Skip to main content
Inside The Huskies

Huskies Have One TV Analyst, a Familiar One, Calling for An Upset

Rick Neuheisel, now with CBS Sports, offered a bold pick on Saturday's Game.
Dan Raley|
Rick Neuheisel always has something to say about football.
Rick Neuheisel always has something to say about football. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Five weeks ago, Rick Neuheisel showed up for a University of Washington football practice, something he used to do on a regular basis as the head coach in Montlake more than two decades ago.

This time he was a visitor to the proceedings, chatting up current UW leader Jedd Fisch and others, and no doubt taking copious notes.

Neuheisel, who was fired by the school before the 2003 season began for his involvement in a localized betting pool with UW boosters and others, has never been afraid to go against the grain, and this week he's done it again -- predicting a Husky upset of No. 1-ranked and defending national champion Ohio State.

Certainly a bold move, Neuheisel, now a CBS Sports college football analyst, referred back to his time with the Huskies in coming to this conclusion.

He noted how his team upset fourth-ranked Miami 34-29 in 2000 because the Hurricanes showed up with a freshman quarterback in Ken Dorsey, who got rattled in Seattle.

Ohio State will turn to Julian Sayin to call the snaps, though he's actually a redshirt freshman, and see if he can deal with a loud, pulsating stadium.

"He wasn't ready for that kind of scene, that kind of crowd involvement," Neuheisel said of Dorsey. "Here comes Julian Sayin for his first game on the road. And he's been marvelous, almost 80 percent as a passer, but I'm going to take the Dogs in a big-time upset."

On his August visit, Neuheisel got a close-up look at UW sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who is drawing more and more national attention each week, and the former Husky coach likes what he sees.

"Demond Williams is a helluva player, a really good player, and I think he's going to prove that against this team, not only with his arms, but with his legs," Neuheisel said.

The former coach turned TV personality hedges on the outcome of this Big Ten Conference game only when he considers the other side of the ball for the UW.

"I don't worry about the Husky offense; I worry about the defense," he said. "Can they hold up against a big-time offensive line, a big-time offensive group?"

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Published
Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.

Home/Football