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10-21-2013, 04:34 AM
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2023 National Champions
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Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
 Is Seattle's sleeping giant ready to wake up? New coach, new offense, new era of optimism in the Northwest as the Huskies prepare for 2013 SEATTLE - The program Steve Sarkisian inherited in 2009 was in absolute shambles. Coming off a winless 0-12 2008 season, the once-proud Washington Huskies were the laughingstock of the Pac-10/12, and one of the worst programs in all of FBS football. The task in front of Sarkisian was a daunting one, and the results were hit and miss. In his third game in 2009, Sarkisian beat his mentor Pete Carroll and USC. Sarkisian's four teams won the Apple Cup against Washington State three times. A physically and mentally soft program grew to the point where they outmuscled powerful Stanford last year. The progress was slow. 5-7 in 2009, followed by middling 7-6 records each of the last three years. And now all of it is in danger of being reset once again, as Sarkisian stunned everyone by abruptly announcing his resignation. And the Huskies football program is being entrusted to a no-name, out-of-the-blue outsider. "I imagine there's quite a bit of trepidation about seeing me here," new head coach Brian Kudron said with a laugh in his press conference introducing him to the UW media in Seattle. "As an outsider, there's always hesitation for established people to be accepting. That's human nature. But that's fine. I don't expect people to be on my side right away. It's my job to win everyone over by leading this football program in the direction toward championships and molding our players into the very best they can be, both on and off the field." In the Pac-12 North, a division controlled by Oregon's break-neck spread offense and Stanford's break-will pro-style "manball," Kudron envisions combining the two into a new Washington offense that can do it all. "The basis of our program will be physicality," Kudron said. "That's on both sides of the ball. You cannot succeed at any level of football, in any league, against any opponent, if you don't control the line of scrimmage. We're going to impose ourselves up front, and we're going to run the ball to set up the pass. I'm very blessed and very grateful to be inherited a supremely talented roster that I believe is ready from day one to run what we like to run at peak efficiency. "The standard people look at in today's college football when it comes to really just beating the crap out of an opposing defense would be Alabama, or Wisconsin, or Stanford in our division. These teams line up and tell you what they're going to do, and then they punch you in the mouth, and by the fourth quarter, you're spent, and they're running over you. That's what I want a Washington offensive line to become. We're going to recruit and develop our boys up front to be huge and powerful and mean. Teams are going to dread having to line up against Washington. "But at the same time, I believe the game, specifically and especially in college, is evolved past the point of simply lining up under center, running a play, huddling, and doing it again 30-35 seconds later. There is a...particular opponent of ours...that has specialzed in the hurry up, no huddle approach to offense, with enormous success. I believe there exists a combination of a smashmouth approach and a faster, no huddle type of offense that uses tempo as a weapon. That's going to be our offense here at Washington. We're going to mix up tempos and styles. We'll run power, we'll run zone, we'll run inside, we'll run outside, we'll run playaction, we'll screen you in every way you can think. We'll use our tight ends, we'll use our wideouts, we'll recruit several varieties of athletes that can run over, around, through, past, and away from you. We're going to be efficient, big, strong, fast, and deadly." Kudron then transitioned to the defense, which will remain under the tutelage of coordinator Justin Wilcox. "In terms of specific scheme, I'm not married to one, haha. I'm not going to say we're going to be a strict 4-3, or a strict 3-4. I want our base defense to be able to be a hybrid of the two. In essence, I'd say we want to have three players with a hand in the dirt, three linebackers, and one flex player that we call the Predator. The Predator should be able to rush the passer, either from a traditional 4-3 end spot, or from an outside rush position from a 3-4. That type of flexibility is important, because it lets you do many different things as a defense. "Above all, just like on offense, defensively we have to win in the trenches. It doesn't matter how fast your corners are, or how big and strong your safeties or linebackers are, if you're getting pushed around up front. We're going to instill a toughness in all of our players, but our defensive linemen are probably at the top of the list for that. I'd say Stanford is a perfect example of this. Their players in their front seven, and especially right up front on their defensive line, are tough as nails and will crush you physically with their toughness and their mentality. They're probably the best team in the nation at shedding blocks and tackling in the backfield, and I want us to emulate that here at Washington. I suppose it's almost a cliche, because the vast majority of football coaches want this, but it's the facts: we want big, strong, tough players on our defense, because stopping the run is our #1 goal. "We're going to play a lot of strict man to man coverage because we're going to use linebackers and safeties a lot to bring down and stop the run. And that means our corners are going to be on islands, so they will have to get the job done. Cornerback is probably my favorite position to recruit and coach, and our corners are going to be well-rounded. They're going to have to run and cover, obviously, but they also have to shed blocks on the perimeter, and ultimately, make tackles. I won't tolerate, and I know Coach Wilcox won't tolerate, any of this arm-tackle, dive-and-flail-at-the-ankles type of thing you see from a lot of corners. "I think, ideally, the prototype we want for our secondary, all you guys here in Seattle...just watch football on Sundays to see what we want our players to look like on Saturday. I think the Seahawks have what we consider the ideal back four. Their corners are big, and tall, and physical, and their safeties are big and physical, and all four of them have excellent ball skills. The awareness they show when the ball's in the air and it's time to either get burned or make a play is impressive. You can bet we'll be showing a lot of Seahawks film to our boys when teaching them what we want them to do." After laying out his generic philosophy, UDub's new head man went into specifics about the roster he is inheriting from his predecessor, Sarkisian. "First of all, I want to again express my gratitude, not only to Coach Sarkisian, but to all our coaches who are still here. They not only did a great job assembling a very talented roster, but it's also a roster full of high character kids. I'm obviously still in the early stages of getting to know our players, but I can already tell this is a cohesive team with a great attitude. When a new coach arrives at a school, a lot of the time the roster splinters into factions, and that hurts the entire team. There's usually some reluctance from some players to buy into a new coach's philosophy or style, but I can already tell that the leaders of this team, the voices that command the most respect in that locker room, I can already tell they're very open and willing to give me a shot, and that's all I can ask for. "Offensively, I believe this is the most underrated assembly of skill players, not only in the Pac-12, but in the entire country. Keith Price was the first player I talked to when I arrived in Seattle, and wow. He just blew me away. He’s so smart, and when I talked to him about what I wanted this offense to be, he just lit up. He knows just as I do how many weapons we have, and he’s excited about playing in an offense that’s going to try to maximize our snaps. But with Keith specifically…there are so many great quarterbacks in our conference. But I think Keith Price is right there at the top. I know he had a down year last season compared to his sophomore year, but I’m confident in his abilities, and I believe he’s going to bounce back in a huge way. He can stretch the field with his arm, he can fit the ball in anywhere, he’s extraordinarily accurate, and to top it all off, he’s got the speed and athleticism to burn defenses if they don’t account for him. Zone read and option plays will be a large component of our running game, and Keith keeping defenses honest with his legs will open that up even more. “At running back, I don’t think there’s a more underrated player in all of college football than Bishop Sankey. This kid ran for 1400 yards and 16 touchdowns last year. He’s got everything you look for in a running back. He’s a workhorse who can carry the ball 30 times a game, he doesn’t get hurt, he’s got patience and vision, he can run between the tackles, he can make a man miss, and if he gets past you, he can take it to the house. He’s the most complete back in America, and I think he’s in for a HUGE season. And on top of that, Jesse Callier is coming back from a knee injury, he missed most of last season, but he’s very talented, and once he gets over the mental hurdle, he’s going to be another valuable member of our backfield. “I don’t want people to sleep on Deontae Cooper, either. This kid…man. He’s entering his fourth year in the program, and he’s missed the first three with three separate knee injuries. He’s healthy now, and if, God willing, he can stay that way, he’s still got the talent to get onto the field. He’s such a great young man, too. It would be such an inspirational thing for our team to see him get onto the field and into the game and contribute, because he’s been through so much, and he’s worked so hard. “At receiver and tight end, just like with Price at quarterback and Sankey at running back, I think we’ve got two of the very best at their positions, in both the Pac-12 and the country as a whole, in Kasen Williams at wideout and Austin Seferian-Jenkins at tight end. Kasen and ASJ, along with Bishop, are Washington boys. They grew up in this state and bought into the vision that Coach Sarkisian had for this program. We will always rely heavily on California in recruiting, but the heart of this program rests in those kids here in the Evergreen State, who grow up bleeding Husky purple and come here to win championships. Kasen and Austin will run through walls for this program. They both had immediate impact as freshmen two years ago, and they both had even better seasons last year as sophomores. I think, with their natural talent and progression, combined in our new offense, they’re both about to absolutely explode. I look at our receiving corps as a whole and sometimes I wonder if we’re going to have enough footballs to go around, haha. Kasen and ASJ are both #1 receiving targets, and then you have Kevin Smith, who is a physical, reliable guy, and Jaydon Mickens, who I think is a prototype at slot receiver for an offense like ours. Jaydon is the type of kid you just want to get into space with the ball, on bubble screens and fly sweeps and whatnot, and he’ll make you miss and leave you in the dust. “Overall on offense, I really love the potential. I believe we have the capability to strain and break any defense with both the run and pass. If you spread your defense out to cover our three, four, five-man sets, we’ll gash you on the ground. If you load up the box to stop the run, I believe we have four or five excellent options on the perimeter to catch passes and make plays.” After that lengthy breakdown of the offense, Coach Kudron switched to the other side to discuss the defense. “I know things have been tumultuous with the defense for several years now…but that’s coming to an end. One of the hallmarks of old school Washington Husky football is a tough-as-nails, punch-you-in-the-mouth defense. I grew up a Michigan fan, and I remember in 1991 the Washington Huskies absolutely crushing Michigan’s high-powered offense in the Rose Bowl. Just steamrolled them. It’s time to get back to that, and I believe we’re already on the way there with Coach Wilcox. As the head coach, I obviously have to oversee the team as a whole…but every coach has a preference to which side he is more involved with. For me, it’s definitely defense. So I hope I can add to what Coach Wilcox has already started, and continue to grow this side of the ball, to develop them into a unit that will make Husky fans proud. “Up front on the defensive line, Danny Shelton might be one of my favorite players on our team. He’s big and mean and violent on the field, but is so polite and well-mannered off it. He’s got the size and brute strength to anchor one of the tackle spots when we play with four down linemen, but I think he’ll also be able to anchor the nose when we go with a three-man front. He’s another one of those native Washington kids that are so important to us. The same goes for Sione Potoa’e. Sione is from Lakes High School in Lakewood, and that’s a very important high school program for us. Sione has been in the program for a while, and I think he’s going to be a big contributor for us this season. “But really, the headliner up front, as you all know, is Josh Shirley. Josh has 15 sacks in his first two years here, and is one of the best pass rushers in the Pac-12. He’s a little undersized for the D-line, he’s about 230, 235 pounds. But that makes him pretty ideal for the hybrid position I mentioned earlier, the Predator position. Josh is super athletic, we’ll be able to move him around a lot. “I really like our linebackers. I think John Timu can grow into an all-conference performer if he continues to develop like he should. You can’t teach the instincts he has. He’s so good at diagnosing and reacting to the play. Shaq Thompson, I think he’s about to explode. He was one of the most hyped recruits we’ve landed here at Washington in a long time, and he had an outstanding freshman season (74 tackles, 8.5 TFL, 2 sacks, 3 INTs). He arrived as a safety, played mostly nickel last year, and has grown into a full-fledged linebacker now, and I think he’s going to have a very special year for us. Like John in the middle, Shaq has amazing football instincts; it’s so rare to find him in the wrong spot. He’s got a nose for the football. “Our secondary is experienced, we’re expected to start three seniors back there. But even with that said, there is a significant hole to fill with Desmond Trufant now in the NFL. Desmond was a tremendous four-year player here, and you don’t just replace that kind of steady production overnight. But I like what Marcus Peters and Gregory Ducre bring to the table. Behind them we’ve got some youngsters who were highly thought of coming out of high school, and I’m excited to see how they develop. “At safety, the word is steady, I think. Will Shamburger hasn’t been a full-time starter until this year, but he’s been a consistent presence at safety for this program for several years now. And at the other spot, I can’t say enough good things about Sean Parker. This’ll be his third year as a starter, and if there’s a better safety in the Pac-12, I haven’t seen him. Sean is the complete package, he’s a hard hitter but a sure tackler, he can cover, he’s got good ball skills, and like I mentioned before about a couple of our other players, he just knows where to be. And for a safety, more than the other positions on defense, being in the right spot is paramount. There will be times when we expect our safeties to be active and make plays, absolutely. But there will be times too when the expectation for our safeties will be to simply keep things in front of them, and make the tackle in space when it comes to them. And I feel very comfortable with Will and Sean back there.” Washington’s new coach concluded his introductory press conference by summing up his expectations for his new team. “The expectation at Washington should be, and going forward WILL be the same thing every year: we expect to win the Pac-12 North, host the Pac-12 Championship Game at Husky Stadium, and go to the Rose Bowl. I think we’re selling our coaches, players and fans short if we lower the bar and expect less. That’s not to say it’s an easy goal to accomplish; certainly not. But when I step back and look at this roster as a whole, the players we have, the experience…I see the potential for a conference champion. It won’t be handed to them, and they understand it. They’re not there yet, and they know it. But the potential is there, no doubt in my mind, for this team, right now, to grow into a Pac-12 champion. Playing in the Pac-12 North means you will have several very steep challenges, and we get a big one right off the bat out of conference with Boise State. But we will answer the challenges as they present themselves to us, and the future is undeniably bright here in Seattle.”
TracerBullet likes this.
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10-21-2013, 05:06 AM
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#2 |
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2023 National Champions
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
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10-21-2013, 05:15 AM
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2023 National Champions
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
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10-21-2013, 04:44 PM
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2023 National Champions
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
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10-21-2013, 06:11 PM
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One Last Job
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
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10-21-2013, 08:49 PM
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2023 National Champions
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
  #18 Boise State @ Washington Husky Stadium Seattle, WA August 31, 2013  Huskies buck the Broncos Defensive score sparks UDub out of complacency, fuels rout in 2013 opener in Seattle SEATTLE - Washington roared out of the gates and scored only minutes into the season on a Keith Price touchdown pass to Austin Seferian-Jenkins. And from there they immediately stalled, and took a full two quarters to get back on track. After taking the early lead, Washington's offense stalled, and the defense ceded just enough to lose the lead before Andrew Hudson's sack/fumble/recovery for a touchdown in the third quarter opened the floodgates, as the Huskies scored the final 31 points to run away from Boise State in the season opener, 43-13. It looked like it would be a laugher early on following Washington's opening drive touchdown, but the Huskies tried to catch the Broncos off guard with a two-point attempt, only see it get snuffed out, which stalled UDub's momentum. "That was on me," newly minted 1-0 head Brian Kudron said of the two-point try. "I thought it was an opportunity to put a cherry on top of our momentum, but it did the opposite. It gave Boise confidence and knocked us back on our heels." The Huskies' defense, showing off countless fronts and pressures, kept the Broncos off the scoreboard until late in the first half, when the Broncos finally made them pay for one of their elaborate blitzes, turning Matt Miller loose for a 74 yard touchdown. The Broncos rode the momentum from that score through the intermission, seizing the lead early in the third quarter thanks to some shaky tackling from the Huskies. "That was probably our number one issue today," Kudron said. "We missed way too many tackles. We were in the right spot more often than not, but we simply didn't make the tackle. I liked our coverage, and our pass rush was great, but we have to make the play when we get to the spot." Trailing for the first time in the game and having lost all the momentum, the Huskies needed a big play, and got it on the ensuing kickoff, which Kevin Smith returned 61 yards to set the offense up in enemy territory. The offense stalled, but Travis Coons put the Huskies ahead for good with a 44 yard field goal. Shortly thereafter, Hudson's defensive touchdown sent Husky Stadium into a frenzy that snowballed into a 21-point run in the fourth quarter, capped by freshman John Ross's electric 73-yard touchdown on a punt return. Despite some bumps along the way, Washington's offense showed flashes of the dynamic playmaking it's capable of. Price completed 11 of his first 12 passes and finished the game with 328 yards and a pair of touchdowns, both to his star tight end, Seferian-Jenkins. The bubble screen featured prominently, as Jaydon Mickens led the Huskies with nine catches on the day. BSU's defense spent much of the day run-blitzing its linebackers, which held down UDub's running game. Despite that, Bishop Sankey still ran for 107 yards on 20 carries. Following a bye week, the Huskies head east to face Illinois in a "neutral site" game at Soldier Field in Chicago.
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10-21-2013, 11:17 PM
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Pro
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Re: Washington Huskies (NCAA 14)
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