It was a beatdown of historic proportions on Montlake on Saturday night, as the Huskies put the hammer down on UC Davis, winning 70-10. Believe it or not, we did learn a few things about the Dawgs so let’s go over them now!
“Mama, there goes that man!”
Jonah Coleman is a very special player. That’s it.
Okay fine, I’ll write more about it. It seems that every so often, the Huskies get a player who, when he’s got the ball in his hands, can break the game open in a split second. You talk about John Ross, Michael Penix, Rome Odunze, Myles Gaskin, players like that are almost guaranteed to produce highlights. Last night, Jonah showed why he’s been that guy for 2 years. His vision and instincts are better than any running back in college football today, and the man just cannot be brought down with 1 tackler. Or 2. Or maybe even 3! Coleman’s 5 touchdowns on 15 carries tied Hugh McElhenny and Corey Dillon for a modern Husky record, and if he keeps up this pace, he may come close to Corey Dillon’s record of 24 touchdowns in a single season, if not break it outright. But he wasn’t out there by himself, no sir! The offensive line, especially on zone schemes, opened up massive lanes for Coleman to run through, and they made his job a lot easier. The holes were open, and Coleman had the vision to find them, and the power to stay up while running through them. Of course, he wasn’t the only one getting in on the scoring fun, as Demond Williams, Kai Horton, and Adam Mohammad all had 1 score, with the team tallying 8 rushing touchdowns total! All I can say is this: I’m all for balance and being multiple on offense, but if you have dudes like Coleman, run it with him until the defense proves that they can stop it!
Second(s) In Command
I wrote in my prediction that I was watching the battle for WR2, and I predicted that Denzel Boston would have a good game. Boston did have a good game, hauling in 5 passes for 50 yards and returning a punt 78 yards to the house. But the battle for WR2 just got a little more interesting, as Rashid Williams looks to be out with a shoulder injury after catching the first pass of the game for 27 yards. According to Coach Fisch, he looks to be out for the “next few weeks.” In that time, the Huskies have options. The most likely seems to be Freshman Dezmen Roebuck, who led the team in receiving with 4 catches for 77 yards and a touchdown on a shovel pass. RVB, the other Freshman, seems like another viable player, as he amassed 52 yards on 2 catches. There’s also the possibility that Penn State transfer Omari Evans could make his Husky debut in the Apple Cup, bringing a welcome veteran presence. It’s all wide open, and I will miss Williams being that second option, but I am optimistic that we’ll be fine in the more immediate term, as Roebuck has shown enough flashes that indicate to me he can step up and be a very good wide receiver!
Lingering Issues
Defensively, it was a better performance than last week, but one has to wonder whether that was a function of the defense being better or the lower competition. Jacob Lane did get a sack on the first play of the game, and we did have 3 on the game, but Utah Tech had 6 on UC Davis last week, and if we can’t create pressure, then come Big Ten play, it’ll be very difficult for the defense to stem the tide of some of the better offenses in the conference. Aside from that, penalties are still an issue for the defense, as they were last season. On UC Davis’s only touchdown drive, which lasted almost 5 minutes, the Huskies gift wrapped the Aggies 25 yards and then held them to a 1st and 20, and then gave up 17 yards on a 3rd and 15, which put the Aggies on track for an eventual touchdown.
Now, that did not cost us the game, not in the slightest, but it is something that the Huskies and Ryan Walters need to work swiftly to correct, because eventually, again, these offenses will get better and exploit those kinds of mistakes more easily. And maybe the bye week will be good, but this is a pattern of behavior that has persisted between Belichick and Walters, so I am not sure what the fix is. I did like seeing Tacario Davis get the interception, and I hope he’s okay because we’ll need all hands on deck for the stretch run through the season!
Extra Things
- Another great stat from Tony!
We’ve got a bye next week before the Apple Cup in Pullman on the 20th! Go Dawgs!