For Huskies, Beating No. 1 Has Been Near Impossible

It's a sizable challenge simply to play Ohio State straight up in football. After all, it's a school full of Heisman Trophy winners, first-round draft picks, national championships and plenty of attitude.

Or do you not recall when chronically hot-tempered coach Woody Hayes felt compelled to rush off the sideline at the Gator Bowl and punch a Clemson player for intercepting a pass.

It's tough enough facing 11 Buckeyes all at once, let alone having to deal with a temperamental 12th man putting down his play sheet and trying to go 10 rounds between the lines.

However, the task will be exponentially more difficult on Saturday afternoon when an unranked University of Washington football team goes toe to toe with a No. 1-rated Ohio State entry at Husky Stadium.

Or any numero uno opponent, for that matter.

The Huskies have faced the nation's No. 1-ranked team in the Associated Press poll on 14 occasions previously, including the Buckeyes in 1969, and stand a woebegone 1-13 in such jousting.

They're 0-7 against college football's best team on the road, 0-4 at Husky Stadium and 1-2 in a neutral setting.

The chant is "They're No. 1 -- and we're not, not even close."

Jim Owens and the Huskies celebrate beating No. 1 Minnesota. | Dan Raley

While the payoff for an upset of these proportions can be incredible, the collateral damage has been overly taxing.

Of the UW's 13 losses to the anointed No.1 team, all but three have been lopsided games.

Among the worst outcomes, the Huskies (see the chart below) lost to Miami by 58 points, to USC by 38 and to Oregon by 37.

Even the UW's talent-laden 2023 team full of nearly a dozen eventual NFL players went 14-0 before losing by 21 to No. 1-ranked Michigan in the CFP national championship game in Houston.

So the Huskies will bravely venture into this mine-filled territory once more knowing that beating the best in the nation is near impossible.

"We're going to do our best to understand we're playing the no. 1 team in the country," UW coach Jedd Fisch said, "that won the national championship last year."

To know that and go ahead and play the game is almost like sticking your finger in a light socket. It's going to hurt.

Except for the one time it didn't.

No. 1 Michigan celebrates a national title and a 34-13 win over Washington. | Skylar Lin Visuals

On Jan. 2, 1961, the Huskies went up against top-ranked Minnesota in the Rose Bowl, seemingly against all odds. All-America quarterback Bob Schloredt had broken his collarbone and not played in nearly three full months.

Yet Schloredt was summoned near the end of the first quarter and proceeded to run and pass for touchdowns and was named the Rose Bowl's Most Valuable Player for a second consecutive year as the Huskies won 17-7 and down came No. 1.

While the AP and UPI polls back then were always finalized before the bowl games -- with the AP putting the UW sixth and UPI deeming it fifth -- a lesser poll compiled by the Helms Foundation elevated the Huskies to No. 1 after their stirring upset.

Bob Schloredt led the UW to a 1960 Rose Bowl win over Wisconsin. | Rose Bowl

The AP poll long had been considered the Holy Grail of college rankings in deciding championships before a playoff system was introduced, but the UW years later recognized the Helms poll outcome with championship banners and placards installed throughout Husky Stadium, drawing outside criticism for what some considered was a manufactured title.

Schloredt, who died in 2019 at 79, felt a certain amount of satisfaction in beating No. 1 and being recognized for doing as much. As far as being the top team or not, that didn't concern him.

"Nobody was bitching and moaning and groaning about not being No. 1," the quarterback once said. "We just knew we were."

HUSKIES VS. NO. 1
1939 -- at USC, 7-9 loss	Game was decided by disputed safety
1961 -- Minnesota in Rose Bowl, 17-7 win	Huskies won second Rose Bowl in two years behind QB Bob Schloredt.
1967 -- USC, 6-23 loss	O.J. Simpson rushed for 235 yards, breaking an 86-yarder for a score.
1968 -- at USC, 7-14 loss	In O.J. rematch, he rushed for 172 yards, including game-winning 9-yard TD run.
1969 -- Ohio State, 14-41 loss	UW opened with Michigan State, Michigan and Buckeyes and went 0-3.
1972 -- at USC, 7-34 loss	Not a great time to have quarterback Sonny Sixkiller injured and unable to play.
2001 -- at Miami, 7-65 loss	Game pushed to end of season by 9/11 attacks and was one of UW's worst losses.
2004 -- at USC, 0-38 loss	Huskies no match for Reggie Bush, Matt Leinhart and company.
2005 -- USC, 24-51 loss	Bush went 84 yards with punt return to score at Husky Stadium.
2007 -- USC, 24-27 loss	Freshman Jake Locker ran for 2 TDs, but UW couldn't pull the upset.
2010 -- at Oregon, 16-53 loss	Ducks scored last four touchdowns of game over final18 minutes.
2016 -- Alabama at Peach Bowl, 7-24 loss	UW scored opening TD but had no further points for Crimson Tide.
2023 -- Michigan at CFP, 13-34 loss	Huskies went 14-0 until dropping title game.
2024 -- at Oregon, 21-49 loss	Demond Williams Jr. made first QB start.

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