(9) Will Coach Chris Petersen show the ability to adjust over halftime?
Before the comments section fills with misunderstanding, I want to assure everyone that I hold Coach Petersen in high regard. He is a masterful college football coach, and he makes a true difference to the Washington Huskies in many ways. That being said, nobody is flawless. So let’s discuss one of the flaws which may have contributed to loses last season.
In short, Washington appeared to enter games with a very rigid offensive game plan. Despite injuries, game experience, or just players having bad nights, the play-calling did not seem to adapt to the game.
When Washington visited Arizona State University, the running game was successful. The Arizona State University defenders were a smaller faster defense. The bigger, more burly offensive linemen of Washington managed to open holes for running backs. But Washington stuck with the passing game, despite the low score.
Similarly, Washington faced Stanford on the road. In that game too, Myles Gaskin was gaining huge chunks of yards when he touched the ball. Unfortunately, so too was Stanford running back Bryce Love. The difference in the game? Myles Gaskin touched the football 18 times. Bryce Love carried the ball 30 times.
In this game, I expect the Auburn defense will be focused upon Gaskin early. So it will be up to the Huskies to adapt their offensie and open things up.