Husky Football

I have been a University of Washington Huskies football fan since I was young kid. I started being a fan listening to the games on the radio. The first quarterback the Huskies had when I became a fan was Sonny Sixkiller who was a Native American from Oregon. I really like him a lot I think mainly because of his name. Also, the team was very successful under his leadership. I still see him sometimes on television doing commercials for Casinos and golf courses.

This season the Husky football went 8-5 in the regular season under new football coach Chris Peterson who replaced Steve Sarkisian who went to coach University of Southern California after five seasons at University of Washington. Sarkisian previously had been an assistant coach at University of Southern California. Chris Peterson pervious had coached at Boise State University for eight seasons.  He was very successful at Boise State having several teams in the top ten in the country; however, he decided it was time to go to a higher division of football. He had been offered other positions before but thought the Huskies was the best fit for him.

Listening to some on local sports radio they think the Huskies could have had a better record than 8-5 and do not consider it a successful season. The Huskies did lose a game against University of Arizona which they lost by one point by a field goal with no time left in the clock. They had a turnover with about 90 seconds   remaining in the game. They had several turnovers plus a missed field goal in the game. Otherwise they actually dominated the game on both offense and defense.

I believe the team was successful overall because they have a young team especially on the offense. The starting quarterback Cyles Miles was suspended for the first game and did not participate in spring practice because of off the field problems. He quarterbacked the rest of the games except having to leave in one because of a concussion. The last two games against Oregon State and Washington State I could see some growth in his play which is a good sign because it was just after the Arizona game. Next season he will be a junior and should be more confident. Of course, he will have competition for the quarterback position.

On the offensive side the Huskies showed depth at wide receiver. In fact one of the receivers John Ross went over to the defensive side to play cornerback the last couple games of the season. Most likely he will go back to wide receiver next season since he prefers to play offense. Also, he is very explosive as a kickoff return. In fact, he scored touchdowns on two returns. He could have had another one, however, a penalty cost him a touchdown. I could see him being at least a kickoff returner in the NFL.

Another player for the Huskies who showed his versatility was Shaq Thompson. He started the season as a linebacker on defense, however, his speed and toughness the Huskies decided to use him as a running back when they especially needed a first down or a touchdown. Because of injuries he started two games as a running back and ran for over hundred yards in each game. When the other running backs returned for the last couple games he requested return to linebacker. He prefers to play linebacker but played running back for the team. Shaq Thompson is a junior, however, most experts believe he will go into the NFL next season. With his versatility I am sure teams will look at him for both linebacker and running back. Also, he is a finalist for The Paul Hornung Award for the most versatile player in major college football.

On the defense the line was the most experienced and strongest on the team. Danny Shelton defensive lineman is expected to be a high draft pick; next season though they will need to replace him and a couple other guys. The linebackers are strong and have depth since the team was allowed to use Shaq Thompson as a running back. The defensive backs were the least experience positions on the team; however, I could see quite the improvement over the season. Next season they should be a major part making the Huskies a very good defensive team.

The Huskies do have one remaining game to play. They should know by the weekend who they will play in a bowl game. Also, during the off season Coach Peterson will have his first real class of recruits that he will call his own.

Until next time Go Huskies!