Washington Huskies Football: Good, Bad And Ugly vs. Boise State

Aug 31, 2013; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies wide receiver Jaydon Mickens (4) catches a pass during the 1st half against the Boise State Broncos at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Huskies opened up the 2013 season and their newly renovated stadium in convincing fashion, beating the Boise State Broncos, 38-6. Keith Price looked like his 2011 self, Bishop Sankey looked like his 2012 self, and the offensive line looked like something I’ve never seen in purple and gold before.

There was a lot of good, less bad, and hardly any ugly. Let’s review.

The Good:

Showing the nation that UW is back

There’s no way to include everything that went right for the Huskies in just one sentence, but that wraps it up pretty well. A 38-6 win over the No. 19 team in the country – one that some had in a BCS bowl – on national television will garner the Huskies some national attention. Seriously though, Price, Sankey, Jaydon Mickens, John Ross, the offensive line, the linebackers, the secondary…they were all impressive. That doesn’t even cover everyone, either.

The Bad:

Both defensive lines

The one weakness that Washington showed in the demolition of the Broncos was its defensive line. One of the keys I mentioned in my preview was getting pressure on Joe Southwick, and that was mostly non-existent. Both Boise and Washington’s offensive lines pushed around each other’s defensive lines the whole game. With a fairly inexperienced defensive line, that’s one thing the Huskies could improve upon as the season goes on.

The Ugly:

The first two “drives”

As Price through his first pass that turned into his first interception, I thought to myself, “Same old Keith Price. Looks to be a long season ahead of us.” Well, it turned out to be quite the opposite. Luckily for Price, his lone mistake was atoned for almost immediately when Sean Parker picked off Southwick’s second pass of the game. After that, things turned around and there was a quality football game.

Notes:

• With his two touchdown passes, Price passed Cody Pickett as the all-time leader in touchdown passes in UW history.
• Deontae Cooper got his first carry in the first half. It went for five yards after the one before it was brought back because of a cut block. He finished with six carries for eight yards.
• Cooper was one of eight Huskies to carry the ball. Sankey led the team with 25 carries for 161 yards. Dwayne Washington looked like the No. 2 back, getting 13 carries.
• Kasen Williams didn’t catch a pass until the second half, but it turned out apparently neither he nor ASJ are needed for the offense to produce. Jaydon Mickens had a huge game, catching nine passes for 109 yards.
• This looks to be the start of a very fun season. The Huskies have a bye before heading to Chicago to face Illinois at Solider Field on Sep. 14.
• Go Dawgs!