Price gets good news, hobbles

SEATTLE – Keith Price was out on the East practice field Tuesday, wearing his usual trademark smile. But the Washington Huskies quarterback also was wearing the bulky brace on his sore left knee that he thought he’d jettisoned a few weeks ago.

Still, he had a reason a smile. Coach Steve Sarkisian said on the Pacific-12 coaches conference call that a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on Monday evening revealed no structural damage to the knee he injured in the 40-17 loss to USC on Saturday.

“There’s some swelling that we will have to assess as the day moves forward and the week moves forward,” Sarkisian said.

Offensive players aren’t available to the media on Tuesday. Price did a few individual drills early and threw some passes, and did some light jogging. He moved with a noticeable limp, and did not participate in any team drills.

It was different than the previous two times Price suffered a sprained knee in games. On the Tuesday following both of those games, Price was able to participate more and take limited reps during the team periods.

Sarkisian would make no guess as to whether Price or backup Nick Montana would start Saturday against Oregon State in Corvallis, Ore.

“It’s still very early in the week in our game preparation,” Sarkisian said.

Whether Price or Montana plays won’t affect Oregon State’s preparation.

The Beavers will be preparing for Sarkisian’s offense that features a multitude of personnel packages, an array of formations and endless guys in motion.

“It’s more of the same,” Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. “They aren’t going to change dramatically with (Montana). That’s just who they are, and I think all of the quarterbacks in Steve’s system are capable of doing it all.”

Montana took all the snaps with the first team offense at practice Tuesday with Price looking on and offering encouragement.

Freshmen Derrick Brown and Thomas Vinson took the snaps with the second team. Vinson, a walk-on from King’s, saw a lot more snaps than on Monday, perhaps a sign that he might be the emergency quarterback.

Sarkisian has always stressed that players need normal practice reps in the week leading up to a game to play. How much Price practices today and Thursday and the amount of reps he takes in team drills with the first team would likely indicate if he will play Saturday.

A PLAY THAT WON’T SOON BE FORGOTTEN

On Monday night, ESPN Classic aired a replay of last season’s thriller between Washington and Oregon State, and for good reason. Washington prevailed, 35-34, in double overtime at Husky Stadium when Riley decided to attempt a two-point conversion and go for the win, instead of kicking the extra point and going to a third overtime.

Quarterback Ryan Katz tried to throw a pass to tight end Joe Halahuni. However, the pass hit off Halahuni’s hands as he was hit by linebacker Cort Dennison and dropped into the end zone.

“It was one of most fun games I’ve ever played in,” Dennison said.

Not so fun for Riley, who was second-guessed for his decision. Does he have any regrets?

“I rethink that stuff all the time, particularly when they don’t work,” he said. “It was a tough loss and kind of a bad turning point for our team.”

Riley liked the play call and everything other than the timing. Katz was just a tick late on the pass, allowing Dennison to make a play on Halahuni as the ball arrived.

“We had the window,” he said. “That is how tight things get in the red zone in the difference in making a play or not. We were just a little bit off on that and it cost us a game, and it was a big game in ramifications for the season.”

OSU was 3-2 and ranked No. 24 going into the game, but the loss helped set them into a tailspin that eventually left them 5-7 and out of a bowl game.

“That’s the football life right there,” Riley said. “If you don’t win those close games, you find yourself where we were last year.”

Ryan Divish: 253-597-8483 ryan.divish@thenewstribune.com blog.thenewstribune.com/uwsports