Sir Thomas Jackson. The freshman linebacker from O’Dea is a walk-on for the Wildcats.
Scouting report: The Wildcats have underachieved this season. How much so? Well, Mike Stoops is no longer there after coaching for seven seasons. He was fired after a 1-5 start that included five straight losses. Defensive coordinator Tim Kish took over as interim head coach and led the team to a 48-12 win over UCLA last week. Offensively, the Wildcats still rank near the top of the Pac- 12 in total offense at 471 yards per game and is first in pass offense at 373.1 yards per game. Senior quarterback Nick Foles has thrown for 2,541 yards and 18 touchdowns this season. His best target is playmaker Juron Criner, who has 36 catches for 441 yards and six touchdowns. Defensively, the Wildcats are inexperienced and starting cornerback Shaquille Richardson has been suspended for Saturday’s game. The Wildcats are giving up 33.9 points and 464.1 yards of total offense (last in the Pac-12) per game.
Did you know: In the past four meetings, Arizona has averaged 43.3 points and 478 yards of offense per game.
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing, Att, Comp, Pct, Yards, TD, Int
Nick Foles, 320, 227, 70.9, 2,546, 18, 5
Rushing, Att, Yards, Avg., TD
Keola Antolin, 70, 372, 5.3, 3
Ka’Deem Carey, 62, 260, 4.2, 4
Receiving, Rec, Yards, Avg., TD
Gino Crump, 39, 387, 9.9, 1
Dan Buckner, 36, 541, 15.0, 2
Juron Criner, 36, 441, 12.2, 6
Punting, Punts, Avg, Blk
Kyle Dugandzic, 24, 47.4, 0
Field goals, Att, Made, Lg
John Bonano, 2, 2, 41
Alex Zendejas, 1, 2, 28
2011 SCHEDULE
Sept. 3: def. Northern Arizona, 41-10
Sept. 8: lost at Oklahoma St., 37-14
Sept. 17: lost to Stanford, 37-10*
Oct. 1: lost at USC, 48-41*
Oct. 8: lost at Oregon State, 37-27*
Oct. 20: lost to UCLA, 48-12*
Saturday: Washington*
Nov. 5: vs. Utah*
Nov. 12: at Colorado*
Nov. 19: at Arizona State*
Nov. 26: vs. Louisiana-Lafayette*
* conference game
Ryan Divish: 253-597-8483
ryan.divish@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/uwsports
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