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What We Learned Three things we know after Washington-Stanford
Updated: Sunday November 04, 2001 4:28 AM
By Ted Miller, Special to CNNSI.com SEATTLE -- The Pac-10 picture became a little clearer after four teams with one loss in conference play squared off Saturday. Here are three things we learned from the Washington-Stanford game. 1. The Transitive Property doesn't hold true in the Pac-10. Transitive Property of College Football: If Team A (UCLA) whips Team B (Washington) and Team C (Stanford) whips Team A (UCLA), then Team C (Stanford) should at least beat Team B (Washington). Not in the Pac-10, though. UCLA manhandled Washington three weeks ago, holding the Huskies to minus-8 yards rushing, while piling up 325 yards on the ground in a 35-13 victory. Last weekend, Stanford rushed for 213 yards against UCLA and held the Bruins to just 57 yards on the ground in a 38-28 victory. That didn't bode well for the Huskies on Saturday. Stanford, fresh off consecutive victories against No. 5 Oregon and No. 4 UCLA, looked like the team to beat in the Pac-10. The Huskies? They needed fourth-quarter comebacks to slip past bottom feeders California and Arizona. Never make logical assumptions in the Pac-10. Washington rushed for 130 yards, including 108 yards and three touchdowns from tailback Willie Hurst, against the Cardinal's top-ranked rushing defense in a 42-28 victory at rocking Husky Stadium. The Cardinal had 180 yards on the ground, but 80 of that came on one Brian Allen touchdown dash. Stanford had scored fewer than 38 points just once this season. But when the Cardinal took over with 3:48 remaining needing a touchdown to tie, they couldn't even manage a first down. The Huskies added an easy late score for the final margin. Washington didn't need a fourth-quarter comeback after it needed one in five of its first six victories. The Huskies never trailed after the second quarter. Though Stanford tied the score 28-28 early in the fourth quarter, the Huskies promptly marched 77 yards in 14 plays, chewing 6:13 off the clock in the process, to take the lead for good. With Washington State's victory against UCLA, the Apple Cup on Nov. 17 looks like a game of national importance for the first time in decades, though Oregon, which doesn't play the Huskies, still may have something to say in the Pac-10 race. Predictions? Foolhardy. 2. Reports of a rebuilding year in Seattle may have been greatly exaggerated. It may be reasonable to write off Washington's defeat at UCLA as a fluke. Sophomore quarterback Cody Pickett, who looks like a budding star, missed that game with a separated shoulder. So did Hurst, who has rushed for 293 yards the past two weeks. He has made Washington's once feeble running game look stout. Also missing in action against UCLA: outside linebacker Kai Ellis (five tackles against Stanford) and All-American tight end Jerramy Stevens. Stevens is expected to return next weekend against Oregon State after missing most of the season with a broken foot. Yet the biggest difference for the Huskies is the maturation of its offensive line, which features four new starters, including a redshirt freshman and two sophomores. Coach Rick Neuheisel said it was the confidence that comes from experience. The players said it was that and something else. "Yea, I think we're starting to get a little nasty,," tackle Khalif Barnes said. The Huskies passed to set up the run against Arizona State. They came out running against Stanford, even though the Cardinal were 11th in the nation in rushing defense (93.3 yards per game) and tops in the Pac-10. On Washington's opening drive, it went 76 yards in 11 plays, only two of which were passes (one completion for 21 yards). Hurst rushed for 43 yards on seven carries before fullback Ken Walker bulled in on third down from the 3-yard line. Five of the six Washington touchdowns came on the ground. Meanwhile, Washington's defense proved it might surrender yards but it knows how to make plays in critical situations. Two Washington fumbles in the second half deep in Huskies territory produced no points for Stanford. The Cardinal converted on just one of four fourth-down plays and on just five of 16 third-down opportunities. 3. The Apple Cup suddenly matters. Washington visits Oregon State this weekend, while Washington State is at Arizona State. There are no gimmies in the conference. Yet, if upsets are avoided, the Apple Cup on Nov. 17 at Husky Stadium could have national importance like never before, particularly if UCLA beats Oregon this weekend and makes the stakes nothing less than the conference title. Not since 1997 -- Washington State's last visit to the Rose Bowl -- have both teams entered the game ranked. Never have both teams been ranked in the top 10. Not since 1981 has the Rose Bowl been at issue for both teams. Of course, the Rose Bowl is the national title game this year, so the Fiesta Bowl is the automatic destination for the Pac-10 champion. However, if the Huskies run the table and win at top-ranked Miami to finish 10-1, it's hard to imagine they wouldn't play in the Rose Bowl for the national title. It sounds far-fetched, yes, but in the Neverneverland of the Pac-10, anything is possible.
Ted Miller covers the Pac-10 for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
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