2013 Season Preview

Well, you probably thinking to yourself, "Loyalist, isn't it a little bit too late to be coming out with a season preview the night before the season is supposed to start?!?" A valid question. But I say to you, do we really know what our team is going to look like in Spring, early Summer, or even after Fall camp? Here we are about 24 hours away from kickoff for one of the most important Husky campaigns we have seen in years, and you tell me whether or not what we found out at 10:00pm on August 29th, 2013 has any relevance on how the season could play out. If you don't know what the announcement was, you were probably on vacation or slipping on your toe shoes when the announcement came out last night. Needless to say, a certain All-American will not be playing in tomorrow's Boise State game. Some of you out there say it was fair, others say unfair. Some say it will make a huge impact on the game, others say he didn't have very much impact on the bowl game against Boise State last year, so he won't matter tomorrow. That is why you do a season preview the day before the games start. Regardless, we are in for an incredible season of football, a new stadium, and hope that Husky football is back. Here is my game by game breakdown of what I think will transpire this 2013 college football season.


Week 1: Home against Boise State
Last year I wrote in my season preview that the Stanford game was one of the most important games in recent Husky football history. I also predicted that the Huskies would lose a close one taking us to 2-2 on the season. I was correct in saying that it was a VERY important game for the Huskies, and, fortunately, I was incorrect in predicting the Huskies would lose a close one (even rice can't be white all the time, get it?). The Huskies pulled off a stunner against what has become one of the elite programs not only in the Pac-12 but also in the nation. This year, the statement game starts the season. First game back at Husky Stadium since 2011, a visiting #19 Boise State team, revenge for last year's bowl game for the Dawgs and revenge for a rare Boise State loss back in 2007. Both teams have a ton of starters coming back, and both have a TON to prove to their conference and the nation. Boise State returns a very solid squad that was more focused on the defensive end of the ball instead of the high flying, trick playing team we have seen over the past decade. Head Coach Chris Petersen is one of the most talked about coaches in the "mid-major" pool of schools, and has taken this little Podunk town of Boise and turned it into a college football mecca for under the radar talent. The guy is 84-8 with a 5-2 record in bowl games with a win over Oklahoma in a BCS bowl that will go down as one of the biggest upsets in college football history. Needless to say, this guy knows how to prepare his teams, and he knows how to win. What he doesn't know is what he is getting himself into on Montlake this time around. I am not sure the fan base is necessarily bitter about the bowl loss 9 months ago (who cares? really?), but this fan base is sick and tired of losing football. Of expectations not panning out, of not getting the right play called at the right time to win the game, and certainly sick of teams like Boise State getting more love in the Mountain West than a good team from the Pac-12. This has to be it. This has to be the game that sets the course for the entire season, and propels the University of Washington into the discussion as one of the toughest places to play in the country. It has to!!! I wrote about the importance of writing a season preview the day before the season starts, and this is why. Austin Sefarian-Jenkins is one of the most important players on this team. He is talented, smart, and a team leader. Most importantly, he garners so much attention that he needs to be double teamed, played straight up with safety help or assassinated before the game starts to not have an impact. The Husky offense will miss that distraction tomorrow, but I think the changes this offense has made in the off-season along with the exponential progression the defense has made makes ASJ less relevant. He will be sorely missed, don't get me wrong, but this offense with Keith Price, Bishop Sankey, Kasen Williams, a more experience offensive line and a deep core of receivers puts the Huskies in the drivers seat to win this game.

UW beats Boise State 27-25 in a close one UW 1-0 (0-0)
(I think UW wins 34-17 with ASJ, but we'll never know that)


Week 2: "Neutral" against Illinois
You really have to wonder how the NCAA or whomever makes up this "neutral" thing can sleep at night. Yes, the game is not being played in the friendly confines of the home stadium that the school is attached to. But can you really call it NEUTRAL when the stadium is a 2 hour drive for one team and a 4 hour flight for the other. Maybe what they mean is this will be a neutral site because the Huskies are so much better than the Fighting Illinis that they gave them a stadium so close to their campus it will seem like a home game but its not. That's probably it. Outside of the fact the Huskies are awful on the road, I mean really, really awful on the road, this is a must win. Not a should win, or a could win, or even a "I'm just glad we are here" kind of game; this is MUST WIN. No longer does Sark have the luxury of playing close and showing signs of growth, that time is over and should have been a long time ago. These are all his kids. It has been five years and we have been waiting to see wins on the road and upsets at home and this is the time to do it. ASJ will be looking to come out and scalp some fools, and the team has Idaho State the next week on the schedule, so there is no reason to look past this team. ESPN writers pick Illinois to essentially go winless in their conference schedule and pick up a couple of throw away games, the Huskies are not one of those teams. This will be a "Husky Road Thrashing" (which means they will dominate the game and win by 9 points after Illinois puts up 14 in the fourth quarter in garbage time).

UW beats Illinois 38-29 UW 2-0 (0-0)

Week 3: Home against Idaho State
It really sucks that we have to play games like these. Up until the last few years, the Huskies were just one of five team in the whole country to have never played a team lower than D-1 (or FBS for you neo-fans). And now we are just like every big program across the country subbing in the Idaho States of the world instead of San Jose State, or Idaho, or San Diego State, you know, some of the big names in college football. I see what we are doing, and I get it, but it is annoying. There I said it. Now, on to the tough part. This will be a thrashing. A dominant, go home and instagram a picture of you crying type of thrashing. We saw this last year with Portland State, and this year's FCS team will be the same. Let's look at what the Idaho State Bengals bring to the table: 3-19 in the last two seasons, the last conference titles was in 2002 with a 5-2 conference record, and a logo that looks a whole lot LSU. Nothing can really go wrong in this game except for injuries, so I am feeling pretty good about the score I am about to put down.

UW beats Idaho State 48-7 UW 3-0 (0-0)

Week 4: Home against Arizona
This is when things start getting a little tricky and when Sark needs to pull out the "these are the games we should be winning at this point" speech. This is a great matchup for neutral fans to watch with two fast paced, high powered offenses. The only difference is that our defense is ready to stop this Arizona Wildcatt offense. The strides the Husky defense has taken over the last few years "has been nothing short of predominant" (it's from The Office, look it up). Truly, the work that Justin Wilcox has done with this squad is one of the best things to happen to UW football in years. He is teaching them to be smart, fast and reactive; and it is working!!! Rich Rodriguez plays a special brand of football that was specialized by Chip Kelly at Oregon, and has been wreaking havoc on UW offenses for the last decade. This is the kind of game where the Husky defense needs to step up and show their worth. Arizona is supposed to play some tough football this year and they are definitely a sleeper in the Pac-12 South. But Rich Rod, this is not West Virginia in the Big East, my friend. This is the Pac-12 where you gotta make moves every week to succeed, and this team just doesn't have it yet. A ranked Husky team is looking forward to playing a solid opponent on its home turf in the first conference game of the season, and its a good one for the Dawgs.

UW beats Arizona 35-19 UW 4-0 (1-0)

Week 5: Away against Stanford
Like last year, the Huskies will have a rough stretch that could be the shot in the arm this program needs, or leaves us begging for mercy by the end of it. That stretch begins here. An away game against Stanford is like going to a tea party with your mother-in-law, your wife's annoying best friend and Flo from the Progressive commercials; just down right awful. I am very impressed with the job Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw have done with this school so soon after a decade long stretch of misery. They are already ranked in the top 5 to start the season and are on a lot of people's short list for Pac-12 conference champs and possible national championship contenders. They have an SEC style of defense that absolutely smothers the hell out of team and a similar offensive style that leaves you wanting to go home and never talk about football ever again. The Huskies played their guts out against this Cardinal team last year at Centurylink field in one of the biggest upsets in college football last year. This game, however, will be on the road. David Shaw said goodbye to Andrew Luck a couple of years ago and responded with a 10-2 regular season record and a team this year that should be even better than the team that kept Oregon out of the national title last year. I love our Husky team this year, they should be really good, but this just isn't a game they can win quite yet. This won't be a 40+ point loss like we saw two years ago at the hands of the Luck team, but it won't be fun. Not a great way to start this rough stretch, but what are you gonna do.

UW loses to Stanford 40-19 UW 4-1 (1-1)

Week 6: Home against Oregon
Well, as Forrest Gump said, "It happens..." when referring to stepping on dog poop on his ultra-marathon in the 1994 classic film, I am pretty sure he was talking about that Stanford game. But, it is time to move on. Another top 5 preseason team to face in back-to-back weeks. I mean, who is scheduling these games, Drew Bledsoe and Mike Bellotti? This is not going to be an easy game. Yes, Oregon lost its head coach who cheated his way through three incredible years where the Ducks were in the national championship and were just a game or two away from completing a USC-like dynasty in the Pac-12 (in which I mean they cheated their way to winning for multiple years at a time). This is how I diagnose the Oregon team in a way that we can all understand, Oregon is like a certain type of young 20-something. The offense is like the body, very hot with perfect measurements in all the right places and something drool over. The defense is like the face, not extraordinary, but not ugly, but most importantly it doesn't ruin what the body has going for it. You see what I am saying? The offense will continue to dominate, that is unmistaken, and the defense will continue to do well enough to support that offense by not giving up too much but not dominating. With that metaphor behind us, we look at this game. UW is just coming off a tough stretch wherein they play Arizona and Oregon in back to back weeks. Pretty tough. Oregon comes in after mopping up Cal at home and then Colorado on the road. Pretty easy. Oregon, though, isn't going to be playing at the level they are used to. They have lost their coaching leader in Chip Kelly, the NCAA looms over the program waiting for them to slip up one more time, they lost some key players from last year, and I think their reign is just about over. The Huskies are sick of this stupid team rolling over them year after year after year after year. This is it. It sets up so nicely this season with the Dawgs being back at home. Our defense has gotten faster to keep up with that crazy, stupid Oregon offense, and our offense starts matching up well with their mediocre defense (see the metaphor about the girl). I have not gone out on a limb in this season preview nor did I in last years, but here you go, the big one.

UW beats Oregon 41-38 UW 5-1 (2-1)

Week 7: Away against Arizona State
As one of my good friends told me earlier this summer, "playing at Arizona State at night time for the Huskies is just not a scenario where I can see them winning." Unfortunately, I have to agree. This will be the third week straight of playing in the upper-echelon of  Pac-12 football. The Stanford game was demoralizing but Oregon brought us back from the dead. But by the time we get down to Tempe for one of those stupid night games where the hot, STD filled student section is wearing all black; it is game over for the Huskies. You know we haven't won against either Arizona school on the road since 2006 when the Huskies started that season 4-1 and about four thousand people packed into Hec Ed to watch the closed circuit screening of the game in Tucson? Yeah, its been that bad. Both of the Arizona schools are supposed to be sleeper teams this season, Arizona State especially, and I think this is just a bad matchup and bad timing for the Huskies. Todd Graham might be the slut of college football head coaching gigs, but he pretty much wins wherever he goes. This is a talented squad that will do just enough to keep Washington from ever having the lead in a closer than most expected kind of game.

UW loses to Arizona State 28-21 UW 5-2 (2-2)

Week 8: Home against California
Phew. For as awful as those last three games were, here comes a little bit of a rest. California at home, you gotta love that. We have played some awful games on the road against Cal that we won over the last 5 or so years, but we have done some really fun and satisfying things to them at home. Cal is kind of a mess right now. New coach, nobody returning that is worth mentioning, and no buzz emanating from the Bay Area. They are the Wazzu of the Foggy Coast of California, and Golden Bears fans are just now finding out that it is the Stanford Cardinal, without an S, and are wondering where they can get a "In Hogan We Trust" t-shirt or vest (because that's what those smart losers wear). The Huskies will not have to worry about looking ahead to their next opponent because it is the Trinidad and Tobago squad from Mighty Ducks 2 that also calls themselves the Colorado Buffaloes (just so happy to be able to score). The Huskies will be very happy to be back home after a trip to the desert and  it will show. All of a sudden, we have a nice little team on our hands with guaranteed bowl eligibility and some pretty easy games ahead.

UW beats California 35-14 UW 6-2 (3-2)

Week 9: Home against Colorado
If you missed my aforementioned reference about the Colorado Buffaloes in the Week 8 section, please revisit. This team is so bad. (how bad are they?) This team is so bad, Lennay Kekua was named the honorary team captain for its first game of the season (awful joke, but you get the idea). This team has won 12 games since the beginning of the 2009 season and will likely not add anymore than 2 wins to that total. The offense is bad. The defense is bad. Everything is bad. They fired their coach last year after one season and will likely do the same thing this year (or atleast they should if they don't want to come off looking racist). Fans in Boulder have a lot to look forward to this year; smoking weed, going on hikes and forgetting that this school ever had football to begin with. This game will be at home for the Dawgs. I feel sorry for the Buffaloes. But look, this team is 7-2 and probably ranked with some huge games coming up.

UW beats Colorado 41-10 UW 7-2 (4-2)

Week 10: Away against UCLA
This is where things get tough again. Two road games to close out the season before pooping on Wazzu at the end of the year for what they did last November. This is tricky game for the Huskies. It is another road game that does not inspire a lot of confidence, especially since the last we were there in 2009 we kind of lost on a fluky play down the sideline in a must win game. UCLA is the talk of the Pac-12 South this year. Despite not being overly-impressive over the last couple of years, experts seem to think this UCLA team is primed to continue dominating the USC rivalry and take the South with them. Jim Mora Jr. is a Husky alum, so mad respect, but I just don't see this team making any strides and living up to these huge expectations. With that being said, this is also a game where I don't see the Huskies living up to their full potential. I envision UCLA being about .500 going into this game and the Huskies having a lot of momentum. But these damned road games have just been so difficult for Sark over the years I think he folds under the pressure after a couple of easy wins at home against Trinidad AND Tobago. Kevin Prince is pretty tough at QB and the UCLA defense is stingy. I believe UW goes in as the favorites after what has so far been a wonderful season, but UCLA finally plays up to their expectations in a turnover riddled game. Good news....the team still has 7 wins with two left.

UW loses to UCLA 21-10 UW 7-3 (4-3)

Week 11: Away against Oregon State
Remember when Oregon State sucked every single year and you could essentially mark them down as a win every October whether it was at home or on the road? Man, those were the days. Now, Oregon State is an enigma wrapped in a shell of confusion wrapped in a furry Beaver coat. What I am trying to say is, you can never figure this team out. Every single there is an expectation, but they never do what they are supposed to. Tell them they are going to come in last place? They will beat all odds and finish ranked and third in the tough Pac-12 North. Tell them they are going to challenge for first place? They will lose to a FCS team (Sacramento State if I remember correctly) and talk about firing their coach for the 4th season in a row. Mike Riley is a helluva coach. He is a down-to-earth guy that loves the game of football and can really coach up some his players. He also doesn't deal with pressure very well. Half way through the season last year the Beavers were on a roll and looking to crash the BCS scene. Instead, they lost to the Huskies at Centurylink (yes!), and then went on to lose two more regular season games and lost a bowl game where they had a big lead and lost it. That is the Oregon State team I know and love. This year, there are experts talking about Oregon State challenging Stanford and Oregon at the top, and are ranked in the preseason top 25. Can you figure that one out for me? Same story as every year though, who are these players? I couldn't name one guy coming back that I remember from last year off the top of my head. But Riley always seems to put it together. This year, the Beavers do not live up to expectations and finish as a .500 team. The Huskies are disgusted with their play against UCLA and take it out on the Beavers like a drunk guy punching a wall thinking it is the person who get him all upset to begin with. If that metaphor didn't work, here is this; the Huskies win an ugly game looking sloppy but doing just enough to win.

UW beats Oregon State 17-13 UW 8-3 (5-3)

Week 12: Home against Washington State
I have spent most of the last year hating everything Wazzu related, even more than normal. That Apple Cup has left a taste in my mouth not felt since I woke up drunk in a bathroom tub in Vegas after chugging SoCo and eating Totino's Party Pizzas the night before. Yeah, that bad. I was at the Duchess and the scene there was ugly. Everything was ugly. I couldn't breath at one point I was so upset. I am a mild mannered guy for the most part, but when Coons missed that field goal, I took a swing at the Shuffleboard scoreboard tucked away in the corner at the Duchess. So upset. The Cougars, who I really just hate so much, have been able to rub it in like they just won the national championship and it really has not been that great of a year because of that. Nothing has changed. Wazzu still sucks (which by WSU logic would mean that UW sucks, but again, they are the Cougars). They haven't done anything to impress me since the end of last season and they are going to suck again. Only difference this year, home field advantage. This will not even be close from start to finish, and I don't need any metaphors or funny quips to tell you how bad it is going to be.

UW beats Washington State 45-20 UW 9-3 (6-3)

Well, there you have it. Another season preview, but we have a lot to look forward to, according to me. That is a 9-3 season with a good enough conference record to finish third in the north and play in a good bowl game. Enough to keep Sark off the hot seat for a year and good enough to raise the level of expectation for the next year. Let's see how this all plays out. Regardless, I am pumped for another year of Husky Football.

Go Dawgs!!!!!