UW-Notre Dame gamer Irish put a whuppin’ on Huskies
SOUTH BEND, Ind. _ Three and out.
If it were just a series of downs, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But an already teetering Washington football season took a serious nosedive Saturday, with the Huskies coming up 38-3 losers to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in this self-proclaimed capital of college football.
The outcome left the UW 0-3 for the first time since 1969, when a talent-thin, controversy-laden Jim Owens team lost its first nine outings before claiming the Apple Cup.
Prospects were dim for positive reinforcement coming any time soon. On a humid, cloudy afternoon before a crowd of 80,795 cheery, mostly green-shirted fans, the Huskies were badly beaten in every facet of the game and physically taken apart, as well.
The Huskies also went two and out in painful fashion, finding their roster significantly depleted in a matter of seconds.
On consecutive plays in the third quarter, the Huskies lost a pair of starters for the season with injuries, senior fullback and co-captain Zach Tuiasosopo and sophomore wide receiver Corey Williams. Tuiasosopo broke his leg while making his second carry of the game. Williams crashed into the south end zone wall, trying to chase down a Carl Bonnell pass, and broke his left wrist, requiring upcoming surgery.
“Those guys are gone,” UW coach Keith Gilbertson said solemnly.
With or without them, the Huskies were in trouble against Notre Dame (3-1). They couldn’t stop the host team on defense, permitting a school-record-tying four scoring passes by Irish quarterback Brady Quinn _ all in the first half. Nor could they generate much in the way of offense, settling for a measly field goal by Michael Braunstein to open the second quarter, at least keeping the program’s streak alive of 265 consecutive games without a shutout.
Small victories were of no consolation on this disastrous trip to the Midwest. The guys in the purple shirts are still 0-for-2004 and counting.
“Sooner or later, we have to win a game to remember what it feels like,” Gilbertson said. “It’s been since last November since we won a game.”
This one was never in question for the Irish, who made the Huskies pay for any and every mistake early. They needed just two possessions to put one in the end zone, with backup wide receiver Matt Shelton slipping behind the Huskies secondary, getting several steps on cornerback Derrick Johnson up the right sideline, to haul in a 24-yard touchdown pass from Quinn.
Quinn had a career day against a generous pass defense, completing 17 of 32 passes for 266 yards.
“We beat ourselves again,” the Huskies’ Johnson said. “You give them a lot of credit, but a lot of mistakes were on us. We weren’t in the right places.”
The next time Notre Dame got the ball, Shelton scored again, plucking a 27-yard scoring pass out of the air, this time beating UW sophomore cornerback Matt Fountaine and junior safety Dashon Goldson down the middle.
“Brady had a great day,” Shelton said. “He just puts it where I can catch it and I make the most of it.”
On the ensuing series, the Huskies gave the ball back in one play. Tailback Kenny James was stripped as he squirmed through the middle, fumbling and losing the ball on his 19, one of two bobbles he had in the game. The Irish went up 21-0 when Quinn threw one to tight end Anthony Fasano standing wide open in the end zone, with the UW defense biting badly on a fake handoff by Quinn and reverse rollout, and the rout was on.
Braunstein averted a shutout with a 26-yard field goal early in the second quarter, a kick becoming necessary when the Huskies’ drive was blunted at the 7 by an offside penalty.
The Irish, however, marched down the field for another Quinn-to-Fasano score, this one from 15 yards out. The home team closed the half with a 45-yard field goal by D.J. Fitzpatrick, good for a 31-3 advantage.
Besides broken bones, UW psyches also had to be severely damaged. Not only was Tuiasosopo in street clothes and leaning on crutches, the other starting wideout, senior Charles Frederick, stood next to him, unable to play over the final 30 minutes because of a leg injury.
Starting quarterback Casey Paus also was a spectator for half the game, not by choice. He got yanked in favor of Bonnell to start the third quarter.
He completed 7 of 18 passes for 93 yards and rushed six times for another 16, nearly breaking an option run into the end zone.