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Articles
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OSU dances to three-point Samba
Who is too blame for the Huskies' fall from grace as the dominant team in the Pac-10? Whether the lamentable tumble can be traced back to the misunderstanding at the Red Onion Restaurant, the loans to Billy Joe, the exodus of the Dawgfather, the ambush of Rick Neuheisel, or the rapacious media, the fact remains that the Huskies have lost 14-straight conference games and appear headed for 16 straight losses in the Pac-10 to close out the season. Recent history hasn’t been too kind to the Huskies -- nor has the present. Dwelling on the past, on what could have been or should have been, is not going to repair a football team that ranks as one of the worst in the country. A convict freed from durance vile is still an ex-con. If the Huskies split their next two games – an unlikely event – they will be remembered still for a disastrous season in 2005. Once upon a time, Oregon State (5-4, 3-3) was in Washington's place, a conference doormat. Maybe the guy who wrote the screenplay for "Trading Places," is to blame for the current state of affairs, somehow pulling the old switcher woo from another universe. Washington (1-8, 0-6) has lost 18 of its last 20 conference games. Replacing quarterback Isaiah Stanback with Johnny DuRocher in the second half might have momentarily appeased that camp that a Seattle columnist calls, “The DeRanged DeCriers of DuRocher's DuRance;” however, the result was the same as in the first half: a gutless, sputtering UW offense that can’t put points on the board, especially inside of the red zone. In all fairness, Coach Willingham owes DuRocher a fair shot on a fair weather day -- maybe, ahem, when the Dawgs have a running game. The Good: -- Evan Benjamin’s 17 tackles. -- The defensive play, albeit aided by the weather. -- Stanback's pass-efficiency rating of 114.5, accumulated mostly under duress. -- Only incurring 45 yards in penalties, albeit aided by the fact the offense wasn't on the field that often. -- WR Craig Chambers performance (8 catches, 103 yards, 35 long, 1 TD). -- “The DeRanged DeCriers of DuRocher's DuRance"? Now that's a wordsmith (Ted Miller) at his best. He'll keep Molly on her toes over at the P-I. With UCLA's loss to Arizona, it looks like UW's spirited game with UCLA wasn't due to a Bruin letdown. The Dawgs really outplayed them for three quarters. The Bad: -- Joe Lobendahn’s injured knee. -- The miserable weather, which hampered both teams offensively. -- Thinking that the more stationary DuRocher would be the panacea the Huskies needed -- this against a strong Beaver pass rush. Apparently, the inept Husky offense still needs Stanback’s speed and athleticism at quarterback. -- Nineteen yards rushing; DuRocher was sacked 3 times, Stanback once. DuRocher’s pass efficiency on the game was 69.8, shades of the "immobile" Casey Paus last season. -- DuRocher's (photo above) physical beating by an aggressive OSU defense. -- Time of Possession: 25:13 "You can't win games with Phi Beta Kappas" -- Gil Dobie -- With all this losing, Coach Willingham's homilies are beginning to wear thin on me. Under normal conditions, Coach Ty is entertaining, using his dry wit to taunt the media at times. But these are calamitous times. There are really no palliatives or balms to sooth our wounds (other than winning); yet, here's the captain standing on the bridge, bellowing platitudes through a loudspeaker, while beneath him, the whole damned ship is on fire. "I am always right -- you are always wrong," Gil Dobie (1908-1916, 58-0-3).
Richard Linde (a.k.a., Malamute) can be reached at
malamute@4malamute.com |
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On
a cold, rainy, windy, dreary evening in Seattle, the Oregon State Beavers beat
the Washington Huskies, 18-10, handing the Dawgs their fourteenth consecutive
conference loss. Alexis Serna scored all of the Beavers' points, kicking 6
straight field goals, with the emphasis on “foot,” as in the name of the game.