Washington Huskies Football: UW Drops To 20th In AP Poll

After the disheartening 45-24 loss to #2 Oregon at Husky Stadium, the Huskies have been dropped from 16th to 20th in the AP Top-25 Poll. Washington’s highest ranking of the year was 15th, held just before the 31-28 road loss to then-#5 Stanford on October 5th.

There is really nothing for Husky fans to complain about here. Some may argue that Washington shouldn’t drop four spots for losing to the #2 team in the country, considering that #16 is expected to lose to #2 anyway. Thing is, the Ducks beat Washington pretty thoroughly. It was not a blowout that was decided fully by the half, but in the end Washington was clearly the inferior football team, even at home.

That means a moderate drop in the polls, one that can be made up for in a couple of wins. The Huskies will need to start with a victory at Arizona State this Saturday in a game that should be considered a must-win by both teams. The Sun Devils are unranked in the newest AP poll, but at 4-2 with losses at Stanford and vs. Notre Dame, they are dangerous enough to hop back in with a major victory at some point later in the year. Beating the Huskies would likely do the trick, as would a win over UCLA on November 23rd.

As for the Pac-12 as a whole, Oregon remains at #2 while Stanford dropped all the way to thirteenth after the upset loss to Utah. UCLA is the 2nd highest ranked team in the country, and the second of two Pac-12 teams still undefeated, at #9.