Category: Huskies Football

Huskies and Being Ranked in the Top 25

By Blaidd Drwg

Hey, the Huskies are ranked! Good for them, but before you get excited and start booking you tickets for a BCS bowl, the Huskies are probably going to make their top 25 appearance a brief one. While 5-1 is a nice start of the season, they have really beaten no one of any consequence – They managed to squeak by Eastern Washington, a FCS team with a 3-4 record and Hawaii, a team that traditionally does not play well on the road, in their first two home games. They then got lit up by Nebraska on the road. They have since strung together wins against Cal, Utah and Colorado who are a combined 0-9 in Pac12 Play. Not exactly facing murderer’s row with that lineup. They now have to play Stanford on the road and this has the potential to get ugly folks. Here’s why:

The Huskies currently rank 77th in the nation in points allowed, giving up 28.5 a game. The only two teams in the top 40 in the nation in scoring they have faced are Nebraska and Hawaii, who hung a combined 83 points on the defense. Stanford currently ranks 5th in the nation in scoring – I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they put up 50 on the Huskies defense. The Huskies offense has only faced one top 25 defense – Utah and only managed 24 points against them (they did score 31 total – one touchdown was on a fumble return). Stanford’s defense is ranked 5th in the nation and has been locking down opponents all season. I just don’t see the Huskies putting up more than 21 against the Cardinal. The short version, the Huskies can’t win the game if they can’t stop Stanford and I just don’t see it happening. My prediction Stanford wins going away 49-24.

On the bright side, the Huskies still have the benefit of playing in a very weak conference and should end up the season 8-4 or 9-3. Of their remaining games, they only have a real challenge in Stanford, Oregon and USC (they luckily avoid having to play Arizona St.) and they should roll over on Arizona, Oregon St. and Wazzu who are just a combined 5-13 and not very good.

It’s Jake At Eight

by A.J. Coltrane

The Tennesse Titans traded up to draft Jake Locker with the 8th pick in the 2011 NFL draft. Locker was the second quarterback selected, much to the surprise of about everybody. To some degree this is Tennesse pushing the “reset button” on the Vince Young pick. Locker and Young both had mid-4.5 second speed in the 40 yard dash and are all-around great athletes. Young possesses the bigger body, the bigger arm, loopy mechanics, and a loopy head.

This should be a great fit for both Locker and the Titans. Mike Munchak is the Titans new coach. Munchak is a former offensive linemen. If the Titans maintain their run-oriented philosophy it will take some of the pressure off of the quarterback position — Jake will be able to sit and learn behind Kerry Collins, taking over either late this year or early next year.

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James Carpenter

The Seahawks drafted Offensive Guard/Tackle James Carpenter of Alabama in round one. (The link is to a Seattle Times piece by Jerry Brewer. Brewer is *very* skeptical of the pick.) I think the pick is solid — Carpenter played Left Tackle at Alabama and was the #2 rated Guard in the draft, and the #6 Tackle — if Carpenter doesn’t work out at Tackle he can be moved inside to Guard and team up with Russell Okung on the left side. This would echo the Walter Jones/Steve Hutchinson line of the Super Bowl Seahawks.

Here’s the CBS.sports draft profile for the 6’4″, 325 lb, Carpenter:

All-SEC for both of his years starting at left tackle, Carpenter was a pivotal part of the offensive success the Tide had during the past two seasons. He might lack the quickness the NFL looks for on the blind side, but likely is athletic enough for right tackle and also projects well inside at guard. A steady, durable and reliable performer, don’t be surprised if Carpenter ends up as a quality starter somewhere in the NFL.
Positives:  Impressive athlete. Excellent technique, decent knee bend and good hand placement. Can sink hips and generate power. Slides feet and extends arms well in pass protection. Has power in hands and can move defenders. Can run and hit second-level targets. Good ability to anchor, seal, trap and pull. Well-schooled in an NFL-style offense. Tough and durable, never missing a start.

Negatives:  Lacks the elite foot quickness needed for the NFL left tackle position. Somewhat stiff in hips and hence doesn’t change directions well. Frame is good except legs are a bit long. Vulnerable to double moves, especially inside. Pass protection set is somewhat high. Can be late off snap, mostly with a lot of crowd noise. Dives too much.

Mel Kiper has projected the Seahawks will take head-case QB Ryan Mallet in the 2nd round. My suspicion is that Mallet may be the second coming of Ryan Leaf or Jeff George. If the draft plays out that way I’m not going to be too excited. I still think Charlie Whitehurst needs more of an opportunity to show he can play, or not play.

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The Browns traded out of the number six pick, effectively passing on Alabama WR Julio Jones. I like Jones a lot, I think he may prove to be the best WR in the draft. I think Colt McCoy was probably a little bummed about that development. Instead the Browns took massive Defensive Tackle Phil Taylor. Taylor supposedly has some issues with his work rate. The Browns need the help on the defensive line, but I’m still not enamored with the pick.

Late edit, Wow! Look what Cleveland got for trading out of the #6 slot! It’s two #1’s, one #2, and two #4’s:

To make the move, the Browns acquired Atlanta’s No. 27 overall pick and second- and fourth-round picks this year, in addition to Atlanta’s first- and fourth-round picks in 2012.

Cleveland fans should be ecstatic with that!

The Not Scottish Performances of the Week

By Blaidd Drwg

So who had the worst weekend of the Washington football teams:

Udub Huskies – they played like a puppy who has just been disciplined for peeing on the carpet in their 41 – 0 beat down by Stanford at home. They didn’t pass 100 yards of total offense until 3 minutes left in the game, had most of the fans leaving at halftime looking for anything that was more interesting, looked outmatched and outclassed, gave up a 51 yard run to the opposing QB on a fake handoff and were outgained 470 – 107 total yards. Jake Locker may have single handedly played himself right out of the first round in the 2011 draft with his putrid performance in front of 20 NFL scouts in this one. The Sled Dawgs have been a big disappointment all year for those who were drinking Sark’s cool-aid, but they still can make themselves bowl eligible by winning 3 out of their last 4. It is doable since they play @ Oregon (let’s face it, this one could get ugly), vs. UCLA (They have the same record as the Huskies and are actually a worse team), @ Cal (should be a winnable game, maybe) and @ Wazzu (heck, I think my HS football team could beat the Cougs). My prediction – the Pups get their act together and finish 6-6, saving Sark’s job; and if they lose to the Cougs somehow – Sark gets fired before he gets back to Seattle.

"Ay, the performances of the Washington Football teams this weekend were defintely not Scottish, so they were CRAP!"

Wazzu Cougars – They played like an old cat that is in need of being taken out back and shot in their 42 – 0 blowout at ASU. The Kittens were their own worst enemy, getting into the Red Zone 6 times (!) and not scoring once (!), turning the ball over 3 times and giving up 493 yards of offense. In all of this, they somehow managed to actually hold the ball slightly longer than ASU. Not that I think it would have made a difference, but it would have probably been a bit closer than the actual final if they managed to get a few points on the board. Let’s face it, WSU just plain sucks and will be lucky to end this season with more than one win (and that was a 1 point win against FCS Montana State), so this pasting really wasn’t much of a surprise.

Seattle Seahawks – Just a few days after being anointed the “best team in the NFC” by Tony Dungy, they go out an play like a bunch of canaries being chased by a cat in a 33 -3 embarrassment against the Oakland/LA/Oakland Raiders. The Chicks gave up 545 yards of offense and still couldn’t stop the Raiders despite the Black and Silver’s 11 penalties. If anyone thinks the Hawks are a good team, you haven’t been watching them. The offense, to put it nicely, is pathetic. The only way they stay in games is through defensive turnovers and special teams – if those two aspects of the game don’t come through for them, they don’t stand a chance. The really sad thing about this game is that the Hawks were only down 10 – 0 at the half and still never looked like they were in the game at that point.

My vote for this week’s inept performance – The Seachickens. No way should you ever give up 545 yards to a team in an NFL football game. On the bright side, they should still win their division as none of the other teams really seem like they are trying either.