It's 2021 Apple Cup Time...Bow Down When You Come To Our Town

ChillyDawg said:

https://twitter.com/Chris_Fetters/status/1462932076714336259

https://twitter.com/UW_Football/status/1462905279125680129

Seattle Times https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-husky-football/could-uw-freshman-qb-sam-huard-make-his-first-start-in-fridays-apple-cup-bob-gregory-wont-say/

Bob Gregory is not a killer.

Nor is he a particularly transparent interim head coach.

Which is why, when Gregory — UW’s defensive coordinator, turned temporary head coach — was asked Monday to divulge the plan for freshman quarterback Sam Huard in Friday’s Apple Cup, he said: “I could, but I’d have to kill you. So, no. I’m not going to divulge … no injuries, no quarterback updates. So you guys are probably done (asking questions), right?”

The media was not, in fact, done asking questions.

But, when it comes to the quarterbacks, questions remain.

Redshirt freshman Dylan Morris has started each of his team’s first 11 games, completing 60.6% of his passes while throwing for 2,458 yards with 17 total touchdowns and 12 interceptions. However, the Huskies included a second quarterback in each of the last two games — with Huard leading three drives in the 35-30 loss to Arizona State, then graduate transfer Patrick O’Brien earning two drives in last weekend’s 20-17 loss to Colorado.

The results have not been promising. Huard’s three ASU drives resulted in a pair of punts and a nine-play touchdown march that included zero pass attempts. In all, he completed 3 of 5 passes for 20 yards. A week later, O’Brien’s two drives yielded the Huskies’ only two three-and-outs. He completed 1 of 3 passes for 1 yard.

But, considering Huard — a former five-star recruit, and the most prolific passer in the history of the state — can play in one more while still preserving his redshirt, would it make sense for him to start against Washington State? And considering UW is officially disqualified from postseason play, what would be the harm in seeing what the young lefty can do with an extended audition?

Again, for now, there are more questions than answers.

The answers will arrive on Friday, whether Husky football fans like them or not.

Combating The Cougs

UW hasn’t played Washington State since 2019.

These aren’t the same Cougs.

In 2019, Mike Leach’s final season at the helm, WSU ran the football just 16.2 times per game — nearly 10 times fewer than the second-most-pass-happy team in the country.

In 2021, Washington State averages 30.6 rush attempts per game — still just 11th in the Pac-12 and 117th in the country.

But now, at least, the Cougs present a realistic threat in the running game.

“I think the one thing they’re doing different and effectively is running the ball,” Gregory said Monday. “And I expect them to run the ball against us since that’s been tough for us, especially in the second half of games. So, I expect those guys to run the ball. Their back, (Max) Borghi, No. 21, is doing a nice job. And (they have) another quarterback that can move the chains with his feet, too. So, we’re going to have to do a good job stopping the run up front.”

UW enters Friday’s game ranked just eighth in the Pac-12 in opponent yards per carry (4.73) and 11th in rushing defense (192.64 yards allowed per game). The Huskies improved in that area in last weekend’s loss at Colorado, surrendering just 71 rushing yards and 2.6 yards per rush.

But considering UW touts the country’s top statistical pass defense, expect the Cougs to lean on their running game on Friday.

And that starts with Borghi, who has produced 894 total yards with 5.4 yards per carry and 10 touchdowns.

“I think the scheme helps him. Certainly by spreading everything out and spreading the defense out, it creates lanes for him,” Gregory said of Borghi. “He does a nice job, in terms of he’s got a nice little speed cut and he does a great job of the stiff-arm. I think he’s underrated. The guy has done a really nice job this year. We’ve seen him for a few years now and I think this is his best year so far.”

WSU senior running back Deon McIntosh has added 575 total yards with 5.1 yards per carry and three touchdowns as well.

Extra Points

• Gregory said he didn’t see anything mechanically amiss with sixth-year center Luke Wattenberg’s two bad snaps that turned into lost fumbles in the loss at Colorado. “Luke is one of our stalwart veterans,” Gregory said. “He’s an awesome kid. He’s a really good center. He’s going to play in the NFL. And we had a couple of bad exchanges. It seems like that’s the way it’s gone a little bit this year for us on offense. Other than that, that’s what it was — bad snaps. The first one, bad handling by the quarterback a little bit too.”
  
• While a number of sixth-year seniors will play their final games for UW on Friday, punter Race Porter is enjoying perhaps the finest season of the bunch. The former walk-on from Seattle is averaging 48.04 yards per punt, which ranks fifth in the country. He has booted 20 punts of 50 yards or more and 19 inside the opponent’s 20, with just two touchbacks. “You don’t have a lot of punters or specialists that are leaders, and he is a leader,” Gregory said. “I think the kids really gravitate toward him. He has great energy at practice and he booms a punt and he gets fired up. Yeah, we’re going to miss that guy. He brings a lot to the table, especially as a punter.”
  
• As stated earlier, Gregory declined to provide any injury updates on Monday. A number of proven contributors — namely, tight end Cade Otton, wide receiver Terrell Bynum, running back Sean McGrew, outside linebacker Zion Tupuola-Fetui and defensive lineman Faatui Tuitele — missed the Colorado game with unspecified injuries. A UW spokesperson confirmed last weekend that Tupuola-Fetui’s injury is not related to his previously torn Achilles tendon.
  
• Gregory said the team will have a walk-through on Thursday morning, after which they will gather for Thanksgiving dinner.

PAC 12 POWER RANKINGS

1. Utah (8-3/7-1)
Last week: 2
Result: beat Oregon 38-7
Next up: vs. Colorado (Friday, 1 p.m., FOX)
Line: Utah -24
Comment: No way the Utes would be 10-1 and smack in the middle of the playoff race if they had started Cam Rising from the get-go, right? Nah. They would have lost a second game, somewhere … probably … maybe.

2. Oregon (9-2/6-2)
Last week: 1
Result: lost at Utah 38-7
Next up: vs. Oregon State (12:30 p.m., ESPN)
Line: Oregon -7.5
Comment: National ranking of Oregon’s recruiting classes for the past six years, per 247Sports: 27, 19, 13, 7, 11 and 6. Now, the same for Utah: 37, 33, 33, 42, 30 and 33.

3. Washington State (6-5/5-3)
Last week: 4
Result: beat Arizona 44-18
Next up: at Washington (Friday, 5 p.m., FS1)
Line: WSU -1.5
Comment: We don’t expect him to win, but Jake Dickert is eligible for the Pac-12 Coach of the Year award. (Jonathan Smith and Kyle Whittingham are the heavy favorites at this point.)

4. Oregon State (7-4/5-3)
Last week: 6
Result: beat Arizona State 24-10
Next up: at Oregon (12:30 p.m., ESPN)
Line: OSU +7.5
Comment: Not unreasonable to wonder if the Beavers should have made the defensive coordinator switch (Tim Tibesar out, Trent Bray in) a few weeks earlier.

5. Arizona State (7-4/5-3)
Last week: 3
Result: lost at Oregon State 24-10
Next up: vs. Arizona (1 p.m., Pac-12 Networks)
Line: ASU -20
Comment: The combined record of the six FBS teams the Sun Devils have beaten is a paltry 24-41, and only one of them, UCLA, is over .500. Meanwhile, their record against teams with winning records is 1-4.

6. UCLA (7-4/5-3)
Last week: 5
Result: won at USC 62-33
Next up: vs. Cal (7:30 p.m., FS1)
Line: UCLA -7.5
Comment: One way to look at the Chip Kelly contract situation: Which end-game would UCLA’s division peers prefer? Our guess: They wouldn’t fret over Kelly returning in 2022, especially with defensive coordinator Jerry Azzinaro in tow.

7. Cal (4-6/3-4)
Last week: 9
Result: won at Stanford 41-11
Next up: at UCLA (7:30 p.m., FS1)
Line: Cal +7.5
Comment: Lots of complaints about Cal’s offense, especially from UW fans hoping the Huskies don’t pursue Justin Wilcox. But the Bears are sixth in the conference in yards per play, and that includes the COVID-impacted game in Tucson.

8. USC (4-6/3-5)
Last week: 7
Result: lost to UCLA 62-33
Next up: vs. Brigham Young (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
Line: USC +7
Comment: If the Trojans prevent BYU from completing its five-game sweep of the Pac-12, never before in history will so many have owed so much to so few. Because otherwise, the conference will never hear the end of it. Ever.

9. Colorado (4-7/3-5)
Last week: 10
Result: beat Washington 20-17
Next up: at Utah (Friday, 1 p.m., FOX)
Line: Colorado +24
Comment: The Hotline fully expects to see CU on the wire early next week with the news that several assistant coaches have been relieved of their duties. This little November uptick isn’t nearly enough to justify the status quo for Karl Dorrell’s staff.

10. Washington (4-7/3-5)
Last week: 8
Result: lost at Colorado 20-17
Next up: vs. Washington State (Friday, 5 p.m., FS1)
Line: Washington +1.5
Comment: An underdog at home in the Apple Cup? Oh, the indignity. (Actually, we think the matchups lean slightly in UW’s favor this week, but don’t tell WSU fans. They might become … indignant.)

11. Arizona (1-10/1-7)
Last week: 12
Result: lost at Washington State 44-18
Next up: at Arizona State (1 p.m., Pac-12 Networks)
Line: Arizona +20
Comment: It took all season, but the Wildcats finally moved out of the Hotline cellar. That says something about their resolve through all the losing. It also says so much about Stanford.

12. Stanford (3-8/2-7)
Last week: 11
Result: lost to Cal 41-11
Next up: vs. Notre Dame (5 p.m., FOX)
Line: Notre Dame -17
Comment: If the longest losing streak since the Walt Harris era isn’t enough to convince David Shaw that staff changes are needed, then nothing will. For anyone else, mass firings would be a no-brainer given the abysmal product on the field.