Three up, Three down: Washington 31, Utah State 17

As we do each Sunday, it’s time to parse positives and negatives from the Huskies’ game this week – this one a 31-17 victory over Utah State.

THREE UP

1. Jake Browning.

When spring practice ended, I thought it was more likely than not that Browning would redshirt this season. He certainly showed potential, and you could tell why Chris Petersen and his staff were so excited about him. But it just didn’t seem fathomable that a true freshmen could reach a point before September where coaches would trust him enough to run the offense.

Shows what I know. Browning is doing more than just running the offense. He’s completed 66.3 percent of his passes for 844 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions in three games, and he’s already proven himself a bit of a playmaker (see: nimble sack avoidance followed by 3-yard touchdown pass to Drew Sample in Saturday’s third quarter). When he drops back to pass, there is a belief that something good is about to happen – it’s no coincidence the Huskies are tied for 19th nationally in yards-per-attempt at 9.3 – and that’s not a thought the Huskies’ passing game elicited a year ago. The Huskies didn’t throw for more than 273 yards in a game in 2014. Browning already has single-game totals of 326 and 368, both of which came after his rocky start in the season opener against Boise State.

Asked how far he’s come in the two weeks since that game, Browning basically shrugged.

“I haven’t really thought about it,” he said. “So I couldn’t tell you.”

Petersen was sure to accompany any praise of Browning with some nice words for the Huskies’ ultra-young offensive line, which featured three freshmen starters – including true freshman left tackle Trey Adams – and seemed to hold up pretty well in the passing game, even if clean rushing lanes were few and far between.

“I think he’s doing what we thought he could do, and we’re pleased,” Petersen said. “I think really pleased with the whole crew up front. I mean, he can be as good as he wants to be, but if he’s running for his life all the time, it’s going to be tough sledding.”

2. Kevin King always seems to be around the ball.

King, a junior who moved from safety to cornerback this season, has an interception in each of UW’s first three games. And his pick on Saturday was particularly important. It came after Browning had thrown an interception on the first play of the second half, which gave Utah State a chance to tie the game after the Aggies trailed 17-3 late in the second quarter.

But on 3rd-and-12 from Utah State’s 40-yard line, King tracked a long Chuckie Keeton pass and came down with it near the sideline. The Huskies turned that into a touchdown eight plays later, and the Aggies never really had a chance after that.

“I read my keys and when I see the ball, I just go get it,” King said. “It’s mine just as much as it is a receiver’s. Along with the preparation in practice during the week, we scout those guys and we run their plays. We have a pretty good idea what’s coming.”

Huskies defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski spoke earlier last week about the advantage of lining King up as a nickel back against the opponent’s slot receiver. His length and size can be difficult for a shorter receiver to deal with. And on top of that, he seems to be developing into a pretty efficient ball hawk.

3. Dwayne Washington can be a weapon as a receiver.

Yes, Dwayne Washington said, catching a pass and running a long way with it for a touchdown did bring back memories. The fourth-year junior tailback was a receiver in high school, and he reprised that role on Saturday, leading the Huskies with five catches for 132 yards and two touchdowns – an 81-yarder off a short, check-down toss from Browning, and a 33-yard catch on a wide-open pattern up the seam that Browning threw into the end zone.

Petersen liked what he saw, too.

“We all know if he can get in space, he can always go, and that’s the nice thing about Dwayne in the pass game,” Petersen said. “There’s a little more space there.”

With the run game struggling, it’s worth wondering if the Huskies might explore some more pass options for Washington, given how explosive he can be after the catch.

THREE DOWN

1. The run game still needs (a lot of) work.

It’s hard to judge the Huskies’ running game too harshly based solely on Saturday’s game. Utah State is a solid defense comprised of a bunch of guys who have played a lot of football, and the Aggies are notoriously tough against the run. Plus, the Huskies were starting all those young guys up front – three freshmen, all first-time starters – and it would be unrealistic to expect them to dominate in their first game playing together.

Still, the lack of production in that department will be a concern until it isn’t. The linemen might be young, but hey, that’s who the Huskies have, and if that’s the group they’re going to move forward with – when Jake Eldrenkamp gets healthy, I would imagine he’ll step back into a starting role somewhere – there can’t be any excuses.

Through three games, the Huskies rank 114th nationally with an average of just 3.45 yards per rush – and in one of their three games, against Sacramento State, they averaged 6.1. So that ranking sheds light on just how ineffective they’ve been against more legitimate opponents. It doesn’t get much easier from here, either.

2. What’s going on with that Jeff Lindquist package?

Lindquist is a big, strong dude with a strong arm. He is a capable runner. From an off-field perspective, Petersen and UW’s coaches love everything about him. He’s a good teammate, a good student and a team captain. So it’s no surprise that, like last season, Petersen wants to find a way to get him on the field.

But the whole wildcat-quarterback-but-not-really package Lindquist operates within just doesn’t seem to be working. Understand, I don’t mean that purely in terms of execution. Lindquist had a couple of strong runs on Saturday, including an 8-yarder. He is capable that way. And there’s something to be said for giving the defense a different look, and rewarding a player who does all the right things all the time. But it also seemed to disrupt the Huskies’ offensive rhythm on the possession that ended with Tristan Vizcaino’s fake-field goal touchdown run, and obviously led to Utah State’s 97-yard fumble-return touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Execution aside, though, the Lindquist-as-runner package feels like something a team might do if it doesn’t have a solid starting quarterback. And while it might have seemed in spring and even in preseason camp that the Huskies might find themselves in that very situation, I think it’s safe to say Browning has done enough in three games to prove that he is very clearly “the guy.” So after he leads the team down the field with a succession of crisp, accurate passes, why pull him out of the game? If he’s their best quarterback – and he clearly is – then he should be on the field for every snap, and the argument could be made that it’s especially important for him to be on the field when the Huskies have the ball in the red zone.

Petersen said Lindquist will continue to have a unique role within UW’s offense going forward -- “we’ll just keep tweaking and figuring out what we think he can (do),” Petersen said -- and he said it’s something that could change each week. And maybe Petersen will find a way to work Lindquist into the gameplan in a fashion that enhances the offense. Just don’t think Saturday was a great example of that.

3. Budda Baker’s ankle injury.

Hard to know just yet the severity of Budda Baker’s ankle injury, which he sustained on Utah State’s third offensive play when an offensive lineman fell into the back of his legs. Baker went down, limped off the field and spent the rest of the first half trying to walk off the pain on the sideline. He didn’t seem to make much progress.

Petersen said afterward that he didn’t know much more about the injury. For what it’s worth, Baker remained in uniform and on the sideline when the second half started, and I never saw him go into the locker room. Regardless of the severity, it probably helps that the Huskies have a bye after playing California this week. Ankles can be tricky, and even if it’s minor, that extra time off can only help. And if it’s not minor, the Huskies will rely on Jojo McIntosh, Ezekiel Turner and Brandon Beaver to pick up the slack at safety (and freshman receiver Chico McClatcher is the backup kick returner).

This story was originally published September 20, 2015 at 3:06 PM with the headline "Three up, Three down: Washington 31, Utah State 17."