UW Finishes Non-Conference Schedule Vs. Vikings

Saturday, September 17

Seattle, Wash.

5:00 PM

University of Washington

Portland State

Tickets

September 12, 2016 | Football

Gameday Central UW-PSU Game Notes UW-PSU Flip Card Tickets

Huskies host Portland State in 5:00 p.m. game Saturday.

THE GAME: The Washington football team (2-0) concludes both its three-game, season-opening homestand and its non-conference schedule this Saturday at Portland State (1-1) travels up Interstate 5 for a 5:00 p.m. kickoff at Husky Stadium. The game will air on Pac-12 Network. The Huskies enter the week ranked No. 8 in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 9 in the coaches' poll. The UW's AP rank is its highest since November of 2001. The following Saturday, the Dawgs open Pac-12 play in Tucson vs. Arizona before returning home to face Stanford in a Friday night game, Sept. 30 .

QUICK SLANTS: Washington has scored 40 or more points in five straight games for the first time in school history, with 52, 45, 44, 48 and 59 points in their last five, an average of 49.6 per game ... its the longest such streak in the nation ... the Huskies had a kick return for a touchdown (John Ross, 92 yds.) and a punt return for a TD (Dante Pettis, 68 yds.) in the win over Rutgers ... only twice before in recorded history have the Huskies done that: 1940 vs. WSU (Ernie Steele had an 87-yd. KOR and an 83-yd. PR) and 2001 vs. Idaho (Roc Alexander, 95-yd. KOR; Charles Frederick, 87-yd. PR) ... Ross' kick-return TD was the fourth of his career, breaking the UW record he formerly shared with Jim Krieg (1970-71) while Pettis' punt-return score was also his fourth, tying Beno Bryant's UW mark (1989-93) ... Ross now has five scoring plays of 90 or more yards in his UW career – four kickoff returns and a 91-yard TD reception ... four true freshmen played vs. Rutgers: WR Aaron Fuller, OL Nick Harris, DB Taylor Rapp and LB Brandon Wellington ... DB Myles Bryant played vs. Idaho to make it five for the season ... an additional 12 Huskies made their UW debut in the season-opener: QB Tony Rodriguez, OLB Benning Potoa'e, LB D.J. Beavers, OLB Jusstis Warren, WR K.J. Young, WR Andre Baccellia, LB Kyler Manu, OLB Bryce Sterk, DL Jared Pulu, DL John Clark, OL Jared Hilbers and DL Ricky McCoy ... six more made their UW debut vs. Idaho: Bryant, OL Devin Burleson, LS A.J. Carty, OL Henry Roberts, DL Jason Scrempos, DB Mason Stone and DB Sean Vergara ... 23 Huskies in all made their Husky debuts the last two weeks ... a remarkable 28 different UW players were credited with a tackle in the Rutgers game, and again in the Idaho game.

TELEVISION: The Washington-Portland State game will air live to a national audience on Pac-12 Network with Jim Watson (play-by-play), Yogi Roth (color) and Cindy Brunson (sidelines) providing the commentary.

RADIO: The Washington IMG College Network, with its flagship station KOMO AM-1000 and FM-97.7, will carry the live broadcast of every football game on 17 Northwest radio stations. Longtime play-by-play man Bob Rondeau and color analyst Damon Huard are joined by sideline reporter Elise Woodward. The UW broadcast of the game will also air on Sirius (137) and XM (197) satellite radio.

THE YOUNG AND THE OLD: Washington was one of the country's youngest teams in 2015, as the UW roster included 52 freshman (both true and redshirt freshmen) and 24 sophomores, as compared to just 13 seniors. Not surprisingly, the Huskies returned a great deal of experience in 2016. In fact, not counting specialists (kickers, punters, long snappers, returners), a total of 33 different Huskies have started at least one game in a Washington uniform, 18 on offense and 15 on defense. However, the 2016 roster still includes just 13 seniors to go along with 41 freshmen and redshirt freshmen, as well as 28 sophomores.

THE DEFENSE: Washington's defense was the strongest it has been in years in 2015, leaving a standard for this season that will be a challenge to match. Last year, the Husky defense finished first in the Pac-12 in scoring defense, allowing just 247 points, or 18.8 per game, the best average by the UW since 1996 (18.4 per game). The Huskies gave up 103 fewer points in 2015 than in 2014 (though, the UW played one more game in 2014). The Dawgs also led the conference in total defense (351.8 yards per game), opponent first downs (19.1 per game) and red-zone defense (79.5 percent). In the red zone, UW opponents managed just 17 touchdowns in 39 attempts (43.6 percent), best in the conference.

THE OFFENSE: Washington's offense finished last season on a high. Over the three-game win streak that wrapped up the 2015 campaign, the Huskies posted 52, 45 and 44 points, an average of 47.0 per game. Over the last four games of the season, the Huskies amassed 2,052 yards of total offense, or an average of 513.0 yards per game. Over the final three (Oregon State, Washington State, Southern Miss), the Huskies racked up 807 rushing yards (269.0 per game) and completed 55-of-75 passes (.733) for 698 yards, four touchdowns and just one interception.

40-POINT STREAK: Washington has scored 40 or more points in five straight games, dating back to last season, the longest such streak in Husky history and the longest (tied) current 40-plus point streak in the FBS. Fellow Pac-12 members Oregon and Arizona State are the only other two teams with a current five-game, 40-point streak. However, both have suffered a loss in that span (ASU has lost two). Only once before in UW lore have the Dawgs managed 40 points in four straight games. To open the 1944 season (when World War II travel restrictions meant many teams across the nation played a more localized schedule), Washington opened with easy wins over Willamette (71-0), Whitman (65-6), Willamette (40-6) and Whitman (71-0). This time around, Washington has posted wins over Oregon State (52-7), Washington State (45-10), Southern Miss (44-31), Rutgers (48-13) and Idaho (59-14).

RECORD COLLECTION: The Huskies have broken or tied a few school records (other than their 40-point streak) over the first two games of this season. Against Rutgers, John Ross' fourth career kickoff return for a touchdown broke Jim Krieg's old mark of three while Dante Pettis tied Beno Bryant's career punt return TD record of four. Against Idaho, the Huskies tied the school record for passing touchdowns (6; tied record set vs. UCLA in 1970) and Jake Browning tied the Husky record for individual passing TDs in a game, with five (shared with Keith Price, 2012 vs. Colorado; Jake Locker, 2010 vs. Oregon State; and Chris Rowland, 1973 vs. California).

FIRST- AND SECOND-GAME COINCIDENCES: In both of the first two games of the season, the Huskies have had 26:45 in time of possession (of course, their two opponents – Rutgers and Idaho – have both had 33:15). Both Rutgers and Idaho committed four penalties for 35 yards while the Huskies have had 30 penalty yards in both games. The Huskies have also had 30 rushing attempts in both games. In both games so far, 28 different Huskies have been credited with a tackle, an unusually high number in either case.

HOME vs. NON-CONFERENCE: Washington has been very tough to beat in home, non-conference games over the last several decades. Going back to (and including) the 1981 season, the Huskies have posted a 64-13 record against non-Pac-10/Pac-12 foes in Husky Stadium. Those 13 losses have come to Nebraska (2010), LSU (2009), BYU (2008), Oklahoma (2008), Ohio State (2007), Notre Dame (2005), Fresno State (2004), Nevada (2003), Air Force (1999), Nebraska (1997), Notre Dame (1995), Colorado (1989) and Oklahoma State (1985). Notable wins wins during that stretch include victories over No. 19 Boise State last season, No. 22 Boise State in 2007, No. 11 Michigan in 2001, No. 4 Miami in 2000, and No. 12 Nebraska in 1992. Prior to the 2004 loss to Nevada, Washington hadn't lost a home game to a non-league opponent since falling to Air Force, 31-21, on September 18, 1999. The Huskies had won 10 such games before that Nevada loss. The UW is 15-2 over its last 17 home, non-league games, with an 13-game winning streak.

HUSKIES vs. VIKINGS HISTORY: Washington and Portland State have have faced one another just once on the football field, owing in part to the fact that Portland State was a Division II program into the mid-1990s and was only founded in 1946, a time by which the UW played far fewer Northwest colleges than it had in the pre-war years. That lone meeting came at CenturyLink Field (during Husky Stadium renovations) in 2012, with the Huskies winning, 52-13. The UW led 14-0 after one quarter and 45-0 at halftime as a 79-yard blocked field goal return from Tre Watson and a 21-yard interception return from Marcus Peters highlighted a 31-point second quarter. Bishop Sankey rushed for 103 yards and two TDs on 14 carries while Keith Price was 14-for-19 for 181 yards and three scores.

HUSKIES vs. THE BIG SKY: The Huskies have played games against five of the 13 teams that currently comprise the Big Sky Conference in football, though four of those teams (Eastern Washington, Portland State, Idaho State and Sacramento State) have faced the UW for the first time within in the last decade. Washington has twice edged Eastern Washington in games at Husky Stadium: 30-27 in 2011 and 59-52 in 2014. Aside with the win over Portland State in 2012 (see above), the Huskies also beat Idaho State, 56-0 in 2013, and Sacramento State, 49-0, last year. The one Big Sky opponent the Huskies have played many more times than the others is Montana, which was a member of the Pacific Coast Conference (precursor to the Pac-12) along with the UW for most of those meetings. The Huskies are 16-1-1 all-time vs. the Grizzlies in a stretch of games that ran from 1920 to 1951. Montana left the PCC after the 1950 season. Combined the UW is 21-1-1 all-time against current Big Sky teams.

THE PAC-12: Prior to the 2011 season, the Pac-10 Conference added Utah and Colorado to expand to the Pac-12. Washington, which along with California is one of two schools who have been in the conference since its founding in 1915, plays in the Pac-12 North, along with the other three Northwest schools (Oregon, OSU, WSU) and Stanford and California. Under current plans, each school will play all five division rivals, plus four of six teams in the other division each season. The first two seasons, the Huskies did not face UCLA or Arizona State. In 2013 and 14, the Huskies didn't face Utah or USC. Last year and in 2016, neither UCLA nor Colorado are on the UW schedule.

THE 100-YARD FACTOR: Since the 1947 season, Washington is 199-65-3 (.751) when a Husky player rushes for 100 yards in a game. The Huskies were 5-4 in such games in 2015.

HISTORY LESSON: Successfully rushing the football and winning go hand-in-hand for the Huskies. Since 1990, UW has rushed for 200 yards in a game 100 times. The Huskies' record stands at 83-16-1 (.835) in those contests. Since 1995, UW is 58-13-1 (.813) when rushing for 200 yards.

HUSKY STADIUM RENOVATION: Husky Stadium underwent a major renovation over from Nov., 2011, through Aug., 2013, as the entire lower bowl and south upper deck were demolished and replaced. The new facility features a new, state-of-the-art football operations center (weight room, training room, locker room, meeting rooms, coaches' offices) in the west end, much more premium seating options and a new playing surface. Husky Stadium had featured a track up until 2011, so seats that were once far from the field, particularly in the west end, are much closer to the action. UW is 17-7 at home since the re-opening of Husky Stadium.

ALASKA AIRLINES FIELD AT HUSKY STADIUM: The Oregon game on Nov. 5, 2011, marked the final game in Husky Stadium prior to major renovations that have now been completed. The Huskies re-opened their home field with a 38-6 win over then-No. 19 Boise State on Aug. 31, 2013. The 2016 season marks the 96th season of play in Husky Stadium. Original construction on the facility was completed in 1920 when Washington played one game in the new campus facility. UW's all-time record in Husky Stadium stands at 373-176-21 (.673).