The Washington Football team has a golden opportunity to establish themselves as the premier Pac-12 team with a solid performance against the Oregon State Beavers today. But the Beavers would love to win an upset today
That Washington Football team is now 4-0 (1-0 Pac-12), and by all appearances is looking stronger all the time. But as we learned in a Friday night upset of USC by host Washington State, each week is fraught with peril.
And this game has the dynamics of a trap game, doesn’t it? After all, the Huskies disassembled the Colorado Buffalo in Colorado in a very emotional game. But somehow the team must place that game behind them and get ready to face the 1-3 (0-1 Pac-12) Oregon State Beavers.
To many teams, that would be a very challenging task. But to Washington head coach Chris Petersen, you can bet that he has no patience for overconfidence. That mentality runs through the fiber of each player on the team.
Week Five Washington resumes climb
The month of September closes with Washington once more on the road. This will be the team’s third road game of the five game season so far. Next week, the team hosts a dangerous California Golden Bears team, and then travels on the road to the Arizona State Sun Devils before arriving to their bye week.
I had made preseason game predictions months ago, and so far, the Washington Football team has followed the script written all those months ago. But this game feels off somehow. I had predicted a closer score than many believe will happen, setting the final score at a 35-24 Washington victory.
The Beavers had an extra week to prepare for this game (last week bye week). And so, they will be well coached to oppose the Washington team. But coaching can only take a team so far. At some point, players need to make plays. And that is awfully hard to do against these Huskies.
Keys to the game for Oregon State
So far, Oregon State has shown some resiliency on offense, and not very much on defense. Oregon State cannot win a physical matchup against the Washington Football team. So what can they do? Well, their season starter Jake Luton was injured against Washington State.
Oregon St QB Jake Luton (back) is out, QB Darell Garretson will start today versus Washington.
— freeplays (@freeplays) September 30, 2017
Garretson is a transfer from Utah State University, where he enjoyed two seasons of 1000 yards passing or better. But he can be intercepted, and debuting as a starter against the Washington Huskies dictates they consider other options to win this game.
Defensively, the Oregon State Beavers must throw away the playbook and toss everything but the kitchen sink at Jake Browning. They have struggled on defense all season, and so the secret to a different outcome is simply to do things differently. Go man to man coverage on the receivers, and send everyone else on all out blitzes. It may not work, but it could shake up Washington’s rhythm enough to get the crowd noise into the game.
Offensively, the team must ride the workhorse running back Ryan Nalls. Even if Washington holds him in check, keep feeding him the ball. Then, when the Huskies commit to stopping the run, swith up to play action passing to move the chains. Oregon State cannot win a shootout. So they must grind it out on offense and hope for a wreckless abandon defense to create turnovers.
Keys to the game for Washington
So far this season, the Washington Football team has won big on the scoreboard, but statistically the team seems to still be in second gear. Until last week, the team had not seen much run production from Myles Gaskin. The team has yet to see a 300 yard passing game from Jake Browning.
That changes today. The absence of wide receiver Chico McClatcher for the remainder of the season will force Petersen’s coaching staff to rework the passing game this week. That rework could mean a huge game for Jake Browning. So far, Browning is tossing nine touchdowns in just four games. That number could go up significantly.
The Huskies may unveil a significantly greater role for freshman running back Salvon Ahmed. While he has gotten some work with the receivers this week, don’t abandon the belief that he will be carrying the ball as well.
Defensively, the battle of the line of scrimmage dictates the game. Against Ryan Nall, both Greg Gaines and Vita Vea need to show up at 100 percent. If Nall finds daylight early, the Beavers will feed him the ball all day.
Predictions:
I don’t like my original prediction of Washington 35 Oregon State 24. Why? I knew the Washington defensive backs would be good, but I have seriously underestimated their ability. They have already owned the air defense this early in the season, and the sky is the limit.
I also believed Oregon State would be stronger this season. I am now convinced that Oregon State will struggle to win games this year.
In any case, I am revising my original prediction. I see quarterback Jake Browning at 400 (and nearly 500 yards) passing on the day. Look for huge games from wide receiver Dante Pettis, tight end Hunter Bryant, and freshman Salvon Ahmed. I also expect Myles Gaskin to be involved in the passing game today.
Final Score: Washington 70 Oregon State 14
Washington-Oregon State game time, details:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017
Time: 5:00 p.m. PT
Location: Reser Stadium, Corvallis, Oregon
What TV channel is Washington-Oregon State on?
The Washington versus Oregon State game is televised via the Pac-12 network
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How can I watch Washington-Oregon State game online?
The Washington versus Oregon State game will stream online via Pac-12.com . with either a cable or satellite subscription, or the Pac-12 Now app on your mobile device or tablet.
Next: 5 things to watch for as Washington Football visits Oregon State
Will the Washington-Oregon State game be broadcast via the radio?
The Washington versus Oregon State game will make the radio on either 1000 KOMO-AM or 97.7 KOMO-FM in the Seattle area, or on the Sirius Satellite Radio channel 145, XM channel 197 and SiriusXM channel 959. The game’s radio broadcast can also be streamed online via the Washington IMG Sports radio.