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If UW and Michigan Played, Here's What Would Have Happened ...

The Pac-12 put everything on hold until 2021, but Husky Maven decided to play the season opener at Husky Stadium anyway. Here's who won.
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No introductions were necessary, but Jimmy Lake still felt a pressing need to let everyone who gathered on a sun-splashed Saturday afternoon at Husky Stadium know who he was.

On the first play from scrimmage to open the season, the new University of Washington football coach and former defensive coordinator showed himself to be a huge risk-taker. 

He sent the house against the visiting and unsuspecting Michigan Wolverines. 

Lake lined up eight guys on the line and just cut them loose. 

Then he did it again.

And again.

Shades of the 1991 national championship team, these unranked Huskies ushered in the Lake coaching era with a fearless and opportunistic defense that presented the new leader with a 21-10 victory over the vaunted Big Ten team in his head-coaching debut.

While his offense still needs plenty of work, and he's waiting on one of his quarterbacks to step forward and really claim the job, Lake's stop unit made up for any shortcomings by forcing the action and supplying a pair of instant touchdowns off turnovers.

"I told you we were going to be an attacking team," said a dripping-wet Lake, who received a celebratory Gatorade drenching from his guys. "We've got more speed this year. You haven't seen anything yet."

On an emotional day, both teams met at midfield before kickoff and had a moment of silence together to bring attention to the Black Lives Matter movement and social injustice. The message was there are more important things than football games, as ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit made passionately clear in real time on his TV platform.

Eight plays into this one, UW senior cornerback Elijah Molden, showing why he's considered one of the elite players in the Pac-12 and the nation, stepped in front of a Joe Milton throw on an out route and scampered 56 yards with it for the game's opening score in the first quarter.

Husky Stadium, filled to the brim with 70,080 people crammed into the lakeside arena, let out a deafening roar as Molden crossed the east-end goal line and was buried by his teammates. 

With Michigan off balance but down only 14-10 midway through the fourth quarter, Husky sophomore linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio settled the issue with another lightning-quick defensive touchdown, which was more grenade than missile launch. 

Ulofoshio capped off a monster performance by streaking in from the right side with 7:52 remaining and separating Wolverines backup quarterback Dylan McCaffrey from the ball with an extra violent hit, scooping it up on the bounce and scoring on a 10-yard fumble return. 

He, too, was lost under a sea of teammates in the end zone as the stadium rocked its approval, with Lake practically running onto the field after the score. 

The young linebacker came up with 15 tackles, including three tackles for loss, plus that game-clinching hit that brought him points. A year wiser, he was way too fast for the Michigan players to contend with as he kept coming under Lake's orders.

"Coach Lake just turned us loose," a weary-looking Ulofoshio said. "We've always had it in us. We feed off his energy. I'm so happy we could get him that first win as a head coach. This is just a start for all of us."

When Ulofoshio wasn't knocking people down, All-American defensive-tackle candidate Levi Onwuzurike was a handful up front. Often drawing a double-team, the senior from Texas collected a half-dozen tackles, including a pair of sacks. 

Jackson Sirmon, a sophomore and the other inside linebacker, came up with 10 tackles as the second row was as effective against Michigan as it was often missing in action in 2019. Redshirt freshman Miki Ah You was the UW newcomer of the day, sacking Michigan's Milton on a third-and-5 play at the Husky 30 for a 10-yard loss. Young and old, a lot of these Huskies got to the quarterback.

Constant pressure was supplied by the Huskies' outside linebackers Ryan Bowman and Laiatu Latu on the edge, Tuli Letuligasenoa from the inside and safety redshirt freshman safety Julius Ervin, who was allowed to blitz almost at will, all of this making the Wolverines noticeably uncomfortable. 

Offensively, the Huskies weren't nearly as sharp. They opened with sophomore Jacob Sirmon at quarterback, gave senior grad transfer Kevin Thomson a couple of series in the third quarter to shake the cobwebs off and finished up with Sirmon as the starter basically trying to play ball control.

With a mostly new offensive line, Sirmon wasn't always comfortable in the pocket, completing 9 of 21 passes for 132 yards. Still, he was responsible for the Huskies' only sustainable offensive drive in the second quarter, directing them 61 yards in 12 plays for Richard Newton's 5-yard touchdown run and a 14-3 lead at halftime. Newton topped the Huskies with 75 yards rushing on 15 carries. 

"I felt good out there, I just need more snaps, more experience," Sirmon said. "It's a process. We're still getting to know each other. Coach Lake wants us attacking, too."

Michigan likewise had trouble throwing the ball against the veteran Husky secondary, with the two QBs connecting on just 13 of 30 passes for 110 yards.

The Wolverines were able to run at times. Sophomore tailback Hassan Haskins led all rushers with 102 yards on 20 carries, scoring on a 20-yard dash in the third quarter to bring the Wolverines within 14-10. 

"We let their speed bother us, especially that No. 48," Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh said, referring to Ulofoshio. "But it wasn't a great offensive game for either team. We need to learn how to block. We can be better than this. We will be better than this."

As for Lake, nothing could be better than this. His first game as the man in charge. His first victory. His team. His explosive style.

"We need 11 more games just like this one, where we control the tempo and we set the tone," the coach said. "Only good things will happen."

With that, he went off to take his first shower as a game-winning college head coach. Or, knowing Lake, maybe to study some game film and see how the Huskies can wreak more havoc. 

The UW was so good it was almost as if this game wasn't real. 

Follow Dan Raley of Husky Maven on Twitter: @DanRaley1 and @HuskyMaven

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