Everett, Wash.
Published: Sunday, September 7, 2008

Huskies left with nothing to celebrate

Huskies have game-tying PAT attempt blocked in loss to No. 15 BYU Jake Locker's celebration draws an unsportsmanlike penalty, forcing UW to kick a 35-yard PAT instead of the usual 20-yarder.

By John Boyle
Herald Writer

 SEATTLE -- Irate and ready to let somebody know it, Tim Lappano had his eyes set on a group of officials after time had expired on Saturday.

When they jogged past him, Washington's offensive coordinator found a referee and asked the same question so many of the 64,611 at Husky Stadium wanted answered:

"How can you make that call?"

Of course there may have been a few other colorful words sprinkled into that question as Lappano, the Huskies, and thousands of fans boiled over with frustration following a 28-27 loss to 15th-ranked BYU.

After Jake Locker scrambled for a three-yard touchdown with two seconds remaining, he was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct when he threw the football into the air before celebrating with his teammates.

The penalty pushed the tying extra-point attempt back 15 yards, making it a 35-yarder. Ryan Perkins' kick was low, and the Cougars' Jan Jorgensen broke through the middle of Washington's line to block it, preserving BYU's first non-conference road victory since 2002.

The ending of the game sucked the energy out of Husky Stadium, which had only moments earlier been rocking as fans thought Locker had engineered the game-tying drive.

Trailing 28-21, Washington got the ball back with 3 minutes, 26 seconds remaining. The ensuing drive was vintage Locker, both good and bad.

The sophomore quarterback overthrew a wide open D'Andre Goodwin on a deep ball on the first play of the drive, and missed a couple more open receivers throughout. Locker was also brilliant at times, however, running for 13 yards on fourth-and-10 to keep the drive going, scrambling to avoid a pass rush before finding Jordan Polk for 13 yards and another first down, and finding open space for a 15-yard run that set up his score.

After a pair of incomplete passes on first and goal -- both of which hit receivers in the hands -- Locker took things into his own hands, running left and diving into the end zone. He leapt to his feet, flung the ball into the air, then started celebrating with his teammates.

It wasn't until after he returned to the sideline that he realized he had been called for a penalty.

"I didn't realize I had done it," he said. "I just scored the touchdown and jumped up and the ball flew in the air. I was excited and going to celebrate with my team. Honestly, it was just a reaction. I didn't even think about it. It wasn't something I premeditated. I wasn't like, 'Oh, I'm going to throw it up in the air if I score.' But in hindsight it was something I never should have done. I've never done it in the past. I should have dropped the ball or given it to the ref. But it's something we'll learn from and we won't make that mistake in the future."

Referee Larry Farina told a Washington spokesman after the game that the celebration rule required them to throw the flag, and that it was not a judgment call.

Lappano had calmed down by the time he met with reporters after the game, and admitted that, "I shouldn't have done what I did." He also stood up for Locker, saying that his quarterback wasn't trying to show anyone up with his celebration.

Following the blocked extra point, the Huskies recovered an onside kick, but were offside on the play. That left them just one second to kick again, and Jared Ballman's kick went into the end zone as time ran out, leading to a blue and white celebration at midfield.

The Cougars hung on by the slimmest of margins to preserve their quest for an undefeated season and a BCS bowl invitation, while the Huskies were left wondering what went wrong once again. It was Washington's fifth loss by seven points or less in its past eight games going back to last season. The Huskies are now 0-2, and face fourth-ranked Oklahoma next week before taking a week off.

"It doesn't get much worse than that," linebacker Donald Butler said of the loss.

The game was tied at seven after one quarter, 14 after two, and 21 after three. The final quarter of the game started ominously for Washington, as safety Darin Harris was taken off the field in an ambulance.

Harris was covering BYU tight end Dennis Pitta on a 22-yard completion, and landed awkwardly on his head. The senior was placed on a backboard before being loaded into an ambulance. The immediate good news for the Huskies was that BYU's drive ended on a fumble, and the better news was the Harris was conscious and moving on his way to Harborview Medical Center, and did not sustain any neck or spine injuries, only a concussion.

Just five plays after Harris' injury Nate Williams hit BYU halfback Harvey Unga at the goal line to cause a fumble when it looked like Unga was headed for the go-ahead score. Tripper Johnson, who came into the game for Harris, recovered the loose ball in the end zone for a touchback.

"I was just running over there to clean up, and the ball popped out," said Johnson. "My eyes lit up, and I was like, I had to get the ball. It was my ball and no one else's."

The ensuing Washington drive stalled at the UW 47-yard line, forcing a Jared Ballman punt. BYU then went on a nine-play, 84-yard drive that ended with a Max Hall touchdown pass to Dennis Pitta. That made the score 28-21, setting up Washington's final drive.

Hall, a junior, completed 30 of 41 passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns, and threw one interception. Hall's favorite target was his tight end, Pitta, who finished with 10 catches for 148 yards.

Unga, a bruising 239-pound sophomore, rushed for 136 yards on 23 carries, and also caught five passes for 39 yards.

As was the case last week, Locker was Washington's leading rusher, finishing with 62 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. Locker finished 17-for-32 passes for 205 yards and no interceptions, and connected with freshman Jermaine Kearse for 48-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Contact Herald Writer John Boyle at jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more on University of Washington sports, check out the Huskies blog at heraldnet.com /huskiesblog
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