By Mazvita Maraire Posted on

UW’s defense dominated in Husky’s first Big Ten win.

The Huskies’ defense led the way as the team started the Big Ten Conference with a dominating 24-5 win over Northwestern.  The Wildcats were without their top running back, Cam Porter, who missed the game due to a lower-body injury. The absence of  Porter was evident as  Northwestern managed just  59 rushing yards in the game. The Huskies’ control of the game was evident as they kept the Wildcats from crossing the goal line with their bruising red zone defense.

  The Husky’s bruising red zone defense kept the Wildcats from crossing the goal line.Northwestern had a first-and-goal at the Washington four-yard line in the first half and mustered an 18-yard field goal. Early in the fourth quarter, Northwest was in the red zone with the ball at the Husky two-yard line and turned the ball over on downs.

SOLID OFFENSE

While the Wildcat’s offense was struggling the opposite was true for the  Huskies offense.  The Huskies took the lead on their second possession of the game when  Will Rodgers connected with Danzel  Boston on a 46-yard pass play. A  Grady Gross 21-yard field goal extended the lead to 10-0 early in the second quarter. Another  Rodgers to Boston, this one for 12 yards, saw the Huskies blow the game wide open at 17-0. The Wildcats got on board with a safety when Rodgers was called for international ground in the endzone. Gross ended the half with a 51-yard field miss.

PHOTO CREDIT FRANCINE SCOTT

SLOW START TO THE SECOND HALF

The Huskies started the second half with a three-and-out. The Wildcat’s offense was once again stymied by the Husky’s defense and punted the ball back to the Husky offense after the drive stalled at its own 44-yard line. Another Rodgers miscue gave  Northwestern a lifeline. Rodgers fumbled the ball at the Husky 33-yard line.  The Wildcats moved the ball to Washington one yard and had to settle for the 18-yard field goal by kicker Jack  Olsen to narrow the deficit to 17-5.  They increased their lead to  24-5 on their possession after a nifty eight-yard run by  Justin Coleman.  

POST GAME NOTES

Post-Game Notes Northwestern at Washington Husky Stadium, Sept. 21, 2024

Washington has kept three of four opponents so far this season out of the end zone. Weber State and Eastern Michigan scored only on field goals, while Northwestern scored on a field goal and a safety. The Huskies have yet to allow a touchdown at home this year.

Washington has won 17 consecutive home games, the second-longest current home streak in the nation (Georgia, 26 games). The 17 straight home wins is tied for second-longest in program history, alongside streaks that ran from 1991-93, and 1999-2002. The school record is 45 straight home wins (1908-17).

The Huskies have played eight games in a row at either Husky Stadium or a neutral site (Pac-12 Championship vs. Oregon; Sugar Bowl vs. Texas; CFP title game vs. Michigan; Apple Cup vs. Washington State, at Lumen Field).

The last time UW held a conference opponent without a touchdown was in the 2018 Pac-12 Championship Game, a 10-3 win over Utah. The last time the Huskies did it in the regular season, against a conference opponent, was in a 38-3 win over Oregon in 2017.

The last time a UW opponent finished a game with five points was on Oct. 28, 1939, when Washington beat Stanford, 8-5. Up 8-3 late in the game, on fourth down deep in his end, Washington’s Elmer Berg purposefully stepped out of the back of the endzone from a punt formation to give up a safety, avoiding Stanford possibly blocking the punt and winning the game.

The 46-yard touchdown pass from Will Rogers III to Denzel Boston, in the first quarter, marked the longest pass play of the season so far for Washington.

Boston set a new career high with 121 receiving yards, his first 100-yard game at UW.

Washington’s Giles Jackson entered the game having caught 24 passes on 24 targets this season, according to the official stats. That streak was broken early it the second quarter when he was unable to haul in a pass near the goal line just before Grady Gross’ field goal extended the UW lead to 10-0.

Will Rogers’ 20-yard rush in the first quarter was the longest of his career (at UW or in four seasons at Mississippi State). His previous long was 18 yards, vs. Ole Miss in 2021.

Though the other three games took place 40-plus years ago, Washington has played Northwestern four times, outscoring the Wildcats over those four by a total of 129-12. The Dawgs beat the ‘Cats 45-7 in 1980, 34-0 in 1983 and 26-0 in 1984.

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