5 storylines to watch when the Huskies travel to Arizona
Here we are at the halfway point, and the Washington Huskies (2-4) are not exactly where they were projected to be when this season began.
Their only Pac-12 win in three tries so far is an overtime victory over California last month, followed by back-to-back losses to Oregon State and UCLA. They’re still searching for their first win in October.
Will they find it this weekend in the desert?
UW has six games remaining to get this season back on track, beginning with this Friday’s trip to Tucson to meet Arizona (0-6). The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. with UW considered an 18-point favorite.
Here are five storylines to watch:
1. UW has four losses midway through its schedule, including the two consecutive conference defeats. Will the Huskies open the second half on a better note?
The Huskies haven’t statistically entered must-win territory to keep their season alive past the Apple Cup next month. There are still scenarios, unlikely or not, in which UW can rally to win the Pac-12 North.
But, this feels like a must-win game doesn’t it? The Huskies have six left, and likely need to win four to avoid missing out on bowl game eligibility for the first time since 2009.
Each of their three Pac-12 games has been decided by one score. They outlasted Cal’s late surge in September to win their conference opener in overtime, but their next two against Oregon State (27-24) and UCLA (24-17) slipped away late. Then of course there was the shocking season-opening loss to Montana (13-7) and the subsequent three-touchdown loss to Michigan (31-10) that positioned the Huskies here in the first place.
“If you go back to the last two games, we’re one, two plays away from being 3-0 in conference,” Huskies coach Jimmy Lake said this week. “And so, we’re close, and we’ve got to keep working, we’ve got to keep getting better and make sure we can change those results.”
If the result doesn’t flip for UW this week, against an Arizona team still looking for its first win of the season, when will it? Next week the Huskies travel to Stanford (3-4) — and haven’t won in Palo Alto since 2007. Two tough matchups at home against Oregon (5-1), currently ranked 10th, and Arizona State (5-2) follow. They then travel to Colorado (2-4) before hosting Washington State (3-2) in the Apple Cup late next month.
Some recent history ahead of this week’s game: UW has won four consecutive against Arizona, including a 44-27 rout of the Wildcats last November in Seattle, with many of the same playmakers. UW last lost in Tucson in 2014, and has won twice there since, but has dropped four of its past six against the Wildcats in the desert dating back to the winless 2008 season.
2. Is this the week the Huskies’ offense finds more consistency?
There have been productive drives. There have been highlight-reel-worthy plays. There have been timely touchdowns. But, this UW offense hasn’t produced consistently enough this season to come away with more than the two wins.
“I still believe this really deeply, that we have a really talented team,” Huskies tight end Cade Otton said this week. “We have a lot of really good players, and we can be a lot better than we are right now.”
Here’s where the Huskies rank in some key categories at the halfway point:
Scoring: 23.5 points per game, 10th in the Pac-12
Total offense: 357.2 yards per game, ninth
Passing yards: 246.2 per game, fifth
Rushing yards: 111 per game, tied-10th
The Huskies have had more success through the air than on the ground, but perhaps have a better chance to establish the run this week against a Wildcats defense allowing 202.3 yards per game to opposing rushing attacks. Sixth-year senior tailbacks Kamari Pleasant (33 carries, 229 yards) and Sean McGrew (56 carries, 226 yards, six TDs) are UW’s top rushers to this point.
UW’s pass catchers are also back healthy after several missed time in the first six games, and Terrell Bynum, Jalen McMillan, Rome Odunze, Taj Davis and Otton are all averaging more than 10 yards per catch with at least one touchdown.
Keep this in mind, though: Arizona also has the second-best passing defense in the conference, and 10th-best passing defense in the FBS, allowing 169.7 yards per game through the air.
3. How will UW’s defense rebound after facing two of the Pac-12’s top-five offenses?
Oregon State is averaging 441.8 yards per game on offense this season, and leads the Pac-12 in rushing at 242.5 yards per game.
UCLA is averaging 425.1 yards per game on offense this season, and is second in the Pac-12 in rushing at 219.9 yards per game.
Those are the two offenses the Huskies faced their past two games, and they both piled up more than 200 rushing yards against UW.
“We have to get way better,” Lake said this week when asked about UW’s rushing defense. “It’s been an emphasis for the last month, and it’s going to continue to be an emphasis. We have to get better. We have to tackle better. We have to get off blocks. We have to read our keys better. It starts in practice.
“We have to go put a better result this Friday night at stopping the run. If we stop the run better in these last few games, then we’re going to give our offense more of an opportunity to be on the field more and score some points, and of course we’re going to keep points off the board. It’s something we’re continuing to try to get better at and we have to fix, and it starts with us as coaches.”
Arizona’s offense has scored a conference-worst 14 points per game through its first six, which is tied with New Mexico for the lowest in the FBS.
The Wildcats haven’t fared as well as UW’s past two opponents on the ground, averaging 114.8 yards per game with a single rushing touchdown in six games.
And should Arizona opt to throw — the Wildcats are sixth in the conference in passing (234.5 yards per game — it will be against UW’s proven pass defense. The Huskies are allowing a conference-best 153.2 yards per game, and rank fourth in the FBS in the category.
UW’s defense could also get a boost with All-American outside linebacker Zion Tupuola-Fetui back in the fold. He made his season debut against UCLA after returning from an Achilles injury, and recorded three quarterback hurries and one hit on his limited 10 snaps. He could play a more prominent role this week, and is now listed along with Cooper McDonald as a possible starter on UW’s depth chart.
“He came out of the game healthy, and I would expect him to have more plays this Friday night,” Lake said.
4. Arizona has had some injury shake-ups on offense. What can the Huskies expect to see?
Arizona rotated through three quarterbacks in its first six games, but second-year freshman Will Plummer is the projected starter against the Huskies this weekend with both Gunner Cruz and Jordan McCloud out with injuries.
Cruz (61-of-93 passing, 536 yards, two TDs, three INT) started three games for the Wildcats this season, including the first two of the season and last week’s game against Colorado, before exiting early. McCloud (48-of-72 passing, 481 yards, two TDs, five INT) made two starts against Oregon and UCLA.
Plummer made his first start against Northern Arizona in Week 3, and took over for Cruz last week. He is 36-of-71 passing for 380 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions in four appearances. He also played in three games last season as a true freshman, completing 43-of-80 passes for 388 yards and three interceptions.
The Wildcats’ most productive playmaker is redshirt junior receiver Stanley Berryhill III (48 catches, 445 yards, TD), who ranks second in the Pac-12 in both receptions per game (eight) and receiving yards per game (74.2). The eight catches per game are also eighth in the FBS.
5. Here are three locals you might spot on Arizona’s sideline.
Every conference opponent the Huskies play this season has at least one Washington native on its roster. Arizona has three:
▪ RB Jashon Butler (Meadowdale): Butler is a redshirt sophomore in his third season with the Wildcats. He has not yet appeared in a game this season. Butler was a standout for Meadowdale in the backfield in high school, piling up more than 1,400 rushing yards and more than 500 receiving yards between his junior and senior seasons.
▪ LB D.J. Fryar (Steilacoom): Fryar is a true freshman, and joined Arizona’s program after wrapping up his final high school season last spring. He has not yet appeared in a game for the Wildcats. He was a two-way standout for Steilacoom during his high school career as a rover on defense, and played both running back and wide receiver on offense.
▪ RB Clay Markoff (Olympia, WSU): Markoff joined the Wildcats as a graduate transfer after spending the last five seasons at WSU, where he appeared in 29 games on offense and special teams. Markoff has played in every game for Arizona so far this season, appearing on offense (20 snaps, per PFF) and kick return (40). He was a standout running back and linebacker for the Bears in high school, and left Olympia as the school’s all-time leader in tackles.
