The Huskies had a chance to make a major step on their journey back to national prominence today, but too many mistakes and what was probably just a better team got in the way.

I figured that for Washington to beat a bigger, deeper Ohio State football team, they would need a few big plays on offense, and a couple of turnovers. Instead, Ohio State got both of those in the form of three interceptions, a fumbled kickoff return, and a 68-yard touchdown pass. The result was a 33-14 Ohio State victory.

Players and coaches all seemed in ok moods, all things considered, with the common theme being “we can learn from this and move on.”

No. 11 UCLA’s rather embarrassing loss to Utah has to make next week’s game look a little more winnable for the Huskies, though they need to be better to win on the road.

For as good as Jake Locker is running the ball—and he has been phenomenal—he still has some work to do throwing. He has tried to force balls into tight spots on a few too many occasions, leading to four interceptions in his last two games (in his defense, the first one today was kind of a fluke on a shovel pass, and the third was when Washington was down big late and had to take shots down the field). Locker also isn’t getting much help from his receivers, who are dropping more passes than is acceptable at this level.

The Huskies also can’t afford to let opportunity slip through their hands, literally, in the form of dropped interceptions. There were two of those in the first half that could have drastically changed the game.

Still, for all the mistakes, the numbers show the Huskies were ultimately beaten by a better team. Ohio State’s 481 yards of offense was no fluke. Nor was the pressure the Buckeyes put on Locker and the lack thereof from Washington’s defensive line.

Can the Huskies win at UCLA? It looks that way after Utah took the Bruins apart. But there will be plenty to clean up in the next week if Washington is going to get a rare win in Pasadena.