By Mazvita Maraire Posted on

Huskies dominant play seals 26-21 win over Trojans

A resilient  Washington Huskies prevailed in a roller coaster 28-21 win over the  USC  Trojans.  The Trojans went three and out to start the game, and the Huskies returned the favor on their opening drive.  Carson Bruener grabbed the first of his two interceptions.

The Husky’s offense cashed in on the turnover and took the early lead on  Grady Gross’s 39 field goal. The Husky offense capitalized on another Trojan miscue. Jona Coleman’s 19-yard TD run extended the Huskies to 10-0 after Trojan kicker Micheal Lantz missed a 52-yard field.

Trojan running back  Woody Marks’s one-yard run brought the Trojans within three points at 10-7.  Keith Reynolds ‘ yard kickoff return put the ball on the Trojan 41-yard line, and the opportunistic Husky offense hit paydirt on another Coleman run. This one was from 15 yards out, and the Dawgs were back to a ten-point lead at 17-7. Two false starts and a delay of game penalty gave the ball back to the Huskies, took a commanding lead, and were on the verge of blowing out the Trojans when they extended the lead to 20-7 on a 45-yard field goal by  Gross.

TROJANS  DOMINATE THIRD QUARTER

After struggling to pass the ball against the Huskies ‘ top-ranked defense,  Trojan head coach Lincoln Riley went to a more balanced attack. The change in strategy worked. The Trojans outscored the  Huskies  14-0 in the third quarter, amassing 164 yards, 71 rushing, and  93 passing.  The  Huskies were the exact opposite. The Dawgs had 102 yards for the quarter, 93 passing, and 12 on the ground. The offensive explosion by the Trojans gave them a 21-20 lead.

 “ Overall, I thought we settled down after they got their runners going, said Husky head coach  Jed Fisch. “ We knew they were going to score some points and move the ball; they are a very gifted and athletic team.”

 The Huskies gave the ball back to the Trojans after another nonproductive series by the offense.  The Trojans looked on their way to another score on their next offensive possession. Husky linebacker Carson Bruener thwarted the Trojan’s attack with his second interception of the game.

“ Carson Bruner had a great game, two interceptions, and made the calls. I though  Zo  (Alphhonzo Tuputala, and Khmori Harris) had good games. I thought all of our linebackers played well today,’ added Fisch.

Credit Francine Scott for Photos

CLOSING OUT THE GAME

  The Husky offense returned to its opportunistic ways and took the lead on Keith Reynolds’s four-yard touchdown run.   Fisch elected for the two-point try, which failed when quarterback Will Rogers fell incomplete. The Trojans marched 77 yards to the Husky one-yard line on 15 15-play drive that ate up 8:18 seconds of the game clock.  On 4th and one from the Husky one, Khmori House jumped the gap and tackled Woody Marks for a three-yard loss.

The Husky offense returned to its shell and punted the ball back to the Trojans with 1:38 left in the game. Quarterback Moss Miller moved the Trojans to the Husky 20-yard line with 39 seconds left. A six-yard completion to Woody Marks on first down was followed by three consecutive incomplete passes, giving the Huskies the victory.

POST GAME  NOTES

The Huskies have now won 19 consecutive home games, dating back to a loss in the 2021 Apple Cup. The home win streak is the second-longest in program history, trailing only the 45-game home win streak set between 1908 and 1917.

Washington’s 20 first-half points marked the Huskies’ second-highest first-half points production of the season, behind only to the 21 the Huskies scored in the first half (all 21 in the second quarter) of the Eastern Michigan game back in week two.

Running back Jonah Coleman’s 23 career carries were a new season and career high. His previous season high was 19, set last week at Indiana, and his previous career best was 22, last season vs. USC (while playing for Arizona).

Coleman notched the fifth 100-yard game of the season. In fact, with 104 yards tonight, he finished with exactly 104 yards for the third time this season.

The Huskies had out-gained (in terms of yards of total offense) their first eight opponents in 2024, a streak that was broken today vs. USC as the Trojans had 459 yards to the Huskies’ 375. The last time the UW opened the season by out-gaining its first eight opponents was in 2016, when the Huskies did it in the first nine before being out-gained by USC in game 10, breaking the streak. The last time UW went the whole season out-gaining every opponent was in 1991, when the Huskies went 12-0.

The Huskies have a total of seven interceptions this season, with five of those seven coming from front-seven players: three from linebacker Carson Bruener (two of them tonight), one from LB Khmori House, and one from DT Jacob Bandes. Safety Kamren Fabiculanan has two, including one vs. the Trojans tonight.

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