In other words, they saw much of what the coaching staff saw through the previous 14 practices of spring drills.

“It really confirmed what I’ve seen,” coach Tyrone Willingham said. “Our defense, we thought especially up front, might have been pushed around by a more experienced offensive line, and you didn’t see that. …

“I thought you saw our secondary make some plays, even though there were a couple of times guys got behind them. The receivers made some outstanding plays, so I think it confirms what we said there: Our receiving corps was young and inexperienced, but they could make some outstanding plays. … It’s been a good spring, and it really fits what we’ve been saying all along.”

Washington’s spring work ended with the Gold team, featuring the No. 1 defense and the No. 2 offense, taking a 10-7 win against the Purple team, featuring the No. 1 offense and No. 2 defense.

The Gold held a 3-0 lead until late in the third quarter, when Jake Locker completed seven of seven passes in leading an 80-yard drive capped by an 11-yard touchdown pass to D’Andre Goodwin.

However, Ronnie Fouch instantly answered by leading an 80-yard drive of his own. It was capped with the winning 13-yard pass to Devin Aguilar, who outmuscled Matt Mosley at the goal.

The two drives were indicative of what the quarterbacks did much of the afternoon. Locker completed 13 of 17 passes for 159 yards, and Fouch went 16-of-33 for 153 yards.

“I liked the way both quarterbacks played,” offensive coordinator Tim Lappano said. “I thought they both had a lot of poise and presence out there. … I feel a lot more comfortable knowing Ronnie Fouch can play, knowing he can hold his own. There might be a time when Jake needs to sit down and rest, or we don’t want to get him banged up or something, and Ronnie Fouch is good enough to go in there and win with. (This) was probably his best day as a Husky.”

Goodwin led all receivers with seven catches for 109 yards. Among the newcomers, Chris Polk had four catches, and Alvin Logan, Chris Izbicki, Anthony Boyles and Aguilar had two each. Senior walk-on Charles Hawkins led the Gold team with five catches for 34 yards, but he had a couple of drops – including one in the end zone. But he wasn’t the only one.

“We had a lot of dropped balls,” Lappano said. “… I think it’s just going to take some time to settle into this thing, and they’ll be more consistent. They’ve made some spectacular plays this spring, and they’ve dropped some stuff all spring. It’s just going to take a little while.”

Redshirt freshman Willie Griffin led all rushers with 71 yards on 20 carries for the Gold team.

Polk, Brandon Johnson and Brandon Yakaboski had 20, 20 and 18 rushing yards, respectively, for the Purple.

E.J. Savannah, still running No. 2 at linebacker after a suspension that cost him the first two weeks of spring, led all defenders with eight tackles, including two for losses.

He said he expects to regain his starting job by the season opener at Oregon, promised to take care of his offseason responsibilities and said he feels comfortable in Ed Donatell’s new defense.

“I love it,” Savannah said. “It lets the linebackers run free. It’s kind of what we did in Bellevue (High School) … so a lot of it is linemen taking up other linemen and letting the ’backers run free.”

Both coordinators said they kept much of their offensive and defensive schemes under wraps because the game was as open to scouts as it was to fans.

However, coaches said they were pleased with the spring work and eager for fall.

“Hopefully, we’ve got an understanding with what we’ve done of where we need to go,” Willingham said. “Some things are a little bit clearer now. For coaches, there will be personnel decisions that are clearer. … We had an education take place this spring that will help us in all areas.”

Don Ruiz: 253-597-8808

blogs.thenewstribune.com/uwsports

UW SPRING FOOTBALL GAME

GOLD 10, PURPLE 7

The Purple team was made up of the Huskies’ No. 1 offense and No. 2 defense, the Gold team of the No. 1 defense and No. 2 offense.

UW apparently ended spring with this No. 1 offense: QB Jake Locker, FB Paul Homer, TB Brandon Johnson, WRs Chris Polk and D’Andre Goodwin, tackles Ben Ossai and Cody Habben, guards Casey Bulyca and Jordan White-Frisbee, center Matt Sedillo and TE Michael Gottlieb. This appears to be the No. 1 defense: DEs Te’o-Nesheim and Darrion Jones, DTs De’Shon Matthews and Cameron Elisara, LBs Josh Gage, Donald Butler and Mason Foster, safeties Nate Williams and Victor Aiyewa and CBs Mesphin Forrester and Quinton Richardson.

Offensive player of the game: Locker completed 13 of 17 passes for 159 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Defensive player of the game: Junior linebacker E.J. Savannah seems determined to regain his starting job. He had a game-high eight tackles, two for losses. And after an early-spring suspension, he said he knows how to stay out of the doghouse: “Just go to all the workouts – that’s about it.”

Observations: Redshirt freshman Willie Griffin showed a knack for a stutter move before breaking hard into the hole. He led all rushers with 71 yards on 20 carries. ... Charles Hawkins had five catches and two notable drops, including one in the end zone. … The Purple team blew a fourth-down attempt when Locker fumbled the snap. … Freshman Polk was manhandled on separate plays in the fourth quarter while trying to block end Te’o-Nesheim and linebacker Chris Stevens.

Don Ruiz, The News Tribune