Washington Huskies (0-0) @ #23 Boise State Broncos (0-0)

Albertsons Stadium; Boise, Idaho

September 4, 2015

Kickoff: 10:15 pm ET

TV: ESPN

Radio: Washington IMG Sports Network

The second year of the Chris Petersen era at the University of Washington starts with another tough road test against a school from the Mountain West. Last year, it would be Hawaii that would give the Huskies a big test before Washington escaped with a 17-16 win despite a very poor showing from the offense.

Emotions will be high all-around this year though as the Dawgs travel to Boise for a date with the 23rd ranked Boise State Broncos.

The road against ranked opponents has been very difficult for Washington since the beginning of the 2004 season. They have a combined record of 1-22 in that time frame with their only road win over a ranked team coming in 2010 when they beat #18 USC by a final score of 32-31.

On the other hand, Boise State has had a very impressive run at Albertsons Stadium having lost just three games on the “Smurf Turf” since 2001. Their last loss to a non-ranked, non-conference at home was back on September 8th, 2001 when the Washington State Cougars came away with a 41-20 victory.

This will be the fourth meeting all-time between the Huskies and the Broncos. It will also be the first in Boise. Two of the other meetings took place in Seattle while one occurred at the MAACO Las Vegas Bowl back in 2012.

Expectations for Washington this season are not very high as they lost their starting quarterback, pretty much their entire starting offensive line, and five of their best defensive players.

QUARTERBACK:

As we stand here just mere hours before kickoff, we are still in the dark over who will be the starting quarterback for the Huskies on Friday in Boise. Conventional wisdom says that with an inexperienced offensive line on the road in a hostile environment that the most experienced quarterback would get the nod.

That quarterback is Mercer Island native junior Jeff Lindquist, who ironically got the start on the road last year as Cyler Myles served a one-game suspension. Lindquist was not impressive by any means completing 10-of-26 passes for 162 years and a score. Those would be the only pass he completed all year as he would eventually drop to third on the depth chart behind Myles and Troy Williams, both of whom are not with the team anymore.

It does not appear that Petersen will be going with Lindquist though as he has been very secretive with the selection for the recent past. He has even gone as far as to close practices to media, fans, former players, etc.

With all of the tricks, do not be surprised to see true freshman Jake Browning run out with the offensive on the first position. He comes in as one of the most prolific high school quarterbacks in history. Browning finished his career with 229 touchdown passes including a whopping 91 during the 2014 season.

Chris Petersen has shown in the past that he is not afraid to start a freshman quarterback. In 2008, redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Moore would win the job and not back leading the Broncos to a 50-3 record over the course of his four years.

The glaring difference there though is that Moore was redshirted during his first year in Boise.

OFFENSIVE LINE

The line took a big hit a few weeks ago when senior guard Dexter Charles decided to end his football career after dealing with an injury-plagued stint at the University of Washington. It is always difficult when senior leadership is lost this close to the season but the loss was more significant considering that Charles was the only full-time returning starter on the line.

Now, the current group only has combined for 12 starts last season between just two of them (Coleman Shelton started seven games at right tackle and Siosifa Tufunga started five games at left guard). Neither of those players are playing in the spots they featured in last year as Shelton has been moved to left tackle while Tufunga is slotted at center.

This will be the grouping to watch as the Huskies have the ball. It has been a big focus to establish the run, a tool that will likely be even more important this season with youth at the quarterback and a very strong running back crop.

DEFENSE

Statistically, the Huskies lost five of their best players on the defensive side of the ball. Gone are John Timu, Danny Shelton, Shaq Thompson, Andrew Hudson, and Hau’oli Kikaha. That is a combined 431 tackles, 61 tackles for loss, 41.5 sacks, three interceptions, 12 fumble recoveries, and 10 forced fumbles from 2014.

There is some good experience on the defense though leftover. It will be very important for players like Travis Feeney in the buck position, Cory Littleton at linebacker, as well as Budda Baker, Sidney Jones, and Kevin King in the defensive backfield to step up into the roles vacated by the players mentioned above.

The biggest question will be if Elijah Quallis can fill the shoes of Danny Shelton as the wrecking ball in the middle of the d-line. The reason why players like Kikaha and Hudson would get to the quarterback so often was because of the ability of Shelton to swallow up offensive lineman in his rush. Can Quallis provide the openings for his teammates? We will see over the course of the season.

PREDICTION

Boise State 24, Washington 13

It seems like the task is just too big for the Dawgs in this one. They will need to play a near-perfect game but what is the likelihood of that with a true freshman under center? Browning will struggle in the hostile environment but it will not be on the level that Lindquist did last year in Hawaii. That being said, the defense will keep the team in the game until Boise converts on a late turnover to put the game out of reach.

Another big question will be where do the explosive plays come from? Wide receiver/running back/cornerback John Ross will miss the season after suffering a knee injury during spring practice. It is a huge loss for the Dawgs but will give someone else an opportunity to fill the big shoes left by Ross.

Washington Player of the Game: Jaydon Mickens – 6 catches, 95 yards, TD