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3 things we learned in the Washington Huskies’ 31-17 road loss vs Indiana

By Ethan Lee

Oct 26, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Tayven Jackson (2) runs the ball for a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Washington Huskies at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images
Oct 26, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Tayven Jackson (2) runs the ball for a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Washington Huskies at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images / Jacob Musselman-Imagn Images
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Saturday afternoon, the Washington Huskies suffered their second straight Big Ten loss as they fell to 4-4 on the season and 2-3 in Big Ten play. Losing against an unbeaten (and really good) Indiana Hoosiers team wasn’t totally unexpected, but it was frustrating

And unfortunately, we learned a few things in the Huskies’ road loss. Among those lessons is that Washington is still a deeply flawed team that has potential to pull off some pretty intriguing wins here and there. Unfortunately, the flaws were too much for UW and the Huskies couldn’t overcome some pivotal early errors.

Here are three lessons that we learned in Washington’s loss to Indiana.

No. 1: Washington’s frustrating run defense definitely remains a concern for the Huskies

Indiana was missing its starting quarterback and the Hoosiers didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard. After all, IU’s offense only put up 24 points against Washington last week. The Hoosiers were helped out a bit on the scoring front by a Will Rogers pick six. 

But on the ground, while the Hoosiers weren’t electrifying, they were consistent and solid and found a way to grind this win out. Justice Ellison led the way as he ran for 123 yards and a touchdown. As a whole, the Hoosiers ran for 188 yards on 52 carries.

The problems that came up against Michigan, Rutgers, and Iowa were once again present. And that’s frustrating to see. 

No. 2: Washington doesn’t have the sort of offense to overcome bad turnovers

Right now, it’s more than clear that the Washington Huskies don’t have the firepower on offense to overcome multiple turnovers. Against the Hoosiers, Rogers threw a couple interceptions, including a pick six, and that put Indiana up early with an insurmountable lead.

Unfortunately, given the issues the Huskies have with regards to scoring, they couldn’t overcome those turnover troubles. And that’s a huge reason why Washington lost on the road last weekend.

No. 3: The Huskies can’t stumble down the stretch if they want to make a bowl game

This was a great opportunity to get a good win against a good team so that the Huskies could improve their chances of making it to a bowl game this season. But, with another loss, Washington falls to 2-3 in Big Ten play and the Huskies are 4-4 right now.

They’ve got games against the USC Trojans, Penn State Nittany Lions, UCLA Bruins, and Oregon Ducks remaining. If Washington wants to make it to a bowl game, the Huskies will need to play considerably better football than they did against Indiana. Because while UCLA is bad and USC is inconsistent, that slate of games is no joke.

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