#15 Washington (4-1, 1-1) vs. Stanford (2-3, 1-2)
Saturday, October 5th @ 7:30 p.m. PST
Stanford Stadium (Palo Alto, California)
Line: Washington -16.5
TV: ESPN
Radio: KOMO AM-1000/FM-97.7
The Washington Huskies will face off against the Stanford Cardinal at Stanford Stadium, as they seek their first conference road win of the season.
During the game last week, the Huskies were able to make some timely plays and hold on for a 28-14 victory over the USC Trojans.
This week, the Huskies are facing an opponent who is coming off a nail biting 31-28 road win against the Oregon State Beavers.
So far this season, Stanford is currently 1-2 in Pac-12 conference play, but built some confidence and momentum last weekend.
“Stanford’s always going to have a big-time thrower. They’re always going to have a good guy in there,” Washington head coach Chris Petersen said.
The Huskies haven’t played down on “the farm” since the 2017 season, where they lost 30-22 to the Cardinal during a similar 7:30 p.m. kickoff.
Defensively, the Huskies will have to find a way to speed up the Stanford offense and force them into some timely turnovers.
Offensively, the Cardinal must impose their will on the Husky defense, with their physicality and “slow down” mentality.
Something has to give, in this contest between the “finding their way” Cardinal and the “peaking at the right time” Huskies.
KEY PLAYERS: WASHINGTON
QB – Jacob Eason
The unquestioned catalyst to the Husky offense, junior Jacob Eason’s arm strength has added a much needed dimension this season. Last week against USC, Eason had a stat line of 16 of 26, 180 yards and 0 TD’s, but completed some timely throws to extend drives.
DB – Myles Bryant
Heart and soul leader of the defense, senior safety Myles Bryant is in charge of the young and revamped secondary this season. Bryant was converted to safety from the nickel position this season. Last week against the Trojans, he notched 7 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss.
TE – Hunter Bryant
Every single week, junior Hunter Bryant is a mismatch nightmare for opposing defensive coordinators. The hybrid tight end has sure and consistent hands, while possessing the ability to be a physical blocker as well. Last week he recorded 4 catches for 49 yards against USC.
KEY PLAYERS: STANFORD
QB – Davis Mills
Junior Davis Mills made his second career start on Saturday at Oregon State, going 18-of-25 for 245 yards and three passing touchdowns. He also added a receiving touchdown en route, to being named a Manning Award Star of the Week.
TE – Colby Parkinson
A season after catching four touchdowns against Oregon State, junior Colby Parkinson was back at it Saturday against the Beavers with both a receiving and passing touchdown. He finished with three catches for 44 yards and his first TD grab of the season. He now has 20 catches for 222 yards on the season.
OLB – Casey Toohill
Fifth-year outside linebacker and captain Casey Toohill was named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. He leads the Cardinal with 29 tackles and has added six tackles for loss and four sacks. His four sacks rank second in the Pac-12. Toohill has also added three quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.
ESPN MATCHUP PREDICTOR
GAME NOTES
– Over 89 all-time meetings, Washington holds a one-game edge over Stanford at 43-42-4.
– Washington has a combined, all-time record of 110-84-8 vs. opponents from the San Francisco Bay Area. Washington is 55-41-4 against Cal, 43-42-4 vs. Stanford, 10-0 vs. San Jose State, 1-1 vs. St. Mary’s and 1-0 vs. Santa Clara. The Huskies haven’t played Santa Clara since 1935 and St. Mary’s since 1947. Since 1977, UW is 60-18-0 vs. Bay Area teams: 28-7 vs. Cal, 24-12 vs. Stanford and 8-0 vs. San Jose State.
– Through five games, UW has outscored opponents 77-3 in the first quarter … in all five games this year, UW opponents have scored between 14 and 20 points
– Stanford is the winningest Pac-12 program of the decade. The Cardinal has won 96 games since the start of the 2010 season, the sixth-most in college football.
– Stanford has not allowed a first quarter touchdown in six of the last eight games it has played, dating back to the final three games of the 2018 season.
– Stanford is 51-9 inside Stanford Stadium since the start of the 2010 season.
PREDICTIONS
Tysen Allumbaugh [“Dawg Thoughts” Show Host] (3-1)
It’s been since November 3rd, 2007 since the Washington Huskies beat the Stanford Cardinal at Stanford Stadium.
It’s been…. Way. To. Long.
To paraphrase the great Jon Wilner, the Huskies have no excuse to not win this game.
The Dawgs will win but it’ll be closer than we want. Oh, and Jacob Eason will get his first touchdown pass against a Power 5 team as a Husky.
Jeff Wright (4-1)
The Huskies are entering this contest on a three-game winning streak and seem to be improving each and every week, which is scary for the rest of the Pac-12 Conference. This week, they travel on the road for their first road conference game of the year. Playing down on ‘the farm” is never an easy task for any opponent visiting Stanford Stadium. Other variables in play this week is the late kickoff of 7:30 p.m., which has the Huskies sitting around and waiting all day to play. This sets up as a potential “trap game” for the Huskies after their big win against USC last week and playing a Stanford team who has not performed well so far. While this game is an easy one for the Huskies to overlook, I don’t believe they will fall victim to taking the bait. Something has clicked the last few weeks for the Huskies, and they have fully rebounded and realized that they have a lot to play for the rest of the season. The Huskies simply have too much talent in comparison to “the tree”. While the Cardinal will try to slow things down and play at their pace, they simply don’t have enough weapons to beat the Huskies even though the game is at home. The Huskies win and they do so by a large margin! The offense will bounce back after last week and have a big game. The Husky defense will finally get consistent pressure on an opposing quarterback and come up with a couple of timely turnovers that will impact the momentum and outcome of the game. HUSKIES WIN as they really quiet the Stanford faithful into pure silence (is that even possible?) in Palo Alto!
