Amidst a season that eventually ended with downing Washington in the National Championship Game, Joel Klatt often described Michigan as a boa constrictor. A team that squeezes the life out of its opponents slowly, but surely. It happened to Michael Penix Jr’s Huskies in that heartbreaking defeat. It happened again Saturday, with Klatt in the broadcast booth.
Going to the Big House and beating the Wolverines is a tall task. But at 5-1, it was one the Huskies embraced, with a silent dream of reaching the College Football Playoff still attainable. After Saturday’s thrashing, consider it dead.
There was a chance Michigan’s offense could stall without running back Justice Haynes, who was listed as questionable but downgraded to out after pre-game warmups. Instead, the Wolverines turned to Jordan Marshall, who ran wild (stats). The Huskies were unable to rattle true freshman Bryce Underwood, who threw for 230 yards and two scores on 21-of-27 attempts.
It wasn’t always bad for the Dawgs. UW trailed just 7-0 after the first quarter and went into halftime tied after a short touchdown run from Jonah Coleman after what would end up being UW’s most impressive drive of the night.
Washington, the nation’s best second-half scoring team, was stifled time and time again throughout the rest of the way. Michigan took a 14-7 lead in the third quarter. The score came easily for Marshall, just 14 yards, made possible by Michigan’s Cole Sullivan plucking an easy interception away from Demond Williams, who didn’t see the defender.
Trailing by a score, Washington’s offense stepped back onto the field in desperate need of points. Instead, it was a second straight drive that ended with a Wolverines interception, this time via Jimmy Rolder.
The final quarter felt like the boa constrictor analogy that Klatt used a couple of seasons ago. Michigan scored another touchdown to go up 21-7, forced a turnover on downs, added a field goal, and logged a third and final interception off of Williams (this one because of a Denzel Boston drop).
Before the interceptions, Williams played solidly, but Michigan refused to let him use his legs. He finished with 209 passing yards on 20-of-32 attempts. Washington couldn’t get Jonah Coleman going either, as he finished with 50 yards on 16 attempts and the lone Husky score.
Washington, now 5-2 (2-2 Big Ten), still can put together a great season, but the overall lack of depth and elite interior play will limit its ceiling.
Looking ahead, Washington hosts Illinois (5-2) next weekend, then travels to Wisconsin (2-4). The two games after that featured a pair of 2-4 teams in Purdue and UCLA (on the road). The season finale, of course, will bring Oregon to Husky Stadium.