`UW head coach Kalen DeBoer spoke Monday during his weekly press conference about the difficulties the Huskies face Saturday traveling down Interstate 5 to face No. 6 Oregon and fellow first-year head coach Dan Lanning.
On how the wind effected the game against Oregon State
“I think there were a couple throws … the first three quarters, when you threw towards their sideline you were kind of throwing with the wind a little bit more, even though it was kind of going from west to east. The wind was kind of going towards their bench. So I felt like most of the throws that were made that way, the spirals stayed tight. But in the fourth quarter it felt like it was coming more from the south and the west. I thought there were some throws in the fourth quarter where it affected it, even though the wind did die down during the intermission with the lights. Really, the wind felt like about 5 to 10 mph there for about 15 minutes. Then it picked back up and it was a little cooler breeze in the fourth quarter there the last 10 or 11 minutes. The ones going to the left seemed to be more frequent in the fourth quarter when we were backed up. The drive where – I don’t know if it was three-and-out but it was pretty quick, he threw one kind of wide left. Then there were a couple there at the end of the game, ones that he doesn’t really miss. It seemed to be more ones where he had to take a little bit off of it, more so than the ones he was just ripping. That’s one thing I’ve really been impressed with ever since I’ve known Mike. Guys run crossing routes or it’s those shorter throws, those five to 10-yard throws where some quarterbacks throw it the same tempo, the same speed, every time. He throws a really nice, catchable ball, especially on crossing routes and short routes. He knows his personnel and when he’s got to lay it in there. That was one of those nights with the weather where you’ve just kind of got to snap it off a little bit more, no matter what the length of the throw was.”
On what the Oregon-UW game means
“I don’t know if there’s a speaking engagement I’ve went to where they haven’t emphasized how important it is to beat the Ducks. It’s certainly important. It’s going to be fun, because we’ve put ourselves in a spot where it means something. They’ve got themselves in a spot where it means something. You’ve got the rivalry on top of it, and it looks like it’s going to be a great week weather-wise come Saturday. So it’ll be a fun weekend.”
On film review of the Oregon State game
“Defensively, other than the first drive I thought we continued to grow. We were challenged run-wise the first drive there and had a couple tough breaks go against us with a penalty being called on the second play of the game that gave them a free set of downs. It would have been second-and-10. Then at the end there were a couple guys in motion at the same time. There should have been a penalty there. I thought after that drive we got on the sideline, and a couple things: we continued to emphasized the gaps that needed to be fit by players, and also the intensity you needed to play with. It was the most physical team we’ve played when it came especially to the run game. We rose, I thought, and got better and met the challenge each and every drive. The third quarter I thought we came out of the locker room with some more adjustments and just really locked in. Everyone was trusting not just that they would do their job but the guy next to him would do his as well. I thought we grew with our run defense. I don’t think we’ve been challenged. A lot of the run has come from teams with quarterbacks that can run zone read and things like that. This was an offense that was coming right at you. We continue to find ways to get off the football field defensively. The question was asked about the fourth down and them going for it. I think some of it has to do, too, with … if you look at what their season looks like and their kicking game, I think they were 7 for 12 kicking field goals all year, and there’s been some chip shots. So I think a lot of it is, we knew they’d be going for it. Anything outside a certain range they probably didn’t have a lot of confidence kicking, especially with the wind the way it was.
Offensively, finding a way, even when it’s not perfect and it’s not going how you normally play. Third down and 10, 11. Third down and goal from the 24. I just emphasized the 1-0 mindset. Forget what just happened on first and second down. Them executing on third down I just love. I love what we’ve done in terms of finding different ways to win football games – whether we’re ahead and figuring out how to close it out, or in this case we were behind at the end of every quarterback. Really the last eight seconds of the game were the only ones that we led. I’m just proud of the way we continue to fight and find different ways to win.”
On Jeremiah Martin’s facemask penalty
“He’s just got to stay lower. There was a missed opportunity on a sack he could have had probably in the second quarter. It was going the other direction as well, where the quarterback escaped him. He’s just got to play lower as you get closer to the quarterback. You’ve got to keep your head up, though. Because once a guy ducks, then all of a sudden you’re lower too and it gives the perception that you’re going helmet to helmet. So those are tough situations, because you’re trying to not get the penalty and as you’re getting there you react and you’re not sure what the quarterback is going to do. You’re trying not to get a personal foul but you’re trying to make the play. You’ve just got to play football. He’s got to stay lower and not be up around that head area. That was a point in the game where I feel like if we make that play, we get the ball, they’re going to be punting into the wind and that was the chance where we could stack some series onto each other – both offensively and defensively – and really get the momentum continuing to go in our direction. But they go down and score and make it a 21-14 game and we had to respond with our own drive at the end of the third, going into the fourth.”
On Zion Tupuola-Fetui’s status
“I think he’ll be alright. I think he’ll be fine for this week. He wasn’t able to finish the game, but I think he’ll be fine going into this week.”
On the punting woes against Oregon State
“Yeah. I mean, a lot of it just starts with the windy conditions and just the jitters to feel the ball. You guys can watch it for yourself but just the confidence – not about the kick – but just catching it. Jack’s, I think done a better job as the season has gone along of being consistent. This was a new variable that was kind of thrown at him. Learning from it – fortunately we get to learn from it and still win the football game. He’ll continue to work on those opportunities. Especially when we have windy conditions and take advantage of that the next time we have practices in those type of conditions. The protection was fine. It’s just the balls on the ground take it takes longer. Actually, the ball went off our own facemask. I don’t know if you really saw but the ball goes off of one of our guys’ facemask because the balls on the ground when Jack (McCallister) picks it up. I think we’re fine with what we’re doing. It’s just we’ve got to be more consistent, especially punting into the wind, which was pretty much all of them in the game Friday.”
On if DeBoer is confident McCallister can remain the starter
“I think right now Jack is still certainly the guy we stick with. Based on what he’s done, especially the last three, four games. All it takes is – especially when we haven’t punted many times throughout the course of the year – one game where you kick four times in the wind and one gets blocked. Now your average drops significantly. He’s been hitting them in practice and hitting them in games better and more consistent. That’s where we’re at. Kevin (Ryan) comes to work every day and has continued to get better, too. “
On the challenges Oregon poses
“The challenge is that they can do both run and pass. Then, you got a quarterback that can make things happen. I think he’s averaging over seven yards per carry. That’s extremely significant. You focus on the skill players around him and the efficiency they’re operating with. They do a good job of making sure they’re not running a lot of plays into bad looks – probably very similar to what we do offensively. You got to stop run and pass. This weekend it was more about us stopping a team that was going to run the football. Different weeks it’s been that. UCLA was very similar. I think DTR (Dorian Thompson-Robinson), running quarterback, can throw it, has good skill around him. Probably the most similar to that. Not schematically. But just the type of personnel and style of offensive play, being balanced, that we’re going to see.”
On if DeBoer’s experience at Autzen in 2021 will help Saturday
“I mean, I don’t think so. It gives me a sense of understanding and what we’re going to see. Okay, how much crowd noise? When the crowd noise. It just gives me a better understanding. But the guys who haven’t played there, it’s hard for me to really pass that along to them. We just have to worry about ourselves and used that information to make our practices significant and prepare well for the game.”
On if Bo Nix is the best QB Washington has faced this season
“Again, I compared him to DTR. I just think those two guys are similar with what they can do with their feet. They’re experienced guys. Both have played a lot of snaps at a high level. I think Nix is playing with a ton of confidence. You can just see the way he’s operating the game has slowed down for him. Man, I can’t say enough good things about what he’s doing leading that offense. They’re one of the best in the country for a reason.”
On Edefuan Ulofoshio
“He was on kind of a limited number. Went through the week and just felt good. I think after the game that’s what you want to hear and what you want to see. Continues to get his feet underneath him getting some game experience and getting some of the rust kicked off. This week, just kind of what I think about with Jaxson Kirkland, you’re just kind of bringing guys back and taking that next step. Even though they’ve played a lot of football snaps it’s still been a long time since they’ve been on the football field. It was great having Eddy out there. He comes and gives me a big ole hug before every game all season long when he hasn’t been suited up. It was my time to give him a big one before the game on Friday. Just because I know it’s been such a long time waiting. He’s kept such a positive attitude through all of this from the beginning. You guys that know him. So happy to see him out on the football field and can’t wait – I know he wants to make an even bigger impact this weekend.”
On the tight end being a secret weapon in UW’s offense
“They’re guys that control the middle of the field. There’s time they get to other spots on the field as well. We have the luxury of playing them out in space. You see them flexed out even at the number one, widest to the sideline to the field. To the boundary. They’re intelligent guys that really love being put in all those spots. Their flexibility allows us to do a lot of stuff. Now, all of a sudden, you don’t got your receivers just lined up as the number one and number three. You can line up your receivers at two and three because you trust that blocking on the perimeter and running routes on the perimeter. Even going down the sideline. I mean, Jack’s touchdown was him playing the No. 1 receiver running down the sideline and Mike (Penix Jr.)… I didn’t realize when it happened how he actually really threw on rhythm and his progression went boom, boom, boom. There’s Jack, running his route. Trusting if I do my job the ball might find me. The timing was actually better. I thought it was kind of a broken down play when it happened. But Mike just went through his progression and there was Jack running down the sideline like it was no big deal. Those guys are always big in our program as far as their production. These guys just fit what we do really well.”
On Devin Culp’s third down conversion on the final drive
“Tight end delay. Been an important part of our scheme for many years. He really understands. He’s involved in the protection a lot. He just kind of leaked himself out. Last couple yards are going to be his. He’s got to fight for the first down. Knows where the sticks are at and pushes his way through there. A lot of confidence Devin would make that play. We got the right look and we stuck with the play. Mike put it right where he could catch it clean and stay on the run. Devin’s just continued to grow each and every week being more consistent.”
On Cameron Davis handling kickoff duties
“I thought he did a really nice job. I thought he could have maybe hit one a little bit harder and squirted through for even a bigger play. But that comes with time and reps. He got his opportunity. It’s just a part of the process here as we continue to figure out our personnel and exactly who’s the best. You want to find it sooner than later. But we have other guys, too, that have done a good job with Giles (Jackson) and CD I thought did a great job. That’s something we’ll continue to evaluate this week and in the weeks ahead.”
On if DeBoer has sensed an impact in recruiting with UW’s 7-2 start
“I think it’s really solidified the ones that were committed to us before and made them feel really good about their choice. I think there are some that are still trying to figure out that are uncommitted. There might be two to three guys that we could still probably take. They continue to see what we do and become more confident. I think, not just what we do on the field, but how we do it and what our culture is and what our locker room feels like with the guys and all the personalities. So, all those things just verifying what we do each and every week with the win’s that we continue to accumulate.”
On if recruits had a wait and see approach
“I think that’s always part of it. Different places I’ve been I think you always want to see it really happen. It’s not just the players but it’s also the coaches they play for at their high school’s. They want to see it happen. They want to see the proof of victories in the win column. But they also want to hear what the locker room – I think that’s a lot of it, too. What’s it like to be in this program? What’s the culture feel like? Coaches always say the right things. Like it’s a family. But is that what it really is? When you’re going through the good times, but especially in the bad times. A couple losses that we had earlier in the year and how do you get through that? How is it feeling when those times are happening? So, a lot of these guys are all connected. They’re asking the players on our team who they know. The coaches are asking former players who are with us now. I think there’s a lot of good vibes out there about our program. The trajectory is only going to continue upward.”
On treating Oregon like a nameless, faceless opponent
“It’s a huge game, but our process should not hopefully change because hopefully we’ve been preparing at the extreme high level, at the standard, right? That’s what we call it, the standard, all year long. And we talked about that early in the season with the Michigan State game. Okay, why would it be any different as far as our process than it was week one or week two? But it doesn’t mean it’s not a huge game for us. It’s a big rivalry game, it’s a fun game to be a part of. There’s a different vibe, a different feel to it. It is a huge game, but our process needs to be something where it’s consistent with what we do and how we prepare each and every week.”
On if DeBoer has gotten a sense of the meaning of the UW-Oregon rivalry
“We’ve got to represent, right? The alumni, who have poured so much into this program, we want to make them proud. We want to make our fan base proud. I can promise you, we will give it everything we’ve got. All week long these guys want to continue to make this a great season, want this program to be better than it was when they got here. We’re still writing the story for the 2022 Huskies.”
On how UW will prepare for the Autzen environment
“As far as throughout the week we’ll certainly be playing a lot more fan noise than we’ve had, especially for the offense because we know this will be the loudest stadium we’ve been in this year on the road. But yeah, the excitement is going to be through the roof. Probably controlling that is going to be the big thing. Let ’em be high, right? Because we want to play with great energy and intensity. But you’ve got to make sure it isn’t out of control because you’ve got to sustain it for four quarters or then some, if needed. You can’t just be a part of the highs and the lows; we need to be steady. It’s going to be a lot of fun, our guys are going to be fired up, they’re going to be excited. It’s going to be an awesome challenge.”
On if last seasons UW-Oregon game and fallout has been brought up this year
“There’s really been no discussion. This is just about literally our team right now. We’re far enough into the season and we’ve really got our own identity of who we are and we’re just trying to be the best we can be. I don’t think anything from the past is affecting us right now. I don’t feel like that has anything to play with as far as where our guys are at emotionally.”
On Jayvon Parker and Tristan Dunn
“You’ve got some guys coming back, so Tristan and Jayvon and those guys, you’ve got guys coming back that were upperclassmen, more experienced, so they played more snaps because they’re back in the rotation. Our secondary is as healthy as it’s been. Tristan, who was definitely helping us get through some of those times with some snaps that he was playing, now he’s not completely healthy as of a few weeks ago but he’s getting there and taking part in practice again. He’s ready to go if called upon.
“Tristan is still in our redshirt mode, I believe. He’s got three (games). We get to this point in the season if we can at all save (the redshirt) for all these guys…on Monday, this afternoon, we review all the guys, making sure and we talk about the plan moving forward throughout the course of the week. I think we’re going to be fine based on how we came out of last week’s game in the secondary position to where if we can save guys at this point in the year, we’re going to try and do that. Even if those guys…we want to maximize the number of snaps and plays and games that they can play in, so waiting for the right opportunity when we absolutely need them, that’s a fine line, right? Because there’s really no way of guessing when a guy might get hurt or be out of your lineup.”
On Julius Irvin’s status
“Julius probably won’t be able to play the rest of the season. He’ll probably be out for the year. Injury-related.”
On if DeBoer has crossed path’s with Dan Lanning outside of media day
“No, but we talked a little bit and when it comes to playing days we’ve got similar backgrounds, so…he’s done an awesome job in year one and got his team playing confident and leading them in a great way. A lot of respect for how he’s handled his first year as a coach at Oregon for sure.”
On the impact of overcoming adversity heading into a big game
“Every game there’s been a learning piece. Battling back and forth with Cal on the road and some things there that we overcame and found a way to win. And this game (Oregon State), finishing it against a very good opponent. I think Oregon State is a very good football team. You go back a couple weeks ago, Arizona here and what we did and having to finish that game when they were making a push, so we’ve won in different ways. Earlier in the year when we were in control and teams started to close the gap and us finishing it off…I’m proud, and we use all those learning experiences. We talk about them on Sunday, what happened and remember this when we get in this moment. You found a way to win. There’s just a lot of variety in how we’ve done that, and we’re proud of being 7-2 right now. Plan on not being done, a lot of football left to be played yet this year.”
