Power Pros Forum

Nice win my man

Quickie update: University of Washington has moved up from #14 to #5 and a spot in the Rose Bowl after upsetting now #6, formerly #1 Oregon. Arkansas is the new #1, followed by Kansas State, Wisconsin and Ohio State. This week Washington will face USC, who dropped from #7 to #15 after losing to #20 Utah (who moved up to a spot outside the top 10).

After the USC game, in Seattle, the Huskies continue their homestand against Arizona, Oregon State and Cal, all unranked and all with either 4-2 or 3-2 records.

As was expected, it was not exactly a blowout for either team in a possible Game of the Week, #5 Washington 'welcoming' #15 USC into Husky Stadium.

The game began well for Washington, though, with a 52 second touchdown drive culminating in a toss for Tim Johnson, as the TE Morris broke free on a corner route, shed a defender and rumbled in for a 39-yard score. Scoring ceased for the 1st quarter after that, but that was because USC's own TD drive took them into the 2nd quarter, finishing with a 17 yard pass down the left sideline to knot the game at 7. However, after Washington failed to convert on a 4th and 1, USC struck with a 41 yard touchdown to Sanders, handing USC the lead with 2 and a half minutes in the half. The scoring was far from done, though.

Washington made very effective use of time as they drove 70 yards for a touchdown with a minute left, but saw the pendulum shift right back the other way as what looked like an average run up the gut turned into a highly misplayed 80 yard scamper for the USC tailback, making the score 21-14. Incredibly enough, Washington still managed to come back with a shot of their own, taking just 25 seconds (yay for timeouts) to respond, and at the half it was suddenly 21-21, which Kirk Herbstreit called a "scoreboard explosion."

USC provided the only scoring in the 3rd quarter, giving themselves a 6 point cushion on two field goals of 42 and 29. However, Washington roared right back to take the lead thanks to a pair of big plays, and with 4.75 minutes left Washington led by a single point. USC was forced to 3-and-out on their next drive, though, and a 38-yard pass from Tim Johnson to team receiving leader Pierre Bush, plus a 2-point conversion, pushed the game out of reach for the floundering, now 3-3 but formerly #1 USC.

The final score was 36-27 in favor of the soaring Huskies, with Tim Johnson finding 4 different receivers for touchdowns, including 2 for Sam Sampson and a 144 yard day for Matt Morris, in a 372 yard day. At this, USC might even drop out of the rankings with third 3rd loss, while Washington will definitely see a rise, especially with #3 (and formerly undefeated) Wisconsin falling to unranked Purdue.

(A/N: I didn't expect to be playing this well. I have the difficulty on a setting that usually gives me a good challenge, so I definitely thought I'd have one or two losses... however, Utah is on the sched, them being undefeated, and I have the conference championship, so we'll see...)

1st: 0-7
2nd: 21-14
3rd: 6-0
4th: 0-15
Final: USC --- 27-36 --- UW

Nice win

Big plays ran rampant in this game, and a combined 58 points reflected that.

Washington began with the ball, but failed to capitalize, Tim Johnson tossing a pick that turned into a Wildcat touchdown. Washington then proceeded to boot the ball away on a punt, and Pittman ended up with a touchdown after a post route by Tim Wright went 80 yards. Another INT --> TD made the score 21-0 Arizona, and Husky Stadium had suddenly become pin-drop quiet. The crowd started to stir, however, after a Sam Sampson touchdown closed out the quarter. A beutifully executed drive by Washington gave them another score, on a 5-yard run by the backup running back Parham, who shook off a boneshaking slam to fall into the end zone around the left tackle. A 50 yard field goal made it 24-10 at the half, but the game was far from over.

Arizona opened the second half like Washington did the first, with an INT deep in their own territory, and Washington scored a touchdown to make it a 3 point game. Then, shockingly, Pittman fumbled the ball after rolling out to his right to buy more time on a 3rd down, the nickel back stepping up to throw him down and the middle linebacker recovering the ball inside the 10. The very next play was a play-action rollout, and Johnson found James, the second TE, in the back of the end zone for Washington's first lead of the game, 28-24!

Arizona countered with a field goal (53 yards!) on their next possession, but Washington got the ball back looking poised as ever... but threw an interception on third down! Reece, who had his 2nd pick of the day, looked certain to score, but Tim Johnson hustled back over and dragged him down at the 2 yard line for Arizona to set up shop.

First down: No gain on the run.
Second down: Incomplete pass
Third down: 1 yard run.

Yes, Washington forced a FG, but it meant that Arizona had a 30-28 lead with 18 seconds left in the 3rd quarter.

Washington then proceeded to put together a very solid drive, but on fourth down play was foiled by a heavy rush, sacking Johnson and giving Arizona the ball back with the lead. They ended up punting, and Washington had one more drive (with one TO) to try and win the game with a field goal.

Clutch plays all over led them up to about the 35, but with less than a minute left they stalled. At the 28 second mark, the senior kicker Greer stepped up to try and boot a 53 yarder, with the wind providing a 12 mph boost. He stepped up, kicked it right down the middle...

And it fell short.

Two kneeldowns later, Arizona had knocked off one of 6 undefeated teams left, 30-28.

Tim Johnson threw 2 TD's but 5 INT's, the deciding factor in the game.

1st: 21-3
2nd: 3-7
3rd: 6-14
4th: 0-0
Final: UA --- 30-28 --- UW

Quick update: Washington bounces back from their previous loss by absolutely demolishing Oregon State, 47-21. Seth Brown's injury sent Marcus Parham into the game, and he nearly got 100 yards on the day, but it was the passing game that took center stage. Tim Johnson threw for 372 yards and an astonishing 7 touchdowns on the day, with both Pierre Bush (8 rec, 180 yards) and Sam Sampson (6 rec, 62 yards) catching 3 and Brian Buckley (4 rec, 103 yards) receiving the other. Brett Hodge had 9 tackles on the defensive side of the ball, while the Husky D picked off Brandon Buckley thrice.

Either you missed some PAT's or failed a few two point conversions

Yeah, I missed a 2 point conversion or two. I do that sometimes.

I'mma start typing up a big recruiting update for you guys. In narrative form, of course.

"Ah, I love this time of year..."

Cole sat back in his chair with a very relaxed posture, one leg folded over the other as he looked over at a one-page Excel spreadsheet he'd just printed out; the current recruiting board. It was 33 strong, Cole having decided weeks ago that he didn't really need all 35 supposed spots filled (this was actually the largest it'd been in weeks, with two new guys on the list). There were 4 check marks on the list: young men who had already hard committed to the Seattle institution.

-Barry White, the first one, a middle linebacker.
-Laurence Weaver, 70 OVR Wide Receiver (and thus far the only 4-star recruit to make it official)
-Tim McIntosh, a defensive end who committed, actually, right after the loss to Arizona. It was his visit (Grade: A-) that had solidified it for Washington.
-Mike Ware, who had just joined this small list, a fullback. He was only a 1-star, but was still one of the best fullbacks available (69 OVR), and Marceau had a great feeling about the kid; he put academics first, yet was committed to football and had a LOT of potential.

Next were the soft commits, guys who hadn't made it official, but were sure as heck close to doing so. It was in this state that Tim McIntosh had been, but for Oregon State... the very next week, he visited Washington and committed for real. One name in particular on this 3-name list made Marceau grin to himself, as it was one of the men he'd been chasing since the start.

-Rob Harrison, a corner out of Oregon who'd been rated 3-stars mainly out of size (5' 9"), but was displaying great base skills otherwise (and, of course, nice jumping ability to make up for the height).
-Stephen Stone, a free safety who would be filling a team need at that position.
-Paul Parks, the middle linebacker around whom Marceau wished to build his 3-4 defense in years to come... he'd had Washington in his top 5 all along, but it was a hell of a fight, especially with Brigham Young, to net the 5' 11", 239 pound man with better pursuing skills than a cop in a car chase. This 4-star recruit would definitely be one of Marceau's prouder acquisitions.

Remarkably, all other 26 men on the list, barring the two new additions for the week, had Washington in their very upper echelon of choices (A/N: Top 2), thanks to Cole's aggressive strategy. He hadn't been slacking on the scholarship offers, using them as a springboard to jump to the front of the pack on contested recruits, and in many cases he'd gotten the lead as the final stretch approached, or merely held onto it until then. As he eyed the list from afar, he picked out some names that he unconsciously nodded to: Chris Love, the physical monster who'd had Washington first all along and looked all but ready to commit, Brian Williams, the Canadian Cornerback with 5 star potential (started 75 OVR, thru scouting became 79) who briefly had Georgia at #1, until they retracted their scholarship offer, leaving Washington far and away the #1, Nick Payne, the Center who looked ready to become a linchpin of the O-Line (76 OVR), et cetera.

He briefly thought back to other muses who had fled his grasp, from Tristan Williams (Athlete) to Jeff Wilson, the home-state OLB who had kept Washington in it until Marceau had to let him go, knowing there was no chance to tear down his rapport with Ohio State. It was a shame he couldn't net them, and indeed there were quite a lot of players who just weren't the Husky type. However, that was the nature of the recruiting game, and with the other successes he'd been having (Brian Williams, working Stephen Lane up from having Washington barely in his Top 10 to a #1 and a possible soft commit by the next week, Paul Parks), it was all right to let some slip through the cracks.

"Any word from Sean about anything?" Jaxon suddenly asked, materializing out of nowhere like he was some Harry Potter character.

"No, not at the moment... I'm feeling good about it, though. I'm going as hard as I can and it's worked thus far. Oh, and guess who just made it unofficial~?"

"Not a clue, sir."

"A Mr. Paul Parks, out of Maple Valley?" Cole answered his own question with a sly grin, and Jaxon's reaction was a joyous one as well.

"Wow, very well done, sir! I had a suspicion he was close, but it's still great to see a guy like that come here... what number was he again?" Jaxon's question referred to Parks' spot on the big board, ranking every player in the nation.

"I believe he is 41, but don't hold me to that. Somewhere around there, though, which is fantastic for a school without the highest prestige, exactly."

"Excellent. Anything I can do for you, sir?"

"Hmm... yes, actually. James Moore (A/N: 67 OVR [+1] TE)'s coming up, and I need you to make sure he got into the airport all right. You've got his number in your own spreadsheet, so just hit him up and make sure it's all good to go."

At that Jaxon nodded and departed, and Cole leaned forward to look over the depth chart for the game against 6-2 Cal. Washington was back up to #8 in the nation, but with Utah undefeated, they still needed every ounce of energy to try and get a bowl game... of course, they could just take matters into their own hands after the bye week. That's when they'd travel down there themselves to take care of business.

Washington just won 68-23 over Cal. Seth Brown had 173 yards on 13 carries and 3 TD's (including a 72 yard scamper for a score), Pierre Bush had 3 TD's of 29, 75 and 72 and 191 yards overall, Aaron Burke recorded 12 tackles, and Joe McCarty had THREE interceptions, one of which went for a pick six down the left sideline.

Weee.

EDIT: Paul Parks is officially a Husky!

Washington has dropped another game, this time to #3 Utah, 31-20. Tim Johnson threw 3 interceptions.

I'm pissed about the loss and can't say much else.

Did you sim the game?

Nope. I played it out, like I do for all of them.

Comments would be appreciated, just oh by the way! (Well, comments better than just 3 word ones, of course)

----------

Washington would leave their most stunning game for the last of the regular season.

It couldn't have started any worse for the Huskies, that's for sure. It took only 4 plays for the hated Washington State Cougars to draw first blood, with the first play from scrimmage being a 46 yard bomb to J.D. Jordan, who later broke the school record for single-season receptions. Then, on Washington's first play, Johnson threw an interception that left Washington State inside the 15. A scramble by the QB left them on the 1 yard line with a 1st down, the Cougars poised to go up 14-0. Incredibly enough, though, Washington held their ground, proving that their goal line defense was arguably the best in the country. 2 incomplete passes and a -2 yard rush left the Cougars with a 19 yard field goal and a 10-0 lead, and after drives ended in stalemates for both teams, it remained that way into the 2nd quarter before WSU scored another field goal. The subsequent Washington drive was a 4-and-out around midfield, though, and Washington State capitalized with another touchdown, then a field goal after a 3-and-out, driving the score up to 20-0 (and later 23-0) in favor of the unranked visitors.

Only now did the Huskies wake up a bit, with 3 straight 15+ yard passes culminating in a 19-yard strike to #1 WR Pierre Bush, who went over 1000 yards on the season with an effortless grab on a corner route that found a huge niche in the Cougars' zone defense. Washington State struck right back with a touchdown of their own, unfortunately, but as had happened the previous couple games, Washington managed a first-play score by attacking the Cougars ruthlessly, Tim Johnson firing to a wide open Pierre Bush (I'm talking 10 yards of separation!) for a 71 yard score. That ended the scoring in the half, and as both teams entered the locker rooms it was, incredulously, 30-10 in favor of Washington State, playing on UW's turf in Seattle.

The turning point, however, was the opening play of the second half. Sam Sampson fielded the kickoff 2 yards deep in his own end zone, right in the middle of the field, and burst upfield. At the 15 he cut to his left, and found a hole near the 20 through which he exploded... and found a LOT of green down the sideline. He went untouched until the 25, where a juke faked out the kicker but had him tackled by another defender, down at the 19 of Washington State, giving the Huskies incredible field position. However, Sampson himself became the second Washington WR to leave the game (after Buckley, the #2, with Sampson as the #3), and while Buckley would be out for 2 weeks, Sampson found a 4-week slot on the injury report. It wasn't for naught, though, as Washington scored a TD and nailed a 2-point conversion to make it 30-22; a one-possession game. They then forced a 3-and-out from the Cougars, with the nickel back Derek Fine dragging the slot receiver for WSU down just a yard short of the 1st down marker. Tim Johnson thanked him by throwing an interception to hand the ball back over, but apparently he was setting an example for the otherwise hot Cougar QB. At Washington's 28, he dropped back to pass, threw behind the slot receiver on a drag route, and Derek Fine this time did the work for the offense, snatching the ball with a perfectly timed cut in front, then easily dashing 73 yards for the score. Add a 2-point conversion, and after trailing by 23 earlier (and 16 at the half), Washington had tied the game up.

Washington State bounced back at this point, driving all the way down the field to the Husky 5... and then getting absolutely no yardage from there, thus coerced into kicking a 21 yard field goal to take a 33-30 lead near the end of the third quarter. Washington got the ball later at WSU's 41, and thanks to a clutch 15 yard run on a toss play to Seth Brown, Kasey Greer was able to kick a 37 yard field goal to tie the game up once more with just under 3 minutes to go. Washington's defense stepped up at this point, forcing a punt with less than 2 minutes to go, Washington having spent their timeouts on WSU's drive they had just stuffed. Thus began the Seth Brown Show, as runs of 8, 16, and another 16 on a draw play stuck the Huskies in the red zone with the clock running. 2 more runs gained them 8 more yards, and at the Cougar 15, they lined up for a field goal.

And this time, Kasey Greer drove the 25-yarder straight through.

As time expired.

Improbably, the Huskies had rallied big time, without two of their top receivers, and absolutely stunned the Washington State Cougars, to the delight of the home crowd.

1st: 10-0
2nd: 20-14
3rd: 3-16
4th: 0-6
Final: WSU --- 33-36 --- UW

The ranks of the undefeated have fallen once more, and this time it was the previously fallen that did all the talking.

#8 Washington's opening drive against #1 Utah in the Pac-12 Conference Championship was textbook, including 63 yards passing to Mike Morris, the tight end, and resulted in a touchdown to him of 17 yards, the coach sending him on a corner route that burned the Utes' secondary all day. After B.J. Johnson was picked off by Casey George on a deep ball into double coverage, Washington drove down for another score, going up 14-0 early on. Utah narrowed it to a 7 point gap before the half, and with their opening drive of the second quarter the game ended up tied after a beautiful Utah drive, echoing the Huskies' first one.

However, from there on it was Washington's night. A 25 yard pass to the fullback and a 26 yard run by the backup running back, a wonderful, zig-zagging dash on a counter play, sandwiched a sack, and led to a too-easy touchdown run when they got the snap off eight as Utah was shifting their play. After a 4th-and-1 run was stuffed just outside of Washington's red zone, the Huskies took the ball with 4.5 minutes to play and ate up the clock like pros, ending with a 33 yard field goal with a minute 13 seconds to play. And then, fittingly, Utah's season ended on an interception, by NCAA leader Joe McCarty (10!) on a deep ball down the sideline. Two kneels later, Washington had gotten vengeance on Utah, and knocked them off their #1 ranking for sure on the way to a Pac-12 championship and a likely spot in the Rose Bowl.


1st: 14-0
2nd: 0-7
3rd: 7-7
4th: 3-0
Final: UW --- 24-14 --- UTAH

EDIT: UPDATE: Joe McCarty has won both the Chuck Bednarik and Jim Thorpe awards!