Arizona advanced to the UW 10-yard line.
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Despite a shaky start, UW gained control of the game, and the clock, in the third quarter.
The Arizona Wildcats did everything but win Saturday night.
Washington has been dominant to open the season, picking teams apart with its passing game, shutting down opposing offenses with its cache of talented defensive players. What did you expect?
The game was filled with firsts: The first touchdown allowed by the UW’s No. 1 defense and the first time the UW allowed a touchdown in the first quarter. The Wildcats won the overtime coin toss and elected to defend. Until about the final six minutes of the game.
“We can do better than that”, Washington coach Chris Petersen said.
Washington had the ball first in overtime and Pettis made a tough grab in traffic.
As a team, the Huskies rushed for 352 yards on 51 carries, and totaled 512 yards of offense and 7.1 yards per play.
Give Rich Rodriguez and his team plenty of credit, they don’t roll over and quit.
It shouldn’t have been this hard, though.
Rodriguez said freshman tailback J.J. Taylor (19 carries, 98 yards) broke his left ankle in the third quarter. After a 5-yard rush and a timeout, Dawkins ran the ball in for a 2-yard rushing touchdown to tie the game at 21-21.
The worst news for Arizona was that it lost another running back.
Just as the game started, it would end with the UW and Arizona trading touchdowns.
The Huskies forced another punt. They would drive the ball down the field on Washington again before getting stuffed at the goal-line, which would come back to haunt Arizona. The Huskies didn’t take trailing the Wildcats lightly, as they answered in the second quarter with a reserve to redshirt junior wide receiver John Ross III for a 32-yard touchdown run.
Browning hit Ross in the back of the end zone to make it 14-14 later in the second quarter.
It was a 54-yard gain, and it gave the Wildcats a chance to even the score in the final seconds. The Wildcats converted on fourth-and-3 at the 7 and Dawkins hit tight end Josh Kern for a 3-yard touchdown with 17 seconds to go for a tie game.
The Huskies had trouble corralling Dawkins all night. In stepped J.J. Taylor. He finished with 176 yards rushing on 13 attempts. “We planned for that”, said UW defensive lineman Elijah Qualls. Every time the offense seemed to be stifled, Dawkins came up with a play. His backup, Brandon Dawkins, has played well in his absence, though. “It’s a great win, and it’s a good thing to really learn (from)”.
55 yards later and he was celebrating a touchdown, with the extra point giving the Huskies a 28-21 advantage.
The Wildcats would get their turn with the ball, and start at the 25-yard line per overtime rules.
Washington defeated Arizona 35-28 in overtime in front of an announced crowd of 48,747 at Arizona Stadium.
“That could have been the difference”, Qualls said. Out of its first three opponents, one-and-a-half of them were FCS schools.
Even those who preach one game at a time – and you know who they are – can’t deny that this next game, at this time (Friday night at Husky Stadium) is The One. Ross is a highlight reel every time he touches the ball, but on his reverse, his quarterback outshone him by breaking a Calvin Allen’s 280-pound soul to spring his receiver to the sideline. Laiu Moekiola returned the second interception 28 yards for a touchdown to put the Sun Devils (4-0) ahead 44-34 with 2:52 remaining.
There were missed opportunities, too. Van Winkle banged it off the left upright, no good. Kevin King made the pick at the UW 10-yard line.
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But the Huskies held on, something they failed to do when faced with similar circumstances a year ago. “It certainly feels better and different when in the fourth quarter you have a comfortable lead, as opposed to fighting and clawing all the way down”.
