SEATTLE — Sidney Jones was the closer Friday afternoon at Husky Stadium. He snuffed out any chance of the Washington State Cougars mounting a comeback in the Apple Cup.
The Washington cornerback made the play that broke WSU’s back, intercepting a Peyton Bender pass and returning it 69 yards at the game’s critical juncture as the Huskies romped to a 45-10 victory in the Apple Cup.
The Huskies controlled the first half, taking a 17-3 lead, and the Cougars needed halftime to regroup and mount a comeback. Washington State’s defense did its part, forcing the Huskies to punt on the first possession of the second half.
Enter Jones. Bender threw a long out toward the right sideline that Jones saw all the way. Jones jumped the route, picked off the pass, then raced the other direction to give the Huskies a 24-3 lead.
“I wasn’t in my deep half, I was tight and had the flat,” Jones said. “I just hair triggered and picked the ball off when he threw it my way.
“I was like, ‘Oh, touchdown. Nobody’s in front of me.”
Washington State never recovered after that play as Washington’s lead never dropped below 14 points the rest of the way.
“His return was huge,” Huskies linebacker Keishawn Bierria said. “But everybody (on defense) has big plays. You just have to contribute. That’s how our defense is. We’re explosive and we’re going to make things happen. Sidney’s just another guy (among a lot of good players). He’s a baller out there … and his explosive play was definitely huge for us.”
Indeed, Jones’ touchdown was just one of three defensive scores for the Huskies. Cornerback Darren Gardenhire scooped up a fumble and rumbled 28 yards for a touchdown with 5 minutes, 55 seconds remaining to give Washington a 38-10 lead. Then on Washington State’s next offensive play, linebacker Azeem Victor intercepted another Bender pass and returned it 27 yards for the game’s final score.
In total the Huskies forced seven turnovers — five fumbles and two interceptions.
“That’s our motto: score, get the ball back,” Jones said. “We did that for sure. We had what, four or five turnovers? We exceeded the limit — there’s never a limit, though. You just try to get turnovers as much as possible, that’s the key to winning games.”
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