Huskies hold off San Diego St in opener 21-12
SEATTLE (AP) — Safety Will Shamburger returned a fumble 44 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, Keith Price threw for 222 yards and a TD to Kasen Williams, and Washington raced to an early lead then held on for a 21-12 win over San Diego State on Saturday night.
The Huskies revamped, new look defense under new coordinator Justin Wilcox more than held their own against the Aztecs and took the first step in erasing the embarrassing memories of last year's 67 points allowed to Baylor in last December's Alamo Bowl.
Washington forced three turnovers, sacked Aztecs quarterback Ryan Katz four times and picked up its first defensive touchdown since November 2010 on Shamburger's scoop-and-score early in the third quarter.
Katz threw a 47-yard touchdown to uncovered Tim Vizzi on the first play of the second quarter and Adam Muema added a 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter but that was it for the Aztecs, who weren't helped by questionable kicking decisions by coach Rocky Long.
Katz finished 10 of 19 for 128 yards in his first start after transferring from Oregon State. The Aztecs went for the 2-point conversion following Vizzi's touchdown on the first play of the second quarter and failed. They were forced to go for two again following Muema's score on fourth down with 12:06 left and trailing 21-12, but Katz's pass was broken up by Huskies safety Justin Glenn and the Aztecs still trailed by two scores.
San Diego State followed Muema's touchdown with another drive inside the Washington 10 but faced fourth-down at the 8 with 4:50 left. After a timeout to discuss options, Long opted to go for it rather than kicking the short field goal attempt. Katz's pass for Gavin Escobar was overthrown in the back corner of the end zone.
Washington allowed 313 total yards, well under the 453 yards per game average allowed a year ago under previous defensive coordinator Nick Holt. And they were opportunistic with cornerback Tre Watson intercepting Katz on the Aztecs' first possession of the game and giving the Huskies a short field for their first score of the season when Bishop Sankey plowed in from the 2.
It was 14-0 after the Huskies next drive after Price hit all seven of his pass attempts, the last an inside screen to Williams, who made a quick sidestep that left Aztecs' defensive tackle Sam Meredith grasping at air and sprinted 8 yards for the two touchdown advantage.
Price finished 25 of 35 passes and completed 13 straight at one point of the first half. Tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins had nine catches for 82 yards.
The only mistakes Washington made in the opening half was due to a coverage lapse by the Huskies on the first play of the second quarter. San Diego State slid Vizzi on the field right before the snap and had him aligned near their sideline and uncovered. Washington coach Steve Sarkisian saw the open receiver at the last second and sprinted to call a timeout but was late. Katz made an easy toss and Vizzi went untouched for the touchdown.
But it was the Huskies defense making the biggest play of the night. Colin Lockett caught an 8-yard pass in the flat but as he was pulled down John Timu started ripping at the ball and loosened it just enough that when Talia Crichton drilled Lockett, the ball came completely free. Shamburger quickly grabbed the fumble and raced the other way, barely getting inside the pylon for the touchdown.
It was the first defensive touchdown for Washington since Quinton Richardson returned an interception for a score against UCLA two seasons ago. Jamaal Kearse returned a fumbled kickoff return for a touchdown last year at Utah.
The Huskies revamped, new look defense under new coordinator Justin Wilcox more than held their own against the Aztecs and took the first step in erasing the embarrassing memories of last year's 67 points allowed to Baylor in last December's Alamo Bowl.
Washington forced three turnovers, sacked Aztecs quarterback Ryan Katz four times and picked up its first defensive touchdown since November 2010 on Shamburger's scoop-and-score early in the third quarter.
Katz threw a 47-yard touchdown to uncovered Tim Vizzi on the first play of the second quarter and Adam Muema added a 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter but that was it for the Aztecs, who weren't helped by questionable kicking decisions by coach Rocky Long.
Katz finished 10 of 19 for 128 yards in his first start after transferring from Oregon State. The Aztecs went for the 2-point conversion following Vizzi's touchdown on the first play of the second quarter and failed. They were forced to go for two again following Muema's score on fourth down with 12:06 left and trailing 21-12, but Katz's pass was broken up by Huskies safety Justin Glenn and the Aztecs still trailed by two scores.
San Diego State followed Muema's touchdown with another drive inside the Washington 10 but faced fourth-down at the 8 with 4:50 left. After a timeout to discuss options, Long opted to go for it rather than kicking the short field goal attempt. Katz's pass for Gavin Escobar was overthrown in the back corner of the end zone.
Washington allowed 313 total yards, well under the 453 yards per game average allowed a year ago under previous defensive coordinator Nick Holt. And they were opportunistic with cornerback Tre Watson intercepting Katz on the Aztecs' first possession of the game and giving the Huskies a short field for their first score of the season when Bishop Sankey plowed in from the 2.
It was 14-0 after the Huskies next drive after Price hit all seven of his pass attempts, the last an inside screen to Williams, who made a quick sidestep that left Aztecs' defensive tackle Sam Meredith grasping at air and sprinted 8 yards for the two touchdown advantage.
Price finished 25 of 35 passes and completed 13 straight at one point of the first half. Tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins had nine catches for 82 yards.
The only mistakes Washington made in the opening half was due to a coverage lapse by the Huskies on the first play of the second quarter. San Diego State slid Vizzi on the field right before the snap and had him aligned near their sideline and uncovered. Washington coach Steve Sarkisian saw the open receiver at the last second and sprinted to call a timeout but was late. Katz made an easy toss and Vizzi went untouched for the touchdown.
But it was the Huskies defense making the biggest play of the night. Colin Lockett caught an 8-yard pass in the flat but as he was pulled down John Timu started ripping at the ball and loosened it just enough that when Talia Crichton drilled Lockett, the ball came completely free. Shamburger quickly grabbed the fumble and raced the other way, barely getting inside the pylon for the touchdown.
It was the first defensive touchdown for Washington since Quinton Richardson returned an interception for a score against UCLA two seasons ago. Jamaal Kearse returned a fumbled kickoff return for a touchdown last year at Utah.
A win is a win. We definitely played like it was the first game of the season. Hopefully we learned a lot and got out the jitters. BIG game next saturday, gonna be tough! GO DAWGS!
is sdsu any good? Im wondering if I have a yard or two to talk about an upset next week. anyone know?
 @sirgavin7 That they went to a bowl last year doesn't really say it. Yeah, they're pretty good. Sarkasian almost went there to coach, and when asked about it, he was pretty complimentary of the coach they selected after he came here, who has been doing really well these past two seasons. Their squad is used to performing well overall, but I don't know that they are ready to crush the world yet. Now if the Dawgs were to have a good, solid game against LSU-even if they don't win it, then I'd say that SDSU can't compare with UW this year. Because I'm pretty sure that LSU would put it on the Aztecs pretty hard.Â
If we can OWN the tempo early and keep the energy high throughout, we have a good chance at upsetting LSU. They tend to be more arrogant than they would be if officiating weren't slanted so heavily in their favor each year. No, not sour grapes, as we enjoyed that same kinda thing for many years. Our W-L records didn't actually reflect our squads' abilities every year, as you may recall. Point is that LSU can be drawn into penalties and mistakes early if they can't get that ball or force three-and-outs on our guys. They expect a relatively light game come Saturday.Â
 @sirgavin7SDSU was good enough to go to the New Orleans Bowl last season. Obviously LSU is a better team. But with Keith Price don't count UW out!