09/19/09

What a game, what a game, WHAT A GAME!! Can you believe it? I thought for sure after the showing against Idaho that we were in for a rude awakening against USC....guess who was wrong?? We got to the game just a touch on the late side so we missed the opening drive where USC marched down the field and scored. Wasn't super excited to hear that as we entered the stadium. We finally found our seats as the first Washington drive was stalling.

After a small confrontation with one of the guys I sit by, Rossy and I decided to move up a bit to avoid the hassle. The guy was a royal jerk though, there is no doubt about that. Once in our new seats, we were able to watch USC again drive down the field only this time they were held to only a field goal. This was a good sign but still, at 10-0 in the first quarter, things didn't seem to be going our way. But it was funny. When you looked over at the UW sidelines, they didn't seem worried or in any sort of hurry to make things happen, which I think payed off big time for them.

After starting down 10-0 the Huskies really started to wake up. We were able to drive down and put one in the end-zone when Locker put his shoulder down and dove in! I have to believe that at this point most people in the stadium were still worried that we might be on the wrong end of a blow out. But then as time went on we seemed to gain the momentum.

A defense that has looked sad at best at times and great other times really started to look great in this game. We were still giving up bigger plays than we should have but once USC started to get inside the 25 yard line the defense got even tougher. It wasn't until the 4th quarter when we took the lead for the first time that you started to hear people around us talk about the possiblity of a win. You would have thought the guy standing behind us was a coach for the team or something. The guy was pacing more and yelling more than Coach Sark or Coach Holt. But in the end and with 7 seconds left we did the impossible! And as soon as the last kick-off was complete, the fans were out of the stands and on the field!

There was something about seeing all the people storm the field that made you REALLY feel as if Washington Husky football is back. There were some recruits in the stands and we did have one player up on an offical visit. But does that matter? Every kid in the nation that watches college football knows that the dawgs were able to up-end the Trojans. Every kid that watches college football has to be thinking that maybe Sark and Holt have these guys on the right track.

Having said that, a lot could be lost this weekend with a lose a Stanford. While Stanford isn't a bad team, a loss to them could take a bit of the wind out of UW's sails. Sure, the rebuilding process has begun and we look better, but a win against Idaho and a close win against USC just isn't enough.....yet. I'm not saying that I'm not a believer or that I don't think things are much improved, but I haven't forgot the 0-12 season from last year. How far are we away from that team of last year? If we win this weekend, I think that team is very far removed from this one. If we go down and lose, then we maybe aren't as far as we would all like to think.

So here we are. Ranked #24 in the nation and going into the biggest game of the year (at 2-1 with a road game at Stanford, this IS the biggest game so far). Having said that, if we win against Stanford, then the next game against Notre Dame becomes the biggest game of the year. Each win creates more pressure, but this team actually seems to do well under the pressure. How else do you explain us being one of the best 3rd down teams in the country? I can't complain, we are so much better than last year, I can't help but smile. This week is HUGE though and the Huskies must really keep the streak going. I'm calling a 28-17 UW win. Let's hope for the best here! GO DAWGS!!!

View the Game #2 blog vs. Idaho by clicking here.