
No. 10 Huskies And No. 7 Cardinal Set For Friday Night
September 26, 2016 | Football
UW-Stanford NotesUW-Stanford TicketsChris Petersen Weekly Press Conference1991 National Championship Infographic
HUsy Stadium will host its fourth-ever top-10 matchup this Friday.
THE GAME: The national spotlight will shine on Montlake as two top-10 teams meet in Husky Stadium for the first time since 1997 and for just the fourth time when the Huskies (4-0 overall, 1-0 in the Pac-12) take on Stanford (3-0, 1-0) in a Friday night, 6 p.m. game on ESPN. Washington, which beat Arizona, 35-28 in overtime last week, is ranked No. 10 in the AP top 25 and No. 9 in the coaches' poll while Stanford is No. 7 and No.6, respectively, having beaten UCLA on a late TD pass last Saturday. The following week, the Dawgs head back on the road to face Oregon on Oct. 8
QUICK SLANTS: The Huskies' current seven-game winning streak is tied with Stanford for longest in the Pac-12 and fourth-longest in the nation ... the Huskies have an FBS-leading (tied) 13 takeaways and just four turnovers this season ... the UW has committed one turnover in each game, but none have led to any points and three resulted in a turnover back to the UW on the ensuing drive ... Washington had its UW-record streak of six straight games scoring 40 points broken last week ... Jake Browning, who ranks No. 3 the FBS in pass efficiency (194.9) entering this week, tied the school record for TD passes in a game with five vs. Idaho ... with 14 TD passes in 2016, he's already 87.5 percent of the way to his 2015 total of 16 ... Browning ranks No. 2 in the nation in touchdowns and No. 7 in completion percentage ... 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 ... five true freshmen have played for the UW this season: DB Myles Bryant, WR Aaron Fuller, OL Nick Harris, DB Taylor Rapp and LB Brandon Wellington ... in all, 23 players made their Husky debuts the first two weeks of the season .
TELEVISION: The UW-Stanford game will air live to a national audience on ESPN with Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (color) and Holly Rowe (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 (84) and XM (84) satellite radio. ESPN Radio (Bill Rosinski, David Norrie, Ian Fitzsimmons) will also air the game nationally.
WEEKDAY FOOTBALL: Washington has played just one game at Husky Stadium on a non-holiday weekday in the post-World War II era: Thu., Nov. 18, 2010, vs. UCLA (a 24-7 Husky win in front of 62,347 fans). Prior to the war, games on days other than Saturday weren't rare, but since that time and other than that UCLA game, Washington has only played road or neutral-site games (including bowls, of course) on days other than Saturday, with the exception of the Friday after Thanksgiving (a national holiday). The Huskies did host Stanford in a Thursday-night contest in 2012 (a 17-13 UW victory), but that game was played at CenturyLink Field during Husky Stadium renovation. The UW has also played a several road games on weekdays in recent years. In 1999, the UW opened on the road with a loss at BYU on a Thursday night. In 2007, Washington beat Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on a Friday-night season opener. More recently, the Huskies lost at UCLA on a Friday night in 2013 and beat USC, 17-12, last year in a Thursday night affair.
BIG GAMES ON MONTLAKE: Only three times before has Husky Stadium hosted a matchup of two top-10 teams (AP rankings). The UW is 1-1-1 in those three games. Sept. 20, 1997, No. 7 Nebraska beat No. 2 Washington, 27-14. On Nov. 6, 1982, a No. 10 Husky team beat No. 9 UCLA, 10-7. The tie came on Sept. 22, 1962, when No. 10 UW and No. 7 Purdue finished 7-7. Washington is 8-7-1 all-time in games involving two top-10 teams, 3-4 on the road and 4-2 in bowl games. Saturday's game vs. Stanford will be the fourth time the Huskies and Cardinal have met at Husky Stadium with both teams ranked. The UW has won all three previous – 2001: #11 UW 42, #10 Stanford 28; 1993: #12 UW 31, #15 Stanford 14; 1992: #2 UW 41; #15 Stanford 7.
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.
RECORD COLLECTION: The Huskies have broken or tied a few school records over this early season. The UW scored 40 points or more in six straight games (dating back to the 2015 Oregon State game). Never before had they scored 40 in more than four straight (1944). 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). Browning threw four TD passes in the Portland State win, meaning he's the first Husky ever to throw nine over two consecutive games.
HUSKIES vs. CARDINAL HISTORY: Over 86 all-time meetings, the UW and Stanford are square at 41-41-4. After winning eight straight vs. Stanford from 1959 to 1966, the Huskies lost 10 in a row from 1967 to 1976. Since that 1976 loss, Washington has gone 22-11 against the Cardinal. One of those 11 losses was a big upset in 1982 when the No. 2 Huskies fell to the Cardinal, 43-31, in Palo Alto. The second UW loss during that stretch came at Stanford in 1994, when the Cardinal upset 12th-ranked Washington, 46-28. More recently, the Cardinal beat the Huskies, 27-13, at Palo Alto in 2004. After no game in 2005, Stanford won its second straight over the UW in a 20-3 victory in 2006 at Husky Stadium. The Cardinal also won seven seasons ago in Seattle, 35-28, and in 2010 in Palo Alto (34-14). Six years ago, Stanford blanked the UW, 41-0, at Husky Stadium; and in 2011, the Cardinal won, 65-21, at Stanford. Last year, the Cardinal earned a 31-14 victory on in Palo Alto, while in 2014, the Cardinal won a defensive battle in Seattle, 20-13, as Kevin Hogan's five-yard run with 4:29 broke a 13-13 tie. In 2013, the Cardinal edged the Dawgs in a close game in Palo Alto, 31-28, with Washington's attempt to drive or a tie or the lead stalled at midifeld with 1:16 left on the clock. In 2012 on a Thursday night in Seattle, the Huskies edged the No. 8 Cardinal, 17-13, thanks to a 61-yard run from Bishop Sankey and a 35-yard TD catch from Kasen Williams. Prior to that, the most recent UW victory had come in 2007, when the Huskies rushed for a total of 388 yards in a 27-9 win over the Cardinal. Louis Rankin led the way with 255 yards on 36 carries. Washington and Stanford first played one another in 1893 in a game that marked the first major college opponent for UW. That game, played in West Seattle, resulted in a 40-0 Stanford victory. There wouldn't be another matchup between the two schools until 1920, when the Cardinal nipped Washington, 3-0, in the last UW home game prior to the opening of Husky Stadium. After a 0-0 tie in 1921, the Huskies' first victory in the series came in 1922, 12-8 at Palo Alto.
HUSKIES vs. BAY AREA SCHOOLS: Washington has a combined, all-time record of 106-81-8 vs. opponents from the San Francisco Bay Area. Washington is 53-39-4 against Cal, 41-41-4 vs. Stanford, 10-0 vs. San Jose State, 1-1 vs. St. Mary's and 1-0 vs. Santa Clara. The Huskies haven't played Santa Clara since 1935 and St. Mary's since 1947. Since 1977, UW is 56-16-0 vs. Bay Area teams: 26-5 vs. Cal, 22-11 vs. Stanford and 8-0 vs. San Jose State.
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 200-65-3 (.752) when a Husky player rushes for 100 yards in a game. The Huskies were 5-4 in such games in 2015 and are 1-0 this year (Arizona).
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 102 times. The Huskies' record stands at 85-16-1 (.838) in those contests. Since 1995, UW is 60-13-1 (.818) 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 18-7 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 374-176-21 (.673).
QUICK SLANTS: The Huskies' current seven-game winning streak is tied with Stanford for longest in the Pac-12 and fourth-longest in the nation ... the Huskies have an FBS-leading (tied) 13 takeaways and just four turnovers this season ... the UW has committed one turnover in each game, but none have led to any points and three resulted in a turnover back to the UW on the ensuing drive ... Washington had its UW-record streak of six straight games scoring 40 points broken last week ... Jake Browning, who ranks No. 3 the FBS in pass efficiency (194.9) entering this week, tied the school record for TD passes in a game with five vs. Idaho ... with 14 TD passes in 2016, he's already 87.5 percent of the way to his 2015 total of 16 ... Browning ranks No. 2 in the nation in touchdowns and No. 7 in completion percentage ... 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 ... five true freshmen have played for the UW this season: DB Myles Bryant, WR Aaron Fuller, OL Nick Harris, DB Taylor Rapp and LB Brandon Wellington ... in all, 23 players made their Husky debuts the first two weeks of the season .
TELEVISION: The UW-Stanford game will air live to a national audience on ESPN with Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (color) and Holly Rowe (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 (84) and XM (84) satellite radio. ESPN Radio (Bill Rosinski, David Norrie, Ian Fitzsimmons) will also air the game nationally.
WEEKDAY FOOTBALL: Washington has played just one game at Husky Stadium on a non-holiday weekday in the post-World War II era: Thu., Nov. 18, 2010, vs. UCLA (a 24-7 Husky win in front of 62,347 fans). Prior to the war, games on days other than Saturday weren't rare, but since that time and other than that UCLA game, Washington has only played road or neutral-site games (including bowls, of course) on days other than Saturday, with the exception of the Friday after Thanksgiving (a national holiday). The Huskies did host Stanford in a Thursday-night contest in 2012 (a 17-13 UW victory), but that game was played at CenturyLink Field during Husky Stadium renovation. The UW has also played a several road games on weekdays in recent years. In 1999, the UW opened on the road with a loss at BYU on a Thursday night. In 2007, Washington beat Syracuse in the Carrier Dome on a Friday-night season opener. More recently, the Huskies lost at UCLA on a Friday night in 2013 and beat USC, 17-12, last year in a Thursday night affair.
BIG GAMES ON MONTLAKE: Only three times before has Husky Stadium hosted a matchup of two top-10 teams (AP rankings). The UW is 1-1-1 in those three games. Sept. 20, 1997, No. 7 Nebraska beat No. 2 Washington, 27-14. On Nov. 6, 1982, a No. 10 Husky team beat No. 9 UCLA, 10-7. The tie came on Sept. 22, 1962, when No. 10 UW and No. 7 Purdue finished 7-7. Washington is 8-7-1 all-time in games involving two top-10 teams, 3-4 on the road and 4-2 in bowl games. Saturday's game vs. Stanford will be the fourth time the Huskies and Cardinal have met at Husky Stadium with both teams ranked. The UW has won all three previous – 2001: #11 UW 42, #10 Stanford 28; 1993: #12 UW 31, #15 Stanford 14; 1992: #2 UW 41; #15 Stanford 7.
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.
RECORD COLLECTION: The Huskies have broken or tied a few school records over this early season. The UW scored 40 points or more in six straight games (dating back to the 2015 Oregon State game). Never before had they scored 40 in more than four straight (1944). 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). Browning threw four TD passes in the Portland State win, meaning he's the first Husky ever to throw nine over two consecutive games.
HUSKIES vs. CARDINAL HISTORY: Over 86 all-time meetings, the UW and Stanford are square at 41-41-4. After winning eight straight vs. Stanford from 1959 to 1966, the Huskies lost 10 in a row from 1967 to 1976. Since that 1976 loss, Washington has gone 22-11 against the Cardinal. One of those 11 losses was a big upset in 1982 when the No. 2 Huskies fell to the Cardinal, 43-31, in Palo Alto. The second UW loss during that stretch came at Stanford in 1994, when the Cardinal upset 12th-ranked Washington, 46-28. More recently, the Cardinal beat the Huskies, 27-13, at Palo Alto in 2004. After no game in 2005, Stanford won its second straight over the UW in a 20-3 victory in 2006 at Husky Stadium. The Cardinal also won seven seasons ago in Seattle, 35-28, and in 2010 in Palo Alto (34-14). Six years ago, Stanford blanked the UW, 41-0, at Husky Stadium; and in 2011, the Cardinal won, 65-21, at Stanford. Last year, the Cardinal earned a 31-14 victory on in Palo Alto, while in 2014, the Cardinal won a defensive battle in Seattle, 20-13, as Kevin Hogan's five-yard run with 4:29 broke a 13-13 tie. In 2013, the Cardinal edged the Dawgs in a close game in Palo Alto, 31-28, with Washington's attempt to drive or a tie or the lead stalled at midifeld with 1:16 left on the clock. In 2012 on a Thursday night in Seattle, the Huskies edged the No. 8 Cardinal, 17-13, thanks to a 61-yard run from Bishop Sankey and a 35-yard TD catch from Kasen Williams. Prior to that, the most recent UW victory had come in 2007, when the Huskies rushed for a total of 388 yards in a 27-9 win over the Cardinal. Louis Rankin led the way with 255 yards on 36 carries. Washington and Stanford first played one another in 1893 in a game that marked the first major college opponent for UW. That game, played in West Seattle, resulted in a 40-0 Stanford victory. There wouldn't be another matchup between the two schools until 1920, when the Cardinal nipped Washington, 3-0, in the last UW home game prior to the opening of Husky Stadium. After a 0-0 tie in 1921, the Huskies' first victory in the series came in 1922, 12-8 at Palo Alto.
HUSKIES vs. BAY AREA SCHOOLS: Washington has a combined, all-time record of 106-81-8 vs. opponents from the San Francisco Bay Area. Washington is 53-39-4 against Cal, 41-41-4 vs. Stanford, 10-0 vs. San Jose State, 1-1 vs. St. Mary's and 1-0 vs. Santa Clara. The Huskies haven't played Santa Clara since 1935 and St. Mary's since 1947. Since 1977, UW is 56-16-0 vs. Bay Area teams: 26-5 vs. Cal, 22-11 vs. Stanford and 8-0 vs. San Jose State.
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 200-65-3 (.752) when a Husky player rushes for 100 yards in a game. The Huskies were 5-4 in such games in 2015 and are 1-0 this year (Arizona).
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 102 times. The Huskies' record stands at 85-16-1 (.838) in those contests. Since 1995, UW is 60-13-1 (.818) 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 18-7 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 374-176-21 (.673).
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