NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2019
IN THIS ISSUE
From the Desk of Coach Mike Hopkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Junior Naz Carter is leading a youth movement in UW hoops. . . . . . . 4 10 Questions With ... Women's basketball's Darcy Rees . . . . . . . . . . 11 Missy Peterson has had some tough breaks — this year, she's helping UW break out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 The greatest games and (purple-and-)golden moments in Apple Cup history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Washington alumni are tearing up the NFL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 The Shot: Indelible images from Montlake and beyond . . . . . . . . . . 28
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GOHUSKIES VOLUME 13 / ISSUE 4 / NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2019
For Information on Advertising, Please Call Sonny Sixkiller at (206) 556-4128. GoHuskies Magazine is published seven times a year by Huskies Sports Properties, in conjunction with the University of Washington Athletic Department.
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EDITOR Brian Beaky WRITERS Mason Kelley, Mark Moschetti PHOTOGRAPHERS Matthew Lipsen, Don Jedlovec, Jonathan Moore, Red Box Photography, UW Athletics
FROM THE DESK OF HEAD COACH MIKE HOPKINS
D
awg Fans! I can’t tell you how excited we are to get back out on the court and hear the roar of Alaska Airlines Arena behind us. The energy our fans brought last year was one of the main reasons we had the success that we did. It's electric in there when you guys are rocking and loud, and I know this year will be no different. Now, our team is going to look different this year, with a lot of new faces, but we’re ready to compete and continue to build this program. We’ve brought in some talented freshmen in Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels, along with transfer Quade Green, to add to a group that was able to learn a lot over the last two years. All three of those newcomers were McDonald’s All-Americans and all three have already elevated the level of our competition. Junior Nahziah Carter, our leading returning scorer, along with Hameir Wright, Sam Timmins, Jamal Bey and Elijah Hardy, were able to grow their game so much the past two years watching Husky legends like Matisse Thybulle, Noah Dickerson, David Crisp, Dominic Green and Jaylen Nowell compete day in and day out. We’ve already seen how much they’ve grown in practice and it’s exciting to watch. We’ve had some tough non-conference tests to open the year, facing Baylor on the road in Alaska and then heading across the continent to
Mike Hopkins
take on Tennessee in Toronto, but we're really going to need you at Alaska Airlines Arena on Dec. 8 when we take on Gonzaga. I have no doubt you’ll all be there rocking Hec Ed and having our back the whole game. There are many opportunities to watch this new and exciting squad during non-conference play, and we can’t wait to see you out there. Once Pac-12 play begins, the stakes only get higher, so we just want to say how much we appreciate your support and what you do for our program in making this one of the toughest arenas in the country in which to play. Let’s Go Dawgs!
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Young Forever N BY MASON KELLEY
ahziah Carter
knows a little something about distance. After deciding to travel more than 2,600 miles from Rochester, N.Y., to Seattle to play college basketball, the junior understands what it’s like to go somewhere new as a way to pursue a dream. So, when the guard explains travel ... well, he knows what he’s talking about. With a Washington roster that is big on talent, but a little light on veteran experience this season, Carter said a little distance was exactly what the Huskies needed to build their bond heading into the season. And, that was what they received, when the program traveled to Italy back in August. “That was super-important,” Carter says. “There isn’t really a better way to come together as a team than to go somewhere way far away from home and have to look out for each other.” In many ways, Carter’s description of Washington’s foreign tour
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could be directly related to his own journey, because he couldn’t be much farther from home, and has taken advantage of that opportunity to mature both on and off the floor. “Yeah, basically,” Carter says with a laugh, when asked about the similarities between his journey to Washington and the Huskies’ trip abroad. “You could say that for a few of our players.” One of those newcomers going through a similar experience this season is freshman Isaiah Stewart, another Rochester product following the same path taken by Carter and fellow junior Hamier Wright, who grew up in Albany, N.Y. Now in his third season, Carter is taking what he has learned and using it to help his younger teammates. The Huskies will rely on his leadership this season with a team that has just one senior, center Sam Timmins. “Basically, I’m just telling them about the ups and downs they may go through, things I had to deal with being here for so long,” Carter says. “I tell them to always bring it on the court.”
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Heading into his junior season,
Nahziah Carter — Mike Hopkins’ first recruit to UW — now finds himself the veteran leader of a hungry and talented young team
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Young Forever Last season, Carter showed flashes of brilliance with his athleticism and above-the-rim highlights. His 18-point performance at Oregon State was punctuated by a vicious, one-handed dunk. But, while he made an impact, it was a second year to learn and mature. Now, Carter is ready to step into a lead-Dawg role. “I’m way more mature,” he says. “I can tell, because the coaches always bring up, ‘I remember when you used to do this your freshman year, or that your freshman year.’ That just reminds myself of how far I’ve come as far as maturity. “Being poised, and tempo, knowing what to do in certain situations. I’ve seen it," he continues. "I’ve been through it, so that’s going to help a lot; being able to walk other guys through it when they’re in the same situations.” Carter expects that maturity to lead to improved consistency. As much as Carter plans
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Young Forever to let his play do the talking this season, he also understands his role as a veteran leader. Last year, seniors Matisse Thybulle, David Crisp, Noah Dickerson and Dominic Green provided the leadership foundation for the Huskies. Now that they’ve moved on, and with Jaylen Nowell playing in the NBA, Carter is in a position to fill that void. “I used to look to those guys for a lot of things,” Carter says. “But, they’re not here now, so people look to me. That’s definitely a big change, but I’m up for it.” He knew this day would come, so he started preparing early in his career. “Honestly, I just looked ahead into the future,” he says. “I was thinking about it all last year, that the time was going to come soon enough, so I just tried to take everything I could from those guys before and after the season, because those guys were leaving. I just tried to get all that leadership, mentorship and maturity from those guys.” When asked about what fans can expect to see from the Huskies this season, Carter says the program plans to bring a special “intensity” to the court with a group of newcomers sure to impress early and often. He said Stewart is, “a high-intensity player, strong, good inside and can stretch the floor.” He described freshman Jaden McDaniels as a player who “can rebound the hell out of the ball. He can shoot and has all those intangibles everybody knows about.” Freshman Raequan Battle is “a sharpshooter,” and Marcus Tsohonis is “a solid point guard.”
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And, those are just the true freshmen. Add in Kentucky transfer Quade Green —“a great facilitator and shooter,” Carter says — not to mention redshirt freshmen big men Nate Roberts and Bryan Penn-Johnson, and the Huskies have reloaded in a way that puts them in good position to back up last season’s success. “We fit in pretty well,” Carter says. “Even though these guys are coming in as freshmen, they are well-developed as far as their knowledge and IQ, so it’s shaping up pretty well.” Carter arrived in 2017 with coach Mike Hopkins and helped spark the Huskies' turnaround. Washington won 21 games that first year, and followed that with a 27-win season and a trip to the NCAA Tournament last season. “We flipped things and we’ve been building ever since,” he says. This year, Carter plans to keep the Huskies pointed in the right direction. “This team is headed far, but I don’t want to jinx anything or make any assumptions," he says. “We’re taking it day-by-day." When Carter made the cross-country trek as a freshman, it was teammates like Thybulle who welcomed him to the family. Now, it’s Carter’s chance to return the favor with a fresh group of newcomers. “We’re as close as we could possibly be,” he says. “We hang out all the time.” Carter is doing what he can to set an example. The bonds were established in Italy and now they’re carrying over into a new season. Leader. Scorer. Playmaker. Highlight-reel dunker. Carter will be expected to do a lot this season. But, he has been preparing for this moment. He’s ready.
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A
10 QUESTIONS WITH... SOPHOMORE FORWARD DARCY REES
native of Adelaide, South Australia, Darcy Rees came to Washington after a strong stint with Australia's U-17 National Team, helping the team win the 2017 FIBA Oceania Championship in Guam in 2017. She also represented South Australia in the U-20 Australian National Championships and was invited to the Basketball Australia National Development Camp twice. During her freshman season in 2018-19, Rees was a regular starter in the post, finishing third on the team in scoring (7.3 ppg), first in blocks (0.9 bpg) and third in rebounds (4.1 rpg). Her roots now firmly planted in Washington, Rees is ready to lead the Dawgs to new heights this coming year.
What has been your favorite place to visit in Seattle? “My favorite place that I have visited so far in Seattle would have to be the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum. I visited the museum just after taking a glass art class and had an even greater appreciation for the work and delicacy that it took to create such beautiful artwork. Also, it was a fun day being outdoors and exploring more of this wonderful city.” Where is the most interesting place you’ve ever traveled? “When I was 15 I did a month-long home-stay in France; it was an incredible experience. I was immersed in a completely different and exciting culture. Everything about it was fascinating, the food was wonderful and it was interesting being surrounded by a language that was not my own. Paris was such a beautiful city; I really hope to be able to travel there again in the future.” What do you do in your free time? “I love drawing, reading, going to the beach and exploring new places. However, you'll most often find me watching 'Law and Order: SVU' or cooking something delicious for dinner.” If you were to create a slogan for your life, what would it be? “Work hard, live your dreams, do your best, love more, laugh often.” What are the things on your personal bucket list? “Travel the world. I would love to go on a tour of Europe, do a safari in Africa, or cruise around Asia, trying local foods and seeing all the sights. A few other things on my bucket list are to climb the Sydney Harbor Bridge and go on a hot-air balloon ride while watching the sunrise.” What are some of your earliest basketball memories? “When I was about 10 years old, I remember playing with all my friends and ticking off the long list of dribbling drills we had to do at practice. I could also never tie my shoelaces tight enough, and my mum or coach would have to do them before every practice and game.” Who is your biggest inspiration? “My parents both played professionally, but never pushed me into the sport. They have been there every
step of my basketball career, always with positive encouragement and funny stories from their days playing. They have inspired me to do things that I love doing and make the most out of every opportunity that I am given, and have immensely helped in making me into the person and player that I am today.” What do you love most about playing basketball? “The team environment. Being on a team allows you to not only make lifelong friends, but learn life skills and broaden your perspective of the world. My absolute favorite part of basketball here at the University of Washington is the amazing teammates that I now call my sisters.” Who were your favorite basketball players growing up? “My parents. Both my parents played for the club team that my siblings and I played for, so we used to sit in the stands every Tuesday night and watch them play one after another. I remember being so proud to say that they were my parents. I just hope to have the same love for the game when I am their age.” Can you talk about some of the experiences that have been opened up to you through the sport? “Basketball has given me so much more than I could ever have imagined. When I was younger, I travelled across Australia experiencing new places. I was fortunate enough to make the National Australian U17 team and travel to Guam to play in the FIBA Oceania Championships, where we won the gold medal. This will forever be one of my favorite experiences; being in a new country and wearing my nationalteam colors across my chest was an honor that I hope to some day be able to do again. I have seen so much of the world that I never would have been able to without this sport. I have met lifelong friends and get to spend four years of my life living my dream of playing basketball overseas, being immersed in a new and interesting culture. Being in America has changed my life. I have a new appreciation for my home country, and the time I spend with my family. I get to live an American movie where I am a student-athlete, something that is only on movie screens in Australia, and as a studentathlete I have so many privileges that I could never have imagined if I had stayed at home. But, most importantly, I get to do what I love — playing the sport of basketball — with people that I enjoy spending time with."
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FAST BREA PAGE 12
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EAK
After three injuries in three years, the breaks are finally going the right way for sophomore
Missy Peterson
F
BY MARK MOSCHETTI FOR GOHUSKIES MAGAZINE
irst, it was her foot. Then, her knee. Then, her nose. For someone who works as hard on the basketball court as University of Washington guard Missy Peterson, it seemed the only breaks she was catching were tough ones. The foot injury, from her senior year of high school, required surgery. The knee, a torn medial collateral ligament suffered midway through her freshman year at UW, likewise required surgery. The broken nose last year as a sophomore necessitated a face mask. Tough breaks, indeed. But, Peterson has proved herself to be tougher. And, that led to another kind of break last winter — a breakout season. “I started off a little shaky,” Peterson says, looking back at the 2018-19 campaign. “Then, I started to build my confidence in practice. And, practice translates over to games. It was also helpful having really supportive teammates and coaches who encouraged me and picked me up when I was down. “By the end of the season, I was just in lock-in mode,” she continues. “It was a different type of game, and I was really confident. I was playing a
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lot better.” Better enough to rank No. 2 for Washington in points (9.4 per game), minutes (25.9) and assists (64). Better enough to make 25 starts and reach double-digit scoring 19 times in 31 games. Better enough to shoot 42 percent from the field and a team-high 36 percent from three-point range. The performance of the 5-foot-11 guard, coming off knee surgery, wasn’t surprising to head coach Jody Wynn. However, it most certainly was satisfying. “It fueled her fire to have an incredible offseason training regimen that prepared her body and mind to perform at an elite level,” Wynn says. “It wasn’t immediate – she had some lingering things she still had to battle. But, by Thanksgiving, just two weeks into the season, we were down in Florida (at the Gulf Coast Showcase), and she really played at a high level. “There’s an old quote,” Wynn continues, “that players are made in the offseason. She worked her tail off tactically, physically, and just (worked on) the mental aspect and preparation to continue to be confident.”
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Finding Her Range – From Any Range There was a time when Missy Peterson would have hesitated to shoot from downtown. “I was not the greatest three-point shooter when I was in high school,” she acknowledges. “That was probably my last go-to thing to do. I would get to the hoop, shoot a mid-range shot, I would pass. I would only shoot a three if I was open.” Last March 8 in Las Vegas, the Huskies and 11th-ranked Oregon State were tied 65-65 with five seconds left in their Pacific-12 Tournament quarterfinal. Coming out of a UW timeout, Peterson wasn’t the first option. Or, even the second. Peterson inbounded the ball only to have it come right back. From well behind the arc, she launched one, and down it went with 2.3 seconds left. Washington went on to win, 68-67. “When I was standing out of bounds (waiting to inbound), I looked at the Oregon State defense, and they were in a zone,” Peterson recalls. “All their backs were facing me. Once they gave me the ball, there was no hesitation. I was wide-open, and I let it fly.” Winding Road To Washington Peterson’s father and brother both attended UW, and “I kind of grew up being a Husky fan,” she says. But, the standout at Edmonds-Woodway High School, just north of Seattle, was not heavily recruited by Washington. So, her mindset was to head out of state. “I wanted to experience what it was like to be somewhere on my own," she says. In November 2016, she signed with Long Beach State, where Wynn was in her eighth season as coach. Then, Wynn was hired as the new coach of the Huskies in April 2017. Peterson was released from her letter of intent and thus could officially start the recruiting process again. She wound up back in Seattle. “It seemed like everything happened for a reason,” she says. “I got to stay home and play in front of family and friends, play for coaches that I love, and play with a team that I love.” Adds Wynn, “Missy has this stubborn will to win that not all players have. I just loved her passion and her competitive drive.”
“I’m actually really excited,” she said. “In practice, compared to the past two years, we just flow better, play better together, trust each other more.”
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That’s Just Who She Is Husky teammate and best friend Amber Melgoza sees passion and competitive drive in the 20-yearold Peterson every day. It could be during games, during practice – or, coming back from an injury. “Once she was healthy, she knew she had to put her head down and grind,” Melgoza says. “Spring of 2018 (after the torn MCL), she really pushed herself into a different level. She worked very hard in the spring and summer, and as the season went on, it all came together for her.” But, Peterson doesn’t just push herself to improve. She pushes those around her to do likewise – Melgoza in particular. “We feed off each other – it’s very competitive,” Melgoza says. “Every single day, we do some competition after practice – horse, shoot-around, go around to five spots – things like that.” Who wins? “She’s got the strength, she knows how to body up in the paint, finish with contact – she’s a little stronger than me," Melgoza concedes, before smiling as she adds, "But, shooting – I’ll beat her.” Much as Peterson and Melgoza enjoy beating each other in fun practice games, their primary focus is beating opponents in real games. With four
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returning starters, the Huskies are poised to make some marked improvement from last season’s 11-21 record (2-15 in the Pac-12). Senior 5-foot-10 guard Melgoza (All Pac-12 honorable mention, averaging team-highs of 18.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists) and Peterson (9.4/3.9/2.0) are two of those returning starters. The others are 6-1 senior forward Mai-Loni Henson (5.2/4.0/1.8) and 6-4 sophomore center Darcy Rees (7.3 points/ 4.1 rebounds/ .426 field goal shooting). “We have a group of experienced returners for the first time who are really comfortable and confident in the system,” Wynn says. “They’re able not only to do it, but are able to teach it and help the young kids and guide them through the philosophy and terminology and be an extension of the coaching staff on the floor, which we’ve never had in the past.” Rita Pleskevich leads a group of newcomers. The 5-10 junior guard from Moscow helped the Russian Junior National Team win the FIBA U-19 title in 2017. Last year, as a sophomore at Broward College in Florida, she averaged 19.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.1 steals Peterson is pumped. “I’m actually really excited,” she said. “In practice, compared to the past two years, we just flow better, play better together, trust each other more. We play off the ball better, we talk, we move … everything we do, we do it as one.”
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A Trip Down MEMORY LANE Looking back at some of the most memorable Apple Cups in the series' 119-year history — no Coug victories allowed
WINS
LOSSES
TIES PAGE 18
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BY BRIAN BEAKY EDITOR • GOHUSKIES MAGAZINE
he University of Washington had been playing football for more than a decade before facing Washington State University for the first time, at Denny Field on Thanksgiving Day in 1900. The Huskies were, well — not the Huskies; that name wouldn't be used for another 20 years. Instead, Washington's football team was known as the Sun Dodgers, while Washington State wasn't WSU, but rather WSACSS — the Washington State Agricultural College and School of Sciences. Try and spell that one out in your fight song, Coug fans. The Washington State coach, William Allen, predicted his team — wearing their fashionable pink and blue jerseys — would win 30-0; instead, the game ended in a 5-5 tie. The following year, the Aggies (as they were known until 1919) earned a 10-0 victory and were 1-0-1 in the series. It was the last time they'd ever have a winning Apple Cup record. Washington shut out the Aggies in the next two Apple Cup games, won nine of the next 10, and haven't looked back since, carrying a 72-32-8 record into this year's clash at Husky Stadium, the 113th Apple Cup overall. There were plenty of memorable games in those early years. Washington posted nine-straight unbeaten seasons from 1908-1916 — including threeconsecutive Apple Cup shutouts — and won the first-ever matchup between the "Huskies" and "Cougars," a 16-13 road victory in 1922. There were Apple Cups dominated by legendary Huskies like George Wilson, Chuck Carroll and Hugh McElhenny, games decided by last-minute plays, and more trash talk in any given year than we've heard in the last quarter century. But, the fact is that not many of us were alive to actually remember any of those games — so, when making a list of the most "memorable" Apple Cups, it's hard to include too many from those early years. We've listed a couple here, but by and large, this list consists of games from the past 40-50 years — the ones that glued us to the TV or got us up out of our seats, and fill our Husky hearts with pride. Have the Cougars won Apple Cups? Sure. Were some of them memorable? Honestly, we'd rather not. So, you won't find the Snow Bowl, Ryan Leaf or any other Coug classics in this article. These are our favorite Apple Cups — let's GoHUSKIES hope we're adding another one to this list later this month.
40-0
20-0
For the first time in Apple Cup history, both teams entered the game with the chance to advance to the Rose Bowl with a victory. And, before a crowd of more than 40,000 fans, Jimmy Phelan's Huskies ensured that it would be them, and not their rivals, frolicking in the Southern California sun, dashing the Cougars' dreams with a 40-0 victory.
Washington went 3-6 in 1947, and were held to seven points or fewer by six of their first eight opponents. They still beat the Cougs, though, 20-0.
6-0 Playing for the first time since the end of World War II, and the first time since a mutually dissatisfying 0-0 tie in 1942, both teams entered this game looking to re-establish control of the rivalry. Trailing 6-0 late in the fourth quarter, the Cougars seemingly grasped victory from the jaws of defeat, breaking a 70-yard touchdown run that silenced the Husky Stadium crowd ... that is, until a holding penalty called the run back. Washington held on for the 6-0 win.
8-7 The Cougars haven't had many chances to derail UW's national title hopes — this game, though, is as close as they've come. The Huskies entered the 1960 Apple Cup with an 8-1 record, a top-five national ranking and a Rose Bowl berth on the line. The Cougars were 4-4-1, with only pride — and the chance to spoil the Huskies season — on the line. And, for nearly 60 minutes, that's exactly what they did, blanking and battering the Huskies' offense — halfback Don McKeta played much of the game with 13 stitches in his leg after being gashed in the first half, while the Cougars held on to a 7-0 lead midway through the fourth quarter. We told you, though, that there are no Husky losses on this list. After Kermit Jorgensen plunged in for what appeared to be a game-tying touchdown for Washington, head coach Jim Owens opted to go for two and win the game — and, it was McKeta, stitches and all, who hauled in what may well be the most significant conversion in UW history, sealing an 8-7 win and sending Washington to Pasadena, where they defeated top-ranked Minnesota to clinch the program's first-ever national championship. GoHUSKIES
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28-27 Back-to-back losing seasons in 1973 and '74 had led to the end of Jim Owens' tenure at Washington, and through the first part of the 1975 season, it didn't seem that first-year coach Don James was going to fare much better. The Huskies started 2-4 to open the season, losing three games by 18 points or more, including an embarrassing, 52-0 defeat at Alabama. Three wins in the last four, though — all over Pac-8 opponents — had renewed optimism entering the Apple Cup, where the Huskies were double-digit home favorites over a 3-7 Cougars squad. With just three minutes to play, though, it was the Cougars who were up by double digits — 27-14, to be exact — with the ball on the Huskies' 14-yard line, as a driving wind and rain punished the players (quarterback Warren Moon finished the game just 4-for-22 passing) and sent most fans to the exits. Rather than run out the clock, though, WSU coach Jim Sweeney let Cougars quarterback John Hopkins talk him into a pass, which was intercepted by the Huskies' Al Burleson and returned 97 yards for a touchdown. After stonewalling the Cougars' ensuing drive, Washington received the ball back at its own 22-yard line with one final chance to win the game. With little time remaining, Moon heaved the ball down the left sideline, but the wind and rain conspired to knock it down short of its intended receiver, Spider Gaines, who was five yards deep of a pack of WSU defenders waiting to make the game-clinching interception. The ball, however, deflected off the waiting hands of a Coug defender and bounced, miraculously, directly to Gaines, who turned and sprinted the last 40 yards for what would prove to be the game-winning touchdown. Those three minutes represented a significant turning point for both programs. Sweeney, who would go on to win eight conference championships at Fresno State, never forgave himself for the decision to pass, resigning a short while later. For James, meanwhile, the win cemented a strong finish to the 1975 season, and earned the coach enough goodwill to survive a 5-6 campaign the following year (certainly, another Apple Cup win — 51-32 — likely helped as well). By the end of the 1977 season, James had the Huskies back in the Rose Bowl, and a college football dynasty was born.
23-10 It's always a special Apple Cup when both teams have a Rose Bowl on the line. That was the case in 1981, where the 8-1-1 Cougars were playing for a shot at their first Rose Bowl appearance since 1931, while the 8-2 Huskies were looking for their first Rose Bowl since ... well, January. As games go, it wasn't a great one — Washington State lost its quarterback in the first half, and the Huskies rolled to a 23-10 win to lock up their second-straight trip to Pasadena and third in the last five years, ultimately beating Iowa, 28-0.
56-21 You knew we had to include this one, right? Washington entered the 1991 Apple Cup with a 10-0 record, and just three games decided by fewer than 20 points. The Cougars, though, came out inspired, taking a 7-6 lead at the end of the first quarter (just the second time all year that Washington had trailed at the first intermission). It was all Huskies after that, though — Washington scored 50 of the next 64 points to win 56-21, then kept on rolling right through the end of the 1992 Rose Bowl, defeating fourth-ranked Michigan, 34-14, to clinch their first perfect season and a second national championship. PAGE 20
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“... three years in a row, the Cougars entered the Apple Cup with a top-10 ranking and a chance to win the Pac-10 Championship. And, three years in a row, those dreams died at the hands of the purple and gold.”
Why are these three games grouped together? Because, three years in a row, the Cougars entered the Apple Cup with a top-10 ranking and a chance to win the Pac-10 Championship if they could just get past the Huskies. And, three years in a row, Washington walked away with the victory. Each game featured epic plays. In 2001, a 26-14 UW win, the Cougars earned zero points from three separate first-and-goal opportunities, including two turnovers and a goal-line stand by a Husky defense coming off a Rose Bowl win just 10 months prior. The following year, Washington State had home field on its side and a No. 3 national ranking, with a shot at the BCS Championship Game should either of the top-two falter on the season's final regular-season week. The Huskies, meanwhile, had seen a promising season fizzle with four losses in five games, and entered the Apple Cup needing a victory simply to avoid the team's first non-winning regular season in more than two decades. For three quarters, the game went roughly as expected. Despite losing starting quarterback Jason Gesser to injury in the third quarter, Washington State led, 20-10, with just over four minutes left (helped in large part by three missed field goals by the usually reliable Huskies' kicker, John Anderson). Cody Pickett, though, led a 90-second, 92-yard touchdown drive to cut the Cougars' lead to three, giving the ball back to Washington State with three minutes left and a chance to run the clock. Like Sweeney more than 40 years prior, though, Mike Price opted not to force the Huskies to use their final timeout by running the ball on second down, and instead called for a pass that was intercepted by sophomore cornerback Nate Robinson — playing in what would be his next-tolast game in a football uniform — at the Cougars' 35-yard line. Anderson's first successful field goal sent the game to overtime ... and that's when the real chaos began. GoHUSKIES
Washington received the ball first, but the two teams combined for just one first down on their first five overtime possessions, each one ending in a field goal. In fact, after missing his first three attempts of the game, Anderson converted four in a row in the fourth quarter and overtime, staking the Dawgs to a 29-26 lead entering the Cougs' third overtime possession. On the first play from scrimmage, backup quarterback Matt Kegel attempted a pass into the left flat, only to find Huskies' defensive end Kai Ellis in his face. Ellis got a hand on the ball and appeared to cradle it as he fell to the ground, only for the ball to come loose, recovered by the Huskies. Players from both teams surrounded the referees, with Kegel insisting the pass was incomplete, and the Huskies insisting that Ellis had come down with an interception. In the end, they were both wrong, as referee Gordon Riese announced to the Martin Stadium crowd: "The ruling on the field is that it was a backwards pass. Washington recovered that backwards pass. The game is over." And, with it, the Cougars' national championship hopes. The following year, Washington State returned to Husky Stadium once again ranked among the nation's top-10 teams, while the Huskies were enduring one of their most tumultuous seasons in program history following the dismissal of coach Rick Neuheisel just before the season. In fact, the game marked the first time since 1965 that Washington State was the only team entering the Apple Cup with a winning record. The Huskies won that 1965 Apple Cup. They'd win this one, too. Trailing late once again — this time, down 19-14 with fewer than 90 seconds to play — Washington scored not just once, but twice, the first on a 21-yard touchdown strike from Pickett to receiver Corey Williams (followed by a failed two-point conversion), and again just 30 seconds later on a 38-yard interception return by linebacker Marquis Cooper. For the third-straight year, the Cougars had entered the Apple Cup with a Pac-10 Championship on the line. And, for the third-straight year, an underdog Washington team had taken home the hardware.
26-14
29-26
27-19
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45-17 After more than a decade of less significant Apple Cups, the 2016 matchup was billed by some as "the biggest, most important Apple Cup ever," and was indeed just the sixth time in 109 meetings that both teams were ranked in the top-25 at kickoff. With a win, sixth-ranked Washington could keep its College Football Playoff hopes alive, while the 8-3 Cougars could clinch the Pac-12 North, and a potential Rose Bowl berth, with a win of their own. That buildup lasted all of about eight minutes. Washington scored four times in the game's opening period, including three passing touchdowns by quarterback Jake Browning, to open up a 28-3 lead and silence a Martin Stadium crowd that had come ready to party. They still had to sit there for two more hours as Washington rolled up 45 points in all, before whipping Colorado in the Pac-12 title game a week later.
28-15 Is recency bias at play here? Perhaps. But, while Cougars fans love to reminisce about their Snow Bowl, this one will long be remembered by Husky fans as a second Snow Bowl for the ages. For the third-straight year — and just the eighth time in series history — both teams entered the game with a top-25 ranking, the Huskies ranking 16th and the Cougars seventh. For the third-straight year, both teams could advance to the Pac-12 title game with a win. And, for the third-straight year, Washington's defense made sure that it wasn't a contest. With a steady snow falling throughout the game, obscuring TV cameras and limiting Washington State's high-powered passing attack, the Huskies' defense dominated the contest. A WSU team that averaged 452 yards per game was held to just 237 yards on its home field, including just 152 passing yards for quarterback Gardner Minshew, whose longest pass traveled just 11 yards downfield. On the other side of the ball, Huskies' senior tailback Myles Gaskin rushed for 192 yards and three touchdowns, in the process becoming the first Pac-12 running back ever to top 1,000 yards in all four seasons. By game's end — with the snow so heavy that broadcasters had to superimpose graphics showing yard lines and hash marks on the field — the Huskies were making snow angels on the Martin Stadium turf and celebrating a sixth-straight Apple Cup win. One week later, a win over Utah would clinch their first Rose Bowl bid since 2001, and keep alive a streak of 10-straight decades with at least one Rose Bowl appearance. PAGE 24
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HUSKIES TURNING NFL PURPLE AND GOLD Where to find your favorite Dawgs on Sundays
I
t used to be that Husky fans could only cheer for the Dawgs on Saturdays. With the sheer number of University of Washington alumni currently plying their trade in the NFL, though, rooting for Huskies on Sundays has become nearly as much fun. A total of 18 different Huskies have been selected in the NFL Draft over the last three years — a total unmatched by any three-year stretch in UW’s last 25 years — including 10 in the first two rounds, a record no era of Husky football can even come close to matching. In fact, Washington has had 17 players drafted in round 1 or 2 of the NFL Draft since 2013, equaling its output of high-end NFL talent from the previous 21 years combined. Suffice to say, if you’re watching an NFL game this weekend, there will probably be a Husky playing in it. As of week 9 of the 2019 NFL season, 30 different Huskies were on NFL rosters, evenly divided between offense and defense. That split may come as a surprise to some fans, given how much attention has been paid to Washington’s dominant defense in recent years, but in fact, just 10 of those 18 first- or secondround picks have come on the defensive side of PAGE 26
BY BRIAN BEAKY EDITOR • GOHUSKIES MAGAZINE
the ball, with the remainder consisting largely of offensive linemen and pass-catchers. Of no surprise will be that the NFC West features the most Husky alumni, with one (Dante Pettis) in San Francisco, two (Ben Burr-Kirven and Will Dissly) in Seattle and four each playing for the Cardinals (Budda Baker, Darrell Daniels, Byron Murphy and Zeke Turner) and Rams (Greg Gaines, Cory Littleton, Taylor Rapp and Coleman Shelton).
Outside the NFC West, the Atlanta Falcons — coached by former Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn and featuring many other coaches with Seattle ties — boast three Huskies, including Kaleb McGary, Jordan Miller and Desmond Trufant, while Cincinnati (John Ross and Drew Sample), Detroit (Marvin Hall and Jermaine Kearse) and Philadelphia (Sidney Jones and Joshua Perkins) each have two. Seahawks fans are certainly aware of Ross and Dissly's hot starts to the 2019 season. Ross torched the 'Hawks for 158 yards and two touchdowns in the season-opener in Seattle, while Dissly racked up four touchdowns in the season’s first five games. Both have since suffered injuries that threaten to be season-ending, but others have picked up the scoring slack, with both Pettis and Peters finding the end zone in recent weeks — in fact, through eight weeks, Washington’s NFL contingent had scored more touchdowns (11) than the Miami Dolphins (9), including Peters’ back-breaking pick-six in the Baltimore Ravens’ win over Seattle. Huskies have also added nine interceptions (led by Peters with three) and 5.5 sacks. Check out this list of Huskies in the NFL, and root for your favorite Dawgs this fall — unless, of course, they’re playing the 'Hawks. GoHUSKIES
Budda Baker, s Darrell Daniels, te Byron Murphy, cb Zeke Turner, s Kaleb McGary, ol Jordan Miller, cb Desmond Trufant, cb Marcus Peters, cb Shaq Thompson, lb John Ross, wr Drew Sample, te Marvin Hall, wr Jermaine Kearse, wr Kevin King, cb Senio Kelemete, g Jake Eldrenkamp, ol Greg Gaines, dl Cory Littleton, lb Taylor Rapp, s Coleman Shelton, c Myles Gaskin, rb
Jake Browning, qb
Danny Shelton, dl Dwayne Washington, rb Sidney Jones, cb Joshua Perkins, te Dante Pettis, wr Ben Burr-Kirven, lb Will Dissly, te Vita Vea, dl
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Photographs by RED BOX PICTURES
Dubs Up
Members of the men’s basketball team showcase the different variations of the new adidas uniforms.
To purchase Husky Athletics photography, visit www.HUSKIESPHOTOSTORE.com
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