Huskies notebook: Lappano stays on sideline

SEATTLE – The last time Washington offensive coordinator Tim Lappano called plays from the sideline, it was seven years ago, he was coaching for Oregon State, and he really didn’t have a choice.

The phones went out at Memorial Stadium in Berkley, Calif., so Lappano and other coaches had to handle the second half of the Beavers’ win over Cal from the sideline.

“I’ve called one half of a game in all my years of doing this,” he said. “At that point in time I really didn’t like it.”

Why then, was Lappano on the sideline when Washington played Oregon last weekend, instead of in his usual spot above the field in the press box?

“I just wanted to change it up a little bit,” he said. “I thought that the communication would be better down there.

“I thought that worked out really good. I wanted to be able to communicate, not just to Jake Locker, but to the offense in general. I especially wanted to communicate with our receivers, let them know what we were thinking so they kind of have an idea of what to expect. I just like the interaction with all the offense down there.”

The change appeared to have worked, as the Huskies had one of their best offensive games of the year with 34 points and 421 yards, both totals second only to those posted in the season-opening win over Syracuse.

“It’s just the communication is a lot better,” said Lappano, who plans to continue working from the sideline. “We needed a change. I thought it was the right thing to do at the time, and it really worked out well for us.”

The players liked the change. Receiver Anthony Russo said he “loved it,” while Locker said he was more comfortable with Lappano on the field.

“I think we were all on the same page and really understood what was going on,” said Locker, who had one of his best games of the season with 257 passing yards and four touchdowns.

Johnson is No. 2

Though this week’s depth chart still lists J.R. Hasty and Brandon Johnson as co-backups behind Louis Rankin, Lappano said that Johnson has won the No. 2 tailback job.

Hasty, who redshirted as a freshman, then was ineligible because of academics last year, has carried six times for 18 yards this season, including five carries for 12 yards against Arizona State. Johnson has 30 yards on 11 carries, and was the only tailback besides Rankin to carry the ball against Oregon.

More White-Frisbee

Lappano said Jordan White-Frisbee, who has seen playing time at right guard in the last two games, will continue to have an increased role. He would not say yet whether White-Frisbee is pushing Casey Bulyca for the starting spot.

“We’ll see what happens this week,” Lappano said. “He’s going to play a lot and we’ll see where it goes.”