Johnson Shoulders UW Rushing Load, Which Drew Mixed Reviews
When Washington needed a yard to keep its perfect season alive in the 115th Apple Cup late in the fourth quarter, the options were Dillon Johnson and Rome Odunze.
Johnson, who ran for 82 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries against Washington State, had been stopped for no gain on third down, setting up a roll-the-dice, fourth-and-1 play from the UW 29-yard line with 1:14 remaining and the game tied at 21.
Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. crossed up the Cougars and went with Odunze. Penix pulled back the handoff to Johnson, who might have been stopped short again, and flipped the football to his wide receiver, who rushed 23 yards around the left end and into WSU territory.
Four plays later, Johnson took his final run for 5 yards to set up Grady Gross' 42-yard game winning field goal as the clock expired at Husky Stadium for a 24-21 victory and deliver the first 12-0 UW regular season.
While Odunze got much of the glory with his big run, the workmanlike Johnson shouldered the rushing load when it wasn't clear if he would even play after getting injured at Oregon State the weekend before.
Johnson's longest run was 9 yards, coming with seven-plus minutes left in the first half and preceding the UW's second score of the game, a 40-yard touchdown pass to Odunze, giving the Huskies a 14-7 lead.
The only other UW player to carry the ball more than once against the Cougars was freshman Tybo Rogers, who ran three times for 14 yards, all of which came on consecutive play calls in the third quarter.
Of the Huskies 28 rushing attempts, half were considered efficient, an improvement from the Oregon State game when offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb counted only five positive carries.
The ground game was more productive against in the Apple Cup because there was improved blocking.
"I thought there was some physicality still, where the pile was moving and there was a lot of bodies in there," UW coach Kalen DeBoer said.
Of the other Husky carries, they didn't work well against the Cougars, with the ball moving backward.
On the UW's first offensive snap, sophomore wide receiver Germie Bernard ran the ball and took a 3-yard loss, which counted against the team rushing total even though it looked like he intended to pass.
With just under two minutes remaining in the first half, sophomore running back Will Nixon took his only carry of the game for a 4-yard loss, leading to a punting situation.
"Those are the ones that we've really got to get dialed in on and make sure they don’t happen," DeBoer said.
The Huskies now prepare for a rematch with Oregon when the teams meet in the Pac-12 championship game on Friday in Las Vegas.
While Odunze rightfully might deserve another running play, the overall UW rushing attack still needs to step up with more yards to beat the Ducks.
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