Complementary football between the offense and defense saw the No.5 Washington Huskies beat no.13 ranked Utah Utes 35-28. After allowing 28 first-half points the Husky defense stiffened up in the second half and pitched a shutout. Michael Penix Jr led a Husky offense that added 11 second-half points to the 24 it had scored in the first half.
Penix Jr has another exceptional day completing 24 of 42 passes for 332 yards and two touchdowns both to Rome Odunze. Penix Jr scored a third touchdown on a two-yard run in the first quarter. Odunze was just as impressive hauling three passes for 111 yards to record the twin touchdown receptions.
DOMINANT DEFENSE
A dominant Husky defense in the second half intercepted Utah quarterback Bryson Barnes in the third quarter and nearly recorded a 98-yard pick-six by line-backer Alphonzo Tuputala but he dropped the ball at the one-yard line thinking he had crossed the goal line. The play was ruled a fumble and Utah recovered the ball on their one-yard line. Tuputala and the rest of the Husky defense atoned for the miscue when Utah running back Ja’Quinden Jackson was tackled in the endzone for a Husky safety. The safety was the last scoring play of the game by both teams. With the win, the Huskies moved to 10-0 for the first time since 1991.
“First of all, just really proud of our guys,” said Head Coach Kalen DeBoer following his 100th career victory as a head coach. “I thought we did a good job attacking and finding a way to put points on the board. Proud of the way the guys as a team come together when it matters most.”
Post-Game Notes
Washington vs. Utah
Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium, Nov. 11, 2023
Washington is 10-0 for just the second time in school history. The only previous time was in 1991, when the Huskies ran the table and finished 12-0.
Washington has won 17 straight games, the second-longest active streak in the country, behind Georgia, and the third-longest in Husky history (longer UW streaks: 40 straight wins 1908-16; 22 straight wins 1990-92).
UW receiver Rome Odunze notched the sixth 100-yard receiving game of the season, finishing the game with three catches for 111 yards, and two touchdowns. For the season, Odunze now has 1,100 yards, seventh in UW history. Odunze also became the seventh Husky ever to catch 20 or more TD passes, with 20 in total.
Odunze, who had 1,114 receiving yards in 2022, is the only Husky other Reggie Williams to record multiple 1,000-yard seasons during his college career. Williams did it three times (2001-03). Only eight different Huskies ever have reached 1,000 yards receiving in a season.
Michael Penix Jr. scored on a two-yard run to open the scoring today. It was his second rushing TD of the season, after a one-yard run last Saturday at USC. Last season, he scored in back-to- back games at Arizona State and home vs. Arizona.
After allowing the Utes to pass for 238 yards in the first half, Washington held Utah to just 29 passing yards in the third quarter, and none in the fourth. The Utes were also shut out in the second half after having scored 28 in the first.
Senior tight end Jack Westover set a new career-high with seven pass receptions. His previous high was five.
UW running back Dillon Johnson rushed for 104 yards, his third 100-yard game of the season, and in his career (including three seasons at Mississippi State). All three of his 100-yard games have come over the last five UW games (Oregon, USC, Utah).
Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer is now 100-11 as a head coach, and is 21-2 at UW, including a 13-0 mark at home.
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