Twenty-seven explosive plays between Washington and Rutgers combined for 744 of the 1,072 total yards in the Huskies’ 38-19 win over the Scarlet Knights on Friday night. It was an evening of offense that felt reminiscent of Pac-12 After Dark. But in this Big Ten matchup, two quarterbacks combined for nearly 800 passing yards, 11 drives lasted at 70+ yards, and 15 receivers caught at least one pass.
Offensive Efficiency in Washington Win
Explosive Plays
Antwan Raymond’s 51-yard run on the second play of the game set the tone for the evening on Montlake. Rutgers scored on its opening possession in just four plays, aided by the Raymond run. The impact of those explosives can be seen in the first five touchdown drives of the game. The first five touchdown drives were all built on drives that lasted four plays or fewer. Washington scored three of those five touchdowns with passes of 23 and 38 yards as well as a one-yard run. Rutgers scored two of those five touchdowns, and they ended with passing scores of 20 and 48 yards.
“Once we started opening it up and just throwing the ball, letting our receivers make plays, I think that’s when it started opening up.” Denzel Boston said after the game. “They started playing a lot of man, and we needed to expose that.” When asked what was working with the offense to generate so many explosives, Dezmen Roebuck said, “Really, everything. We just started off slow, came back at halftime, you know, and just did what we were supposed to do.”
Game-Defining Sequence
Washington was on the cusp of capitalizing on a 91-yard drive near the end of the first half. But Demond Williams fumbled the football at the three-yard line following a 16-yard run. It gave the Scarlet Knights the football with their backs against the goal line. A false start penalty backed them up further. But two plays later, Rutgers was at the Husky 23-yard line. A 34-yard pass to Ian Strong and a 41-yard pass to DT Sheffield put Rutgers in scoring position with just under two minutes to play. A touchdown in that spot would have generated a 17-7 lead for the Scarlet Knights, nearing the half.
But Ryan Walters’ defense got a stop that would go on to define the remainder of the game. Elinneus Davis got his hand on a pass from Athan Kaliakmanis, breaking up a pass that would have been a walk-in touchdown. On the next play, Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei notched a sack, forcing Rutgers to settle for a field goal. The points made it 13-7 Rutgers, keeping it a one-score contest.
“It was big because there was 41 seconds left in the half,” Jedd Fisch said after the game. “I think if there was one or two more plays in that series, we wouldn’t have had a chance to drive down. And by holding them to a field goal, it gave us a chance to go get a field goal.” With 39 seconds to play in the half, Washington needed just four plays to travel 57 yards and set up a field goal as time expired in the half. The deficit was just three points at the break.
Second Half opening sequence
To open the third quarter, Washington needed just two plays to reach inside the Rutgers five-yard line. It was a 59-yard pass to a wide-open Roebuck that gained the majority of the yards. And Jonah Coleman punched in the short-yard touchdown to give the Huskies their first lead of the evening.
“I think just the defense just rallying like that,” Boston said after the game. “Once the defense gives us a rally like that, it’s hard, it almost feels like we’re letting them down if we don’t go score.” After forcing that field goal late in the second quarter, Washington went on to score on its next five offensive possessions (four were touchdowns) until the end of the game. Three of those scoring drives lasted more than 75 yards, one of which went for 91.
Demond Williams’ Historic Night
The Washington offense totaled 579 yards of offense against Rutgers on 59 plays, an average of nearly 10 yards gained every time it snapped the ball. Williams accounted for 538 of those yards himself with 402 through the air and 136 on the ground. Fisch said after the game that his total yards set a record for single-game yards at Washington. He became just the 16th college football player to surpass 400 passing yards and 100 rushing yards in a single game all-time.
“It’s amazing, you know, every play you never know what’s going to happen,” Roebuck said of his quarterback. “He can break out and scramble and throw an 80-yard bomb or he can take off and run. So you gotta be alert at all times.” Roebuck had a career game himself, as it was his first game with more than 100 receiving yards. He finished with four catches for 104 yards, including catches of 22 and 59 yards.
Boston made a spectacular touchdown grab in the game and hauled in a few highly contested catches on Friday night. He’s proven to be a reliable target for Williams, and his 23-yard touchdown early in the second quarter exemplified that. “I’m on that Jug machine, catching every other angle, turning my body,” Boston said as he described how he trains to catch tough passes. “Even the tennis ball machine, just like a smaller ball to catch. Just using those resources to my use.”
Trends Continue
Entering the game on Friday night, Washington and Rutgers ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, in available yards percentage. These offenses continued with an electric showcase of offense inside Husky Stadium. Rutgers gained 67% of its available yards and averaged 48 yards per possession. Washington gained 70% of its available yards on the evening and averaged 53 yards per possession.
Main Image: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images
