SEATTLE — For Washington’s seniors, today’s game has been a long time coming.
Finally, it’s Oregon’s turn.
After three straight years of playing Oregon at Autzen Stadium, considered one of college football’s most hostile environs, the Huskies finally get a shot at their Northwest rival at Husky Stadium when No. 7 Oregon and Washington kickoff at 4:30 p.m.
Thanks to a scheduling quirk, Washington has not hosted Oregon since 2003, when Washington’s fifth-year seniors were redshirting as freshmen, and the fourth-year seniors were still in high school.
“It will be good to finally get those guys to come up here,” senior cornerback Roy Lewis said. “We’ve gone every year down there into a hostile environment, and we expect our fans to create that same kind of hostile environment for them coming into our house this weekend.”
Today will be only the second trip to Husky Stadium for the Ducks since 1999. Asked if he remembered how to get to Seattle, Oregon coach Mike Bellotti joked, “No, but I’m sure somebody will get me there.”
The Huskies would love to see today’s game end up like the last Oregon vs. Washington game in Seattle. In that game, Keith Gilbertson’s Huskies trailed the Ducks 10-0 at halftime and looked to be headed for a fourth loss in five games, but Washington exploded for 42 unanswered points in the second half on the way to a 42-10 victory.
Any win would be big for a team on a four-game losing streak, but an overpowering second half, like the one in 2003, would be huge for the Huskies, for whom second-half play has been the biggest problem in the four losses.
The 2003 game is a win many current Huskies remember well, even though they weren’t playing. Caesar Rayford, then a senior in high school, was at the game and was impressed by the Husky Stadium crowd.
“It was just insane in that game,” Rayford said. “The fans and the UW guys came out and got after it. It was fun to watch, and hopefully we can bring that same intensity this week.”
Since that 2003 Washington win, the Ducks have owned the series, winning the past three games 34-14, 45-21 and 31-6. After dominating Oregon for so long, the Huskies now find themselves having lost eight of the past 12 meetings between the schools. The Huskies are convinced their fans can help change that trend today.
“It’s been a while, we’ve been waiting,” center Juan Garcia said. “It’ll be nice to play them up here. It’s a loud stadium down there. Now it will be their turn to deal with the home crowd. That’s a big deal having the fans on your side.”
It’s an especially big deal when it means not having to deal with Autzen Stadium fans, who aren’t exactly known as the most hospitable group.
“The main thing I’m excited for is that this is the first year since I’ve been here that they’re coming here to play, so it’s going to be a little different and I’m excited for it,” defensive end Greyson Gunheim said. “All the guys that I came in with, every year we’ve gone there and their same old fans and things like that, and it’s just going to be fun to have them here.”
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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