Washington football: 3 Keys to Victory vs. Tulsa in Week 2
Week 2 of the 2023 college football season is here and Washington Football is back in action at Husky Stadium. They hope to stay unbeaten against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane of the American Conference. What will be the keys to victory this Saturday?
Washington football’s keys to victory vs. Tulsa in Week 2
Make the QB Uncomfortable
Tulsa started Saturday’s game with Braylon Braxton at quarterback, before he had to leave the game with an injury. This was after he threw two interceptions. However, redshirt freshman Cardell Williams stepped in and put on a fine display. He threw the ball 14 times, with 13 of them completed for three touchdowns.
It’s likely that Williams gets the start on Saturday and Washington’sdefensive line will need to get at him. The Tulsa offensive line held up well in pass protection and gave Williams the time he needed to throw the ball with no pressure. He gained confidence and showed off his passing ability when presented with the time to find his receivers.
With all due respect, Washington football’s defensive line is much better than the Arkansas-Pine Bluff one Tulsa faced last week. The Huskies boast two of the best edge rushers in college, with both needing to find their inner heat seeking missile ability. Putting the QB under pressure could present panic to the freshman QB. Sacks are great, but just pressuring enough for him to leave the pocket and have to think more could make it a problematic day for Williams.
If it happens to be Braxton that gets the start, then the same applies. A QB coming off two interceptions from four throws will feel the pressure before the defense gets into the backfield. One of the main keys to the game is the Washington defense not letting either feel like they have the time to pick out passes.
RPO
As we are all well aware, the Huskies run game did not get going in week 1. Although the offensive line did their part by creating lanes, the running backs failed to capitalize. Will Nixon had a couple of decent runs, but the other attempts failed to gain much.
The Tulsa defensive line held their week 1 opposition RBs to under three yards per carry from 30 attempts. However, one of the keys to success is the run game being effective for Washington. This will open up the passing game, but more importantly, the RPO. The Tulsa linebackers bit a few times when the AR-Pine Bluff offense ran an RPO play. This resulted in some quick pass plays over the top, as the middle ground was left empty.
With no disrespect to Tulsa, Washington could carve the defense up by leaning heavily on the passing game, like we saw against Boise State. Bigger tests will follow so it’s important to win in different ways. This keeps the opposition defensive coordinators guessing, therefore finding it harder to gain an advantage.
Staying Focused
The win over Boise State was impressive. The defense was solid for the most part and reduced the Broncos to just 19 points. It could have been less than this as Washington started slow, giving up an early touchdown in both halves.
During the touchdown drives, players missed tackles that should have been made and just all round were slower to make plays. They also gave up two penalties that resulted in two field goals. Luckily no momentum was gained from the scores as the defense got back to how it can perform.
The defense needs to stay focused throughout the game and not give up sloppy plays. This can give the opposition unnecessary momentum and put Washington on the back foot. Again, Washington should be able to handle Tulsa, even with lapses in concentration. However, it can be good practice going forward into those bigger games.