By Khalid Bennett
Sports Editor
Playing in maybe the biggest game in Husky Stadium since 2001 when Miami came to town, the Washington Huskies prepared to face their toughest opponent so far in this 2016 campaign. The Stanford Cardinal entered this game as the #7 ranked team in the nation with Washington ranked 10th making this the first matchup between two top ten teams in Husky Stadium since 1997.
The first quarter belonged to Washington as the Husky defense was able to slow down the Stanford offense led by Heisman trophy runner-up Christian McCaffery on their first two drives of the game.
Taking advantage of the field position provided by the defense, which forced two Stanford punts, the Husky offense was able to get into a rhythm early and quarterback Jake Browning wasn’t afraid to test the Cardinal downfield as he found receiver Daunte Pettis for a 35-yard strike. The play set up a 3-yard completion for a touchdown to Pettis for the first score of the game.
On the Huskies next possession, Browning hit receiver John Ross on a 28-yard pass to set up a 4-yard plunge by sophomore running back Myles Gaskin making the score 13-0 Huskies.
Washington’s defense continued to play lights out in the second quarter stopping Stanford on a fourth and one play on the Washington 35 yard line. The defensive stand setup an 18-yard field goal by UW kicker Cameron Van Winkle making the score 16-0 Washington.
Outside linebacker Psalm Wooching had two sacks in the first half for Washington helping them shut out the 7th ranked Cardinal in the first half. Wooching finished the game with three sacks.
Browning recorded his second touchdown pass of the day as he connected with Ross on a 19-yard pass to make the score 23-0 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Washington kept up the defensive onslaught forcing two Stanford turnovers. The first turnover occurred after Washington went three and out to open the third quarter but a muffed punt gave the Huskies the ball on the Stanford 40 yard line. A pass interference call on the next play pushed the Huskies to the Stanford 25 and four consecutive rushing attempts by Gaskin, capped off by an 8-yard inside run for a touchdown, made the score 30-0 in favor of the Huskies.
Stanford was finally able to get on the scoreboard late in the third quarter on a 16 play, 80 yard drive that took 4:35. The two-point pat failed making the score 30-6.
Washington’s defense held Stanford to just 29 total rushing yards in the game, and Heisman hopeful Christian McCaffery to only 49 yards on 12 carries. The Husky pass rush was relentless tallying 8 sacks on the day and doing what Stanford has done so well all season long which is winning the battle at the line of scrimmage.
The Washington offense, which rushed for over 200 yards for the third straight game, racked up 214 yards on the ground with Gaskin having his best game of the season with 100 yards rushing to go with his two touchdowns. Junior tailback Lavon Coleman put the game out of reach with a 25-yard touchdown run as the Huskies go on to win in a 44-6 route over Stanford. The win marked the largest margin of victory ever by the Huskies over a top ten opponent.
Oregon is next up for Washington as they go on the road and try to snap a 12-game losing streak to the Ducks.
Pictorial Highlights of The UW Huskies vs Stanford Cardinal Game
