Washington football coach Jedd Fisch couldn’t hide his dry sense of humor when he was asked about the triple-digit temperatures the Huskies are expected to play in against USC on Saturday at the Coliseum.
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“We’ve been doing hot yoga every morning at seven – I’m just kidding,” Fisch told reporters.
“The only thing we can do is hydrate, trust our preparation and hope that we’ve done a good enough job in the offseason getting ourselves ready.”
The Huskies (3-1 overall, 0-1 Big Ten) could be out of their element between the weather and playing on a grass field, but they’re looking for the same thing USC is: a bounce-back win that rights the ship for the rest of the Big Ten Conference season.
Washington is coming off a 27-24 loss to Minnesota and No. 18 USC (4-1, 1-1) just lost to Oregon, 41-27, which turned up the temperature on the hot seat that head coach Lincoln Riley was already sitting on.
A dominant, get-right game against the Huskies could put Riley in a more favorable light with fans and the administration, at least for the time being.
“Winning breeds confidence,” Riley told reporters. “And then you’ve got to do everything that you can as a leader to create the opportunity to win, and you create the belief even sometimes before some of those things happen.”
This will be the first road game of the season for Washington, which has 39 players from California on its roster. It will also be its first game of the season on a grass field as opposed to the artificial turf that the Huskies are used to.
“It’s going to be exceptionally manicured,” Fisch said. “Coach Riley wants to have a fast surface. He doesn’t want to have a slow surface. This isn’t like playing some of the Big Ten schools of old back in the ’90s when they would water that field and see how high they could grow the grass. We’re expecting them to have Augusta-like greens.”
When Washington has the ball
The Huskies’ offense runs through 5-foot-11, dual-threat quarterback Demond Williams and Fisch, who calls the plays as the head coach and offensive coordinator. If the offense doesn’t fare well Saturday, it could indicate a rough rest of the season for the team and Fisch’s job security.
Williams is completing passes at a 69.3% rate and has thrown for 1,129 yards and seven touchdowns with three interceptions while rushing for another 155 yards and two touchdowns.
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The Huskies’ offensive line has been shoddy at times and allowed Minnesota’s defense to sack Williams seven times last week. Center Landen Hatchett, who is a game-time decision due to a wrist injury, could help solve that problem if he returns this week.
USC’s defense has yet to fully come together in Gary Patterson’s first season as the Trojans’ defensive coordinator. Communication breakdowns hurt them against Oregon and have led to opponents breaking off chunk plays. In the passing game alone, USC has given up 47 plays of 10 yards or more.
Injuries have also kept the defense inconsistent. Jahkeem Stewart returned last week after dealing with a foot injury, but the Trojans lost fellow defensive tackle Alex VanSumeren due to injury at the end of the game. He’s questionable for this week, along with nickelback Alex Graham.
USC will also be without middle linebacker Desman Stephens II, who is serving a one-game suspension due to his celebration following a late hit and disqualification for targeting on Oregon quarterback Dante Moore.
When USC has the ball
The offense is drastically outperforming the defense. Quarterback Jayden Maiava is leading the FBS in passing yards (1,499) and passing touchdowns (14), and his two primary targets are freshmen phenoms Kayden Dixon-Wyatt at receiver and Mark Bowman at tight end.
“I think that sometimes what gets lost when you don’t win a game is – the sky’s not falling. There’s a lot of good,” Riley said. “The fact is, we need to do a few things a little bit better, and we’ll get paid off for it, but now, there’s so many young guys stepping up playing big in big games.”
Wide receiver Trent Mosley, another freshman who burst onto the scene, is questionable this week due to an undisclosed injury. If he’s out, it will be his third consecutive missed game.
King Miller has taken over the running game with 421 yards and three touchdowns on 77 carries, followed by Waymond Jordan’s 233 yards and one touchdown on 46 touches.
USC’s defense is giving up explosive plays almost as much as the offense is creating them. The Trojans have completed a Big Ten-leading 26 plays of 20 yards or more and they’ve had 30 rushing plays go for 10 yards or more.
“We’re not going to go in there and play scared and keep everything in front of us and play some bend-but-don’t-break defense,” Fisch said. “We’re going to play the ball and try to be physical at the point of attack when the ball is in the air.”
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WASHINGTON (3-1 overall, 0-1 Big Ten) at USC (4-1, 1-1)
When: Saturday, 4:30 p.m.
Where: Coliseum
TV/Radio: NBC (Ch. 4)/710 AM