5 Quick Hits: Washington Football Discussion

Questions By Doug Adams

Linebacker and leading tackler of the Washington Huskies, EJ Savannah broke
his arm and is out for 3 months. How does his loss affect the defense
assuming he will not break back into the rotation until October?

EJ may be the best player on our defense, but fortunately we have good depth
at LB, plus a lot of that depth is behind him. You hate to lose a kid like
that, but it won't be a killer for the UW defense.

Can Quarterback Jake Locker make similar strides in the passing game during
his sophomore year to that of Tim Tebow?

Tough to say because Jake runs a more complicated offense, and the game
hasn't slowed down enough for him. Jake not only has to run the spread, but
he also runs power I, and split back formations which means there are more
plays in the book to get comfortable with. Dennis Dixon was only running
variations of twelve different plays for Oregon last year, and he had them
all mastered. The less the QB has to think, the better. The game slows down
when you don't have to think.

Losing Anthony Russo, and Marcel Reece to graduation forces a group of very
young wide receivers into starting roles. Which of the young Wr's will step
up and take some of the pressure of Jake Locker?

D'Andre Goodwin is the only sure thing at WR for the Huskies this season.
True Frosh Chris Polk will split time at RB, WR, and SB this season, I would
say he was the closest of the newcomers to making a big contribution after
watching this Spring. Chris Polk is supposed to be our version of Reggie
Bush.

Cody Bruns, and Jermaine Kearse who arrive in August have the talent to play
right away because they both run precise patterns, and hold on to the ball.
Jordan Polk from Portland Oregon is extremely fast, but he may need a RS
year to muscle up.

Aguilar, Boyles, and Logan still need to catch the ball more consistently.

Should RB Brandon Johnson be workhorse or should Tyrone decide on
runningback by committee shuffling in fresh legs?

I don't think Johnson is durable enough to be a workhorse in his second
year. I think he will share carries with Polk, Shaw, Griffin, and Yakaboski.
Shaw, and Polk will also be playing in the slot, and at WR. I didn't see a
breakaway threat this Spring. Rankin who graduated last year was
questionable between the tackles, but he was always a threat to go long.

The Huskies defense was abysmal last year. Is there any reason to suspect a
turnaround this upcoming season?

We have a new DC who made an impact this Spring. Ed Donatell has experience
as a DC in the NFL, and his schemes are a big improvement over his
predecessor Kent Baer.  Personnel of course is what makes any coach look
great, and I think we will be improved in all areas except the interior of
the DL. We need a couple of recruits to step up and fill in early which is
seldom a good thing. Washington's defense was pretty easy to predict and
call a game against last year. The new schemes should take away some of that
predictability.