Washington (6-3) vs. Stanford (5-3)
Saturday, November 3rd @ 6:00 p.m. PST
Husky Stadium (Seattle, Washington)
Line: Washington -10.5
TV: Pac-12 Networks
Radio: KOMO
The Huskies will face off against the Stanford Cardinal tomorrow night in the comforts of Husky Stadium.
Last week, the Huskies travelled to the Bay Area and suffered a demoralizing 12-10 loss at the hands of the California Bears.
This week, the Huskies have the chance to rebound against a familiar Pac-12 North Division rival.
Both teams are coming into the contest banged up with injuries and looking to right the ship for their respective seasons.
Stanford lost a hard-fought game 41-38 game to the Washington Cougars last week and don’t want to drop two games in a row.
The Huskies still have everything to play for! If they win their remaining three games on the schedule then they earn a spot in the Pac-12 Championship game.
“It’s not even worth talking about. I’ve said it forever. We control everything. We control our happiness. We control how we practice. We control our improvement. All those things. That’s just always the message. Even if we didn’t control anything, even if we had nothing _ no games, nothing _ I would expect us to like ‘how are we going to get better.’ That’s who we are in our core.” Head Coach Chris Petersen said earlier this week.
Having a 6-3 record and still controlling your own destiny is a welcomed situation for the Huskies right now.
KEY PLAYERS: WASHINGTON
QB – Jake Browning
Jake Browning is entering this week’s game as the clear-cut starter after being benched last week in the 2nd half by Petersen. He will need to play better this week and take care of the football.
RB – Myles Gaskin
Myles Gaskin has sat out the last couple of games with a shoulder injury and the Huskies can’t welcome him back soon enough. The offense can use a boost right now and Gaskin provides the solution.
LB – Ben Burr-Kirven
Ben Burr-Kirven was named a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award given to the most outstanding defensive player in college football. He has notched 122 total tackles on the season thus far which is remarkable.
KEY PLAYERS: STANFORD
RB – Bryce Love
Bryce Love is an ultra-talented running back who is one of the top players in the nation when he is healthy, but injuries have plagued him throughout the season. He is listed as day-to-day heading into this game.
WR – JJ Arcega-Whiteside
JJ Arcega-Whiteside is a beast on the field who is tough to defend and causes mismatches in the passing game. When conversions get tough, Whiteside’s number is often called to deliver the big play.
ILB – Bobby Okereke
Bobby Okereke is a fifth year senior who plays physical on the interior and is a disruptive force to opposing teams. He is currently leading the team with 57 tackles and is on the Bednarik Award watch list.
GAME NOTES
– Over 88 all-time meetings, Washington and Stanford are even at 42-42-4.
– Washington has a combined, all-time record of 109-83-8 vs. opponents from the San Francisco Bay Area. Washington is 55-40-4 against Cal, 42-42-4 vs. Stanford, 10-0 vs. San Jose State, 1-1 vs. St. Mary’s and 1-0 vs. Santa Clara.
– Stanford is 5-0 this season when forcing at least one turnover, and 0-3 when not forcing a turnover.
– Washington hasn’t allowed a team to score 40 points in its last 53 games and, during that same span, has allowed over 30 only four times.
– UW’s defense has allowed just five scrimmage plays of 30 or more yards and just one of 40 or more – leading the nation in both categories.
PREDICTION (0-0)
After the Huskies upset loss at Cal last week, the Huskies literally got a reprieve on their season a few hours later when the Arizona Wildcats defeated the Oregon Ducks. It setup the Huskies to be back in control of their own destiny the rest of the way. When you start to piece it together, the Huskies have everything to play for in this matchup tomorrow. I expect the Huskies to come out and respond like a typical Chris Petersen coached team usually does. I expect the Huskies to get Myles Gaskin back for this game which will help ignite the Husky offense, and provide the desperate spark that has been missing the last couple of weeks in his absence. After being benched last week, look for Jake Browning to come out and prove to everyone that he is the best option at quarterback and play with a chip on his shoulder. On defense, the Huskies will produce two turnovers after being tired of listening to everyone tell them they are not getting enough. Stanford will try to impose their will physically with their downhill running game. The linebackers will have to play disciplined assignment sound football and stay in their gaps. I see the game being close until the middle of the third quarter until the Huskies take advantage of a Stanford turnover and get an easy score to pave the way for a comfortable fourth quarter. The Husky crowd will provide an emotional boost for their team and make life hard on Stanford on 3rd and 4th downs! Dawgs respond with a big win and ride off into the bye week looking for a football vacation and a chance to rejuvenate physically and mentally.
Washington 28 – Stanford 17
