That was….interesting.
I don’t believe anybody expected the Washington Huskies offense to struggle so badly against Hawaii, nor do I think anybody expected Jeff Lindquist to look so terrible after the efficient start he got off to. Thankfully, that’s not something we’ll have to witness again. Coach Pete made the decision, probably sometime in the second half on Saturday, that Cyler Miles would get the keys to the offense going forward. Thank goodness Coach Pete doesn’t listen to bloggers who tell him that Jeff Lindquist should be his starter, right?
Ok, here’s the good, bad and ugly from Saturday’s win against Hawaii.
The Good:
Danny Shelton: My word – what a performance. He was everywhere. 12 tackles and two sacks from UW’s senior leader. This is the type of performance we have been dying to see from this young man, and he finally delivered. He’s going to demand double and triple teams as the year goes on, and this is going to open things up for the rest of the defense. It’s going to be fun watching Shelton run around causing havoc this year.
John Ross: I mean, we knew he was explosive but come on. I think Ross touched the ball six times (two receptions, three kickoff returns and one rush) for 193 total yards and two touchdowns. In the first quarter with UW on the ropes, Hawaii turned the tide of the game on a stupid roughing the passer penalty. Lindquist missed badly on a throw but was hit late extending the drive. The very next play, Ross took a reverse to the house for six. On UW’s next possession Lindquist hooked up with Ross on a seam route for 91 yards. It was a thing of beauty. I can only imagine what else Ross will be able to do when he is thrown more than two catchable balls in a game.
Lavon Coleman’s last drive: For 55 minutes the Huskies couldn’t run the football. On the last drive of the game, when UW needed one first down to seal the win, Lavon Coleman finally showed up. He ran hard, got his yards, and looked every bit the combination of power and speed we’ve been hearing about. Dwayne Washington has company.
The Bad:
The Offense: Ughhhhhh. I realize that the Huskies are breaking in a new coach, new offense, new starting quarterbacks, and new running backs. I really do. But seriously? That’s what we get? I’m sure that Coach Pete didn’t exactly open up the playbook, and as it became evident that Jeff Lindquist was more equipped to carry a clipboard than an offense I’m sure he watered it down even more. The shocking part for me was the inability to really run the ball. Between Dwayne Washington and Lavon Coleman, I figured we’d see a heavy dose of the big backs to wear down a theoretically undermanned Hawaii defense. Clearly, what do I know?
The First Two Drives on D: I know that it was the first two drives of the season and everybody was amped up. Adrenaline was flowing and guys were most likely trying to do a little bit too much as opposed to worrying about their assignments. Those first two drives were really hard to watch. The defense got gashed on the ground and in the air and before they knew what happened, it was 10-0. They did settle down and hold Hawaii to six points the rest of the night, but still – it made for some tense moments early in the game.
The Ugly:
Jeff Lindquist: I really feel badly for this kid. He’s a bright and positive guy who was highly touted out of high school and turned down Stanford to stay home at UW. He made one tremendous throw to John Ross for the long touchdown, but otherwise he was flat out awful. He missed easy throws, he missed hard throws, he made the wrong reads, and he was unable to move the offense against a team that won one game a year ago. He made Chris Petersen’s decision to start Cyler Miles incredibly easy.
Overall, this almost feels like a loss. The good news is it wasn’t. Somehow they survived and escaped with a win. If Sark is coaching this team, I have no doubt that they would have lost on Saturday. Despite all of the hand wringing and frustration, the Dawgs are 1-0.
Bow down and go Dawgs.