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Huskies flat and flattened Behind the passing of Matt Moore (308 yards and a touchdown), the Oregon State Beavers dominated the Washington Huskies on both sides of the ball, winning 27-17 at Husky Stadium. Not only did the Huskies lose, in a must win for both teams, they lost QB Isaiah Stanback to injury in the fourth quarter. Stanback, who has carried the Huskies' offense for most of the season, suffered an injury to his right foot, the extent of which will not be known until early next week. A television replay showed Stanback's ankle turning outward as he planted his foot. "It doesn't look good," UW offensive coordinator Tim Lappano was quoted as saying. "Not at all."
Speculation on the web has Stanback out for the
season. Seemingly wanting the game more than the Dawgs, the Beavers out-slugged them, taking big bites out of their hides physically as the game wore on. Oregon State (3-3, 1-2 Pac-10) out-gained the Huskies 300-77 yards in the second half and held them scoreless. In football there's no crying over spilt milk. Realistically, it was only a matter of time until Stanback got hurt. The hip pointer he suffered against USC last week was a prelude of things to come. Isaiah's had to carry the offense all season long with his feet and throwing arm and was hurt on a fourth-and-26 play, running for 24 yards until his ankle turned over and he fell to the ground. The Huskies played as if they were flat, suffering a letdown, perhaps, after a heartbreaking 26-20 loss to USC the week before. Matt Moore and the Beavers who were booed at home in a loss to Washington State last week were exuberant after the game. The Beavers have won at Husky Stadium, in a home away from home, three times in the last three years. The coaches need to think to the future, not panic, and save QB Jake Locker's redshirt year if at all possible. Although they lack Stanback's athleticism, QBs Carl Bonnell and Johnny DuRocher are capable replacements. The Huskies' offensive line must come to the fore and give Bonnell, the expected starter, some protection against Cal next week. The whole team needs to take it up a notch and rally behind Bonnell. There are some things Bonnell can do that Stanback can't, so look for the offensive scheme to change a bit. The Huskies won't join the upper echelon of the Pac-10 until they recruit someone like Yvenson Bernard, who rushed for 144 yards on 29 carries. The threat of Bernard's running saved Moore's bacon, giving him time to throw. How about adding someone like NT Sedrick Ellis (USC) to that wish list? Needless to say, losing this game dampens Washington's bowl prospects and could sour recruiting the rest of the year. In hindsight will fans point to the game as the turning point in Tyrone Willingham's career at Washington? You know: A bowl-shaped valley with food and supplies lay on the other side. More than half-way up the mountain, the howling dogs found a sheet of ice. Their legs churned frantically until the sled lost momentum, zigzagging and spinning to the bottom of the mountain, scattering dogs and master alike in disarray. Another try on another day? But soon the days will shorten, and the icy wind and hunger will lengthen their daunting climb. Ahem. Still, I'm not giving up hope on the bowl game and, certainly, not on Tyrone's career at U-Dub. The Good: -- You can't say enough about the Husky fans who were in the game up until the end, making noise, lost in futility, for the UW defense on crucial plays. -- Michael Braunstein's 45-yard field goal, the longest of his career. -- LB Scott White's two picks and subsequently Stanback's two touchdown runs, the picks leading to Isaiah's scores. -- Sean Douglas' punting. -- Kenny James' 83-yards rushing. The Bad: -- Considering Stanback's injury and the current speculation about his future availability, the Huskies will miss WR Craig Chambers all the more. Last season, Chambers, who transferred to Montana before the season began, was one of the Huskies' few playmakers. -- The Huskies' game with Oregon is at Eugene -- a mad house, like in "let me Autzen here" -- where they've lost to the Ducks the last two years. The tradeoff was getting OSU at home over the last three years. What blown opportunities. -- The Huskies' blocking, tackling, pass rush and sacks (6) given up. -- Moore's 80-yard TD pass to Sammy Stroughter. Against the UW pass defense, which is the worst in the Pac10, the wide-open Stroughter had a quarter of the field all to himself. -- The loss shouldn't have surprised anyone. Statistically, the Beavers matched up quite well against the Dawgs going into the game. -- Matt Moore's quarterback rating: 216.7 on the day. Stanback's was 106.7 and Bonnell's was 47.3. Moore out-rushed Stanback 18 to 11 yards, subtracting the yardage lost from sacks. -- Winning in turnovers (3-0), penalties against and time of possession and still losing. -- According to Willingham on his coach's show, Stanback has suffered a Lisfranc sprain of the arch of his right foot, which can flatten the arch and foot. Without surgery and possibly a corrective set of screws and a small plate the foot will not heal correctly. Surgery is to be performed Tuesday, and he'll be out for the season. The injury occurred between the joint of the forefoot and midfoot. Richard Linde (a.k.a., Malamute) can be reached at
malamute@4malamute.com |
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