Some Postgame Reflections on the UW Loss To Ohio State

As people sweep out Husky Stadium, here are some immediate thoughts following the Washington-Ohio State football game, which resulted in a 24-6 Buckeyes' victory and was played with 72,485 fans squeezed inside, the largest since the UW-Nebraska outing in 2013 when the place was newly remodeled.

1. Even while completing 14 consecutive passes and hitting on 18 of 22 attempts for the game, Husky sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr. did not have his best outing against the Buckeyes. Unlike his Ohio State counterpart Julian Sayin, a similar talent, he hangs onto the ball too long. Sayin had no trouble throwing it away. Hence Williams was sacked six times and Sayin just once.

2. After the emotional build-up surrounding the game with the Buckeyes -- yes, Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez, we saw you in your purple jerseys looking like Husky walk-ons -- the UW (3-1 overall, 0-1 Big Ten) will have a huge challenge to get emotionally back on track next Saturday against Maryland (4-0, 1-0), which comes off a bye.

Julio Rodriguez, Emerson Hancock, Brian Woo and Cal Raleigh pull on customized Husky jerseys for the Ohio State game. | Dave Sizer photo

3. A year ago, the UW similarly was 3-1 and faced its longest road trip all the way to the East Coast to face an opponent similar to Maryland, and Jedd Fisch's team lost that one 21-18 to Rutgers.

4. Speaking of Fisch, the normally unflappable one flat-out lost his cool against Ohio State and ran on to the field to question a sideline-interference call. A moving official apparently tripped over a UW coach and went down, hence the flag. Fisch ended up nearly 10 yards onto the field, voicing his displeasure.

Jedd Fisch was called for unsportsmanlike conduct after this interaction with the officials pic.twitter.com/kDvF7CZ2EY
— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) September 27, 2025

5. Edge rusher Zach Durfee, extraordinarily talented yet injury prone in his UW career, came off the field in the opening half with an elbow injury and was met by a woman trainer. He had a pair of tackles on Ohio State's opening series. He was not seen again in uniform the rest of the game, not a good sign at all.

6. Linebacker Jacob Manu, playing football again just 11 months following a knee injury and resulting surgery at Arizona, looked physical but rightfully rusty after his layoff. He played about half of the time. He finished with 3 tackles.

Max McCree could be a starter against Maryland, a team he once played for. | Dave Sizer photo

7. Unless the Huskies do some sort of unexpected personnel shuffle, look for senior Max McCree to be the starting left tackle against Maryland as a replacement for senior Carver Willis, who suffered a second-quarter knee injury. Willis walked off the field, but it's hard to imagine him being back for Maryland. McCree played in two games for Maryland in 2022. He started five games for the UW last season, including the first four Big Ten outings and the Sun Bowl, before he went out with a hand injury.

8. You had to look closely, but redshirt freshman safety Paul Mencke Jr. made his college debut on the UW kickoff team early in the second quarter. He's from Cibolo, Texas, and the son of a former WSU quarterback and wide receiver with the same name. The kickoff went out of the end zone, so Mencke didn't make any lasting memories in that moment.

9. Buddah Al-Uqdah, the Huskies' starting linebacker who's out for the season with a knee injury, was in a jersey, shorts and a heavy black knee brace on his left leg for the Ohio State game. For a guy who had no reason to be in good spirits, he bounced around the sideline and tried to encourage his teammates.

10. The Huskies remain a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team, which is no shame, probably bound for an eight- or nine-win season and a decent bowl game somewhere. Holiday or Vegas? That's been the thinking all along and nothing's changed, for better or worse, following Saturday's 18-point defeat to the Buckeyes.

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