Huskies QB Jake Browning gets first shot at Stanford

Fall-term classes begin at the University of Washington on Wednesday, and Jake Browning’s first course is in managerial accounting.

The sophomore quarterback’s first major test of the college football season comes two days later when No. 7 Stanford (3-0, 2-0 Pac-12) visits Husky Stadium for a top-10 showdown against the Huskies (4-0, 1-0).

It will be Browning’s first game against the Cardinal. He was sidelined for UW’s 31-14 loss at Stanford last year – the first game he’s missed in his life – with a minor right-shoulder injury.

“They’re a sound team, good tackling team. … You have to earn it and execute well,” said Browning, who had an internship with Seattle-based Pacific Advisors, a wealth management company, this summer. “They’re not a team you can have a couple turnovers against or a couple bad plays or missed opportunities against – you’ve got to make ’em count.”

Here’s more from Browning after Tuesday afternoon’s practice:

On prep for Stanford:

“We got home pretty late from Arizona but kind of bounced right into Stanford. As far as the hype and all that, been kind of too busy to read into all of it with the short week and all that.”

Your first time facing Stanford:

“They’ve been the team to beat, basically, for the last couple years. Definitely watched the last year because I was hoping I could play and ended up not being able to play. So I’ve been watching a lot of them this year. They’re very sound and all that and they’re going to make you earn it. So we’ll see. We’re just getting ready.”

On managing emotions:

“It’s just finding that happy medium where you feel like you have the intensity of it and you’re not too calm where you move lethargically, but then also making sure you don’t get too hyped up. Quarterback’s a different position; you’ve got to find that happy medium because you’re not just going against one person – you’ve got to think schematically.”

Is this a bit like cramming for an exam with a short week?

“Yeah, I guess. But they have to do it too, so both teams are feeling that. So it’s whoever deals with it best and comes out and plays the best.”

What did you take away from your game at Arizona?

“I thought I missed a lot of opportunities for big plays – those little tiny details that show up in between an incomplete pass and a big gain. So there’s definitely stuff to work on. I thought we did well down the stretch, but we’re moving on from that and just getting ready for Stanford.”

On what a win like this would mean for the program

“They’re definitely the team to beat, but we go into every game expecting to win. We’re not going into any game saying this is more important than any other game. So we’re treating it like another game. Obviously, I’d be ignorant to say that they’re not the team to beat right now in the Pac-12, but it’s a new season and all that, so we’ve just got to go in there and play and execute well and play at a high level.”