It’s unclear how successful this University of Washington football team will be this season in terms of wins and losses, but if Saturday night’s 45-20 win over Kent State was any indication, the Huskies will be fun to watch. .
Consider that since the conference’s Week 1 games, Michael Penix Jr.’s passing totals were among the most prolific of any quarterback in the Pac-12 in all categories.
Penix’s yardage total (345) surpassed the 12 starters in the conference; his touchdown throws (4) tied for the most with Jayden de Laura of Arizona, formerly of Washington state; his completions (26) ranked second to UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson, down six; and his attempts (39) were third behind only WSU’s Cameron Ward by one and the Bruins’ DTR by four.
Who was it that wore the hat that said, “Run the damn ball”? Oh, that’s so 1960.
If he was too young for the Sonny Sixkiller era, this is what he looked like: a quarterback with a powerful arm, standing confidently in the pocket, surveying the field for any one of multiple receivers and throwing over and over again, who it’s what Penix did in its Husky debut.
The legendary Sixkiller, for that matter, was in attendance on Saturday. We found him outside Husky Stadium two hours before kickoff, wearing a purple T-shirt with a W over the breast pocket that showed his loyalty, and heading to see his friends who were following him closely. Sixkiller no doubt watched Kalen DeBoer spread the offense and the prolific Penix executed it with keen interest.
Here’s the breakdown of each of the Pac-12’s starting quarterbacks, ranked by passing yards with the top totals in each category highlighted in bold:
BEST PASS OUTS OF THE PAC-12
1. Michael Penix Jr.., UW, 26 of 39 passes, 3. 4. 5 yards, 4 TD0 Int.
2. Tanner McKee, Stanford, 22 of 27 passes, 308 yards, 2 TDs, 1 Inter.
3. Jayden from Laura, Arizona, 22 of 35 passes, 299 yards, 4 TD1 Int.
4. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA, 32 of 43 passes298 yards, 2 TDs, 1 Int.
5. Jack Plummer, Cal, 23 of 35 passes, 268 yards, 3 TDs, 1 Inter.
6. Chance Nolan, OSU, 14 of 23 passes, 251 yards, 2 TD, 2 Int.
7. Caleb Williams, USC, 19 of 22 passes, 219 yards, 2 TDs, 0 Int.
8. Cam Rising, Utah, 22 of 32 passes, 216 yards, 1 TD, 1 IC.
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9. Cameron Ward, WSU, 25 of 40 passes, 215 yards, 3 TDs, 0 Int.
10. Bo Nix, Oregon, 21 of 37 passes, 173 yards, 0 TD, 2 Ints.
11. JT Shrout, Colorado, 13 of 23 passes, 157 yards, 1 TD, 0 Inter.
12. Emory Jones, ASU, 13 of 18 passes for 152 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT.
CORNER POCKET
After UC Davis transfer Jordan Perryman grabbed the back of his leg in pain and walked slowly off the field with the help of two coaches in Game 1, the coaching staff is due to reveal the cornerback’s injury on Monday. . It seems unlikely that Perryman will be able to play next weekend against Portland State and his old league, with the Vikings being the only Big Sky team on the schedule. If necessary, now-safety/cornerback combo Julius Irvin would be the logical candidate to replace the newcomer in the starting lineup. As for Perryman, it would be cruel if his football career at the University of Washington didn’t last more than one game.
DRAWING THE LINE
Starting defensive tackle Tuli Letuligasenoa was also injured against Kent State, again to an unknown severity. Huskies are also short-bodied in that position. Three scholarship players have transferred since last season, either on their own or involuntarily. If Letuligasenoa can’t go, the replacement options are Ulumoo Ale, Kuao Peihopa, Voi Tunuufi and Jacob Bandes to partner Faatui Tuitele, who started against Kent State.
TAKE ATTENDANCE
Yes, it was kickoff at 7:30 p.m. and the Huskies weren’t facing a Power 5 opponent, but Saturday night’s game attendance of 56,112 seemed surprisingly low considering a new era of UW football was ushering in. . Large gaps of empty seats were visible throughout the stadium. Next weekend’s game, with a more reasonable start at 1:00 pm, but against a big, underdog opponent, Big Sky, at Portland State, could be worse. It won’t be until the Week 3 game against Michigan State that a true gauge of this season’s UW fan support will be measured. The lesson here, in this time of college football’s realignment and elitism, is that the Huskies need to step up and schedule better teams and get rid of mismatches.
KIRKLAND OPENER
Two-time All-Pac-12 offensive tackle Jaxson Kirkland is coming off an NCAA-mandated one-game absence and ankle surgery to resume his Husky football career. He is now 6 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 340 pounds. A Southwest Washington native and Portland high school graduate, it makes sense for Kirkland to make his season debut against Portland State. This will mark the 40th start of his career with Husky should he be in the starting lineup.
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