A Preview of the Preview: With Capable QB, UW Should Be Good
Sports came to an abrupt and unapologetic halt in March. Mid-tournament. Mid-road trip. Mid-sentence. The coronavirus treated them like a final horn. No arguments, you're done for now. Basketball, baseball, hockey and spring football, all put on hold.
Yet throughout the stadium, arena and ballpark silence and nonstop ESPN Sportscenter repeats, college football magazine previews pressed on.
Unlike the games that dried up and went away, spring deadlines for the summer releases of Athlon Sports, Lindy's, Street & Smith's and others offering predictions for a fall season didn't waver.
Athlon, to which I have contributed stories for 15 years after writing for Lindy's before that, typically puts the best University of Washington football player on its regional cover. In this case, senior cornerback Elijah Molden holds that honor.
Imagine, just a year ago Molden was a new starter for the Huskies, still somewhat of an unknown as a first-team cornerback. He was highly thought of as a special-teams player and an extra defender, but clearly unproven as a central figure in the secondary.
For Molden, shown in the video at the Las Vegas Bowl, landing on a magazine cover, for Athlon or anyone else for that matter, is a badge of honor. It means he's arrived in terms of recognition.
I haven't seen Athlon's All-Pac-12 teams yet, but I was asked for input and admittedly was generous in my assessment of the Huskies for 2020. Especially on defense.
Last year, taking note there would be nine new defensive starters (it turned out to be 10), I was probably a lot less enthusiastic about offering up a lot of UW names.
In terms of the Huskies as a team, they're always a conference contender in a general sense. This year is no different.
They need a quarterback but have everything else.
A year ago, I concluded they had a QB but were lacking linebackers and receivers. I wasn't wrong.
The good thing about this team is, even if the Huskies struggle similarly on offense, is they should be really good on defense.
That might buy them more time to grow into a formidable team as the season unfolds and not give away any more games in the fourth quarter.
For those interested in Athlon's college football preview or the others, they're available at newstands everywhere, especially in grocery stories, or on line.
