SEATTLE – Now that the easy part is over, the University of Washington can finally start preparing for the tough part of its schedule.
OK, maybe when you’re coming off of a 1-10 season, there’s no such thing as an easy part, but coming into the season the hopes were that the Huskies could use their first four games, all at home, to get off to a good start.
Well, that hasn’t happened.
Washington (1-3) lost a late lead and the game to Air Force, then was buried by California. The Huskies dominated an overmatched Idaho team to break an eight-game losing streak, but then committed mistake after mistake in a loss Saturday to No. 16 Notre Dame.
Now, Washington faces a brutal October schedule that sees it play four games against Top 25 teams, three of them on the road. Well, there’s that one home game, right? Sure, except that it comes against No. 1 USC.
But, in a situation like this, you go one step at a time, so the Huskies’ attention will turn to No. 25 UCLA (3-0), which they play at 7:15 p.m. Saturday at the Rose Bowl. A bye week follows, then a game at No. 24 Oregon (3-1), USC (3-0) and at No. 18 Arizona State (3-1).
Fun, right?
“This is going to be the stretch that makes or breaks our season,” linebacker Scott White said. “Guys really need to gear up. We’ve got the heart of our schedule coming up. It’s going to test the mettle of this football team, test the resolve of this football team to see what we’re really all about.”
Three turnovers against Notre Dame helped kill any chance the Huskies had for an upset, and they’ll have to try to turn it around against a UCLA team that has 10 sacks, recovered two fumbles, picked off two passes and has yet to turn the ball over itself. On top of that, the Bruins will have had two weeks to prepare for Washington after having a bye last weekend. UCLA defeated San Diego State and Rice to open the season, then hammered Oklahoma 41-24.
“It’s going to be a tough month,” quarterback Isaiah Stanback said. “But these are the games that make you better. It’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
Washington was competitive against the Bruins last year, losing 37-31, the fourth-straight time UCLA beat the UW. This year, the Bruins are averaging 49.3 points behind the play of quarterback Drew Olson and running back Maurice Drew. Drew is averaging 7.5 yards a carry and has four touchdowns and Olson has completed 71.8 percent of his passes for 762 yards. UCLA also has one of the nation’s top tight ends in Marcedes Lewis.
On defense, the Bruins feature a group of talented linebackers led by Spencer Havner and Justin London and are allowing just 183 yards a game through the air.
“UCLA is always tough,” said receiver Sonny Shackelford, a Los Angeles native. “It’s going to be our first time on the road. It’s going to be tough but we just have to prepare and get rid of the mistakes that have been hurting us. We need to have a good week of practice and just get prepared the best we can.”
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