Huskies Take Powerhouse Team Into Arizona, Feeling Unbeatable

The UW still hasn't been tested in dominant season start.

TUCSON, Arizona — The University of Washington football team finds itself back in the desert again, daring the Arizona Wildcats to stop its prolific offense, challenge its improving defense and come within four touchdowns of it on the scoreboard.

Through four one-sided games in year two of Kalen DeBoer's budding empire, no one has done much of anything against the unbeatable Huskies except put up meaningless points and pile up useless yards against deep subs in the final quarter.

The UW, while topping the nation in passing (467.2 yards per game) and total offense (593.2), has trailed just twice this season — 6-0 and 9-7 to Boise State — and not after the midway point of the second quarter.

Taking stock of all of that, FOX Sports football analyst Joel Klatt concluded this week that the Huskies are "the scariest team in the country," and Halloween is still a month away.

This take-no-prisoners approach to the season is reminiscent of, dare we say, the UW's 1991 national championship team that outscored its first four opponents 182-31, whereas DeBoer's crew holds a 199-68 advantage at the same juncture.

Even the ever humble DeBoer, just 21 months on the job in Montlake, acknowledges that something special is happening with his largely inherited, talented and veteran team that's seventh-ranked in the latest Associated Press poll, is an 18-point favorite against Arizona and not been tested in any significant manner whatsoever.

"In the locker room the last two weeks, in the first half and the second half, it's been different than ever before," said DeBoer, who is 15-2 as the UW coach over two seasons. "There's energy but there's like this focus to come out of the locker room hard-charging and, you know, separate ourselves. I think there's a killer instinct that this team is developing."

"The Washington Huskies are the scariest team in the country for everybody else."@JoelKlatt is still high on Michael Penix Jr and @UW_Football 🙌 pic.twitter.com/YHf5BA3EyP

— The Joel Klatt Show: A CFB Pod (@JoelKlattShow) September 27, 2023

The Huskies come to Tucson intent on building on an 11-game win streak that began a little more than a a year ago following the last loss suffered under DeBoer's direction, 45-38 to Arizona State, just up the road in Tempe.

Shorthanded and beat up, the UW defense permitted a season high in points to the Sun Devils and offensively wasn't real sharp, especially when giving up an interception that was turned into a touchdown after it bounced off a Husky helmet.

"The mindset has to be there and the work has to support the goal," DeBoer said. "They're aware we fell short a year ago when we went on the road after being 4-0. Championship teams are going to prepare extra hard to make sure that doesn't happen a second time."

Under their second-year coach in Jedd Fisch, the Wildcats have been steadily rebuilding their program, as well, but they're not as far along as the Huskies. Their lone loss in four games came to new UW running back Dillon Johnson's old team, Mississippi State, 31-24 in overtime.

Entering this night game in the southern Arizona desert, the biggest question surrounding the Huskies is whether standout receiver Jalen McMillan will be available or miss a second consecutive game after hurting his leg at Michigan State

"He's working as hard as he can to get ready for this weekend," DeBoer said early in the week.

Yet this UW team is so deep that going without McMillan won't automatically weaken it. Everyone's in wide agreement that the Huskies probably have a deeper receiving corps than anyone else nationwide. 

Whereas early injuries on defense cost the Huskies a couple of midseason games last season, the coaching staff has gone to great lengths to build depth at all positions and offer replacement players with no drop-off in performance.

Twice they've had to repopulate the offensive line this month because of injuries. Also, they've swapped out starters at running back, edge rusher and strong safety without suffering for it. 

To be able to manage these difficult situations and be ever resilient is the mark of a championship team, according to the man who coached three of them and played for a fourth at the NAIA level at the University of Sioux Falls.

"When you're the best at your level, there's something that's coming together in a unique and special way," DeBoer said. "And these guys are right on track."

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