UW Huskies are 2023 Pac-12 champs – what’s next?

The UW Huskies may have surprisingly entered Friday’s rematch with rival Oregon as 9.5-point underdogs, but its Washington that came away with a 34-31 win and the Pac-12 Championship.

Caple’s Takeaways: UW Huskies are Pac-12 champs, CFP-bound

The Dawgs were aggressive early, jumping out to a 20-3 lead in the second quarter. The Ducks didn’t go away, though, and entered the fourth quarter up 24-20.

But as we’ve seen from UW all year, the Huskies sealed the deal late with a long touchdown drive and later picked up two first downs to run out the clock.

The win didn’t just give Washington the last conference championship of the Pac-12 era as we know it ahead of next year’s conference realignment, but it moved the Huskies to a perfect 13-0 while almost certainly clinching a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Head coach Kalen DeBoer is now 24-2 while leading the Dawgs these past two years, and his team is on a 20-game winning streak.

So what’s next for the UW Huskies? Here’s what you need to know.

How UW won the title

Before taking a look forward, let’s reflect for a moment.

The Huskies entered the year No. 10 overall in the preseason AP poll after finishing as the No. 8 team in 2022 on the heels of an 11-2 season.

Washington cruised through non-conference play and didn’t face its first close call until Game 5, a 31-24 win over Arizona.

Two weeks later, the Huskies and Ducks met in yet another classic, with Washington beating Oregon 36-33 in front of a sellout Husky Stadium.

Close games became a theme of UW’s season, with close calls over ASU (15-7) and Stanford (42-33) in the weeks after the Oregon game.

Washington’s November schedule was tough on paper and lived up to that billing.

The Huskies had close contests with all four opponents that month, beating USC 52-42, Utah 35-28, Oregon State 22-20 and Washington State 24-21 in the Apple Cup.

And then, of course, there was Friday night, when Washington beat Oregon for the second time this year and third time in a row.

1️⃣3️⃣ AND 0️⃣

No. 3 Washington becomes the 2023 Pac-12 champions beating No. 5 Oregon 34-31!@76 pic.twitter.com/Arnh6LBMlc

— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) December 2, 2023

Michael Penix Jr., who had been less sharp in recent weeks, completed 27 of 39 attempts (69%) for 319 yards and a touchdown.

UW’s stellar receiver trio of Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Ja’Lynn Polk had barely been on the field together this year due to McMillan’s knee injury, but that unit shined against the Ducks. McMillan caught nine passes for 131 yards, Odunze had his ninth 100-yard game and caught eight balls and Polk caught five of six targets for 57 yards.

And while he wasn’t named game MVP, running back Dillon Johnson stole the show, rushing for 152 yards on 28 carries while scoring two touchdowns and actually passing for a score. Johnson also picked up first down on third-and-9 when Oregon was out of timeouts to effectively end the game.

The Ducks were able to get points and yards throughout the second half, but Washington forced two three-and-outs to start the game and held star Oregon quarterback Bo Nix to one of his worst statistical games of the year, and likely sunk his Heisman Trophy chances as a result.

Where are the Dawgs in the rankings?

Washington entered Friday night ranked No. 3 in the nation in both the latest CFP rankings as well as in the Associated Press poll. Based on the early results of Saturday’s conference championship games, it appears the Huskies will move up in the rankings.

Speaking of CFP rankings, the final rankings that determine the four teams that make the playoff are announced Sunday, Dec. 3 at 9 a.m.

Washington was the first Power-Five team to win its conference title this year, but were joined by others on Saturday.

First, the Texas Longhorns moved to 12-1 by beating Oklahoma State for the Big 12 Championship. Texas entered the game No. 7 in the CFP rankings, and will move up with the win over Oklahoma State as well as No. 5 Oregon losing and No. 6 Ohio State not making it to the Big Ten Championship.

And in the SEC, chaos kicked off.

No. 8 Alabama beat undefeated Georgia, the two-time defending champs and the No. 1 team in the country, 27-24 in the SEC Championship.

That win means both the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs are 12-1 and Bama has the win in the head-to-head matchup.

What makes the CFP picture so cloudy with that result is not just that Georgia and Alabama are both 12-1, but that Texas is also 12-1 and beat the Crimson Tide head to head in Alabama this year.

Georgia falling likely means the Huskies will move up to at least the No. 2 spot overall.

As for the Big Ten, which is Washington’s conference next year, No. 2 Michigan took care of business against No. 16 Iowa 26-0in the championship game. Michigan winning cements its place in the CFP rankings as a top-four team, and the Wolverines likely move to No. 1 overall with Georgia losing.

And speaking of chaos, No. 4 Florida State won the ACC Championship with a third-string freshman quarterback, beating Louisville 16-6, but it was hardly a pretty game for the Seminoles without star quarterback Jordan Travis, who’s out for the year, and No. 2 quarterback Tate Rodemaker, who warmed up but did not play against the Cardinals.

The Seminoles, like UW and Michigan, are a perfect 13-0 and a conference champion. No undefeated power-five conference champion has failed to make the playoff since it began in 2014.

But with two spots remaining behind UW and Michigan, there is a case to be made that Texas, Alabama and even Georgia may have stronger cases to be a top-four team than the Seminoles despite all three having one loss this season.

Whether or not that’s the case will be revealed Sunday morning, but it is worth watching.

Of the three one-loss teams noted above, Texas likely has the strongest case as the Longhorns beat Alabama in September, and the Crimson Tide beat Georgia on Saturday for the SEC title.

When and where could Washington play next?

Assuming UW gets into the CFP – which is basically a lock after beating Oregon and with Georgia losing – the Huskies have two potential destinations they could play at, and both games are set for New Year’s Day on Monday, Jan. 1.

The Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl are the sites of the two semifinal games this year. The Rose Bowl kicks off at 2 p.m. and the Sugar Bowl starts at 5:45 p.m.

According to the CFP committee: “When assigning teams to sites, the selection committee will place the top two seeds at the most advantageous sites, weighing criteria such as convenience of travel for its fans, home‐crowd advantage or disadvantage and general familiarity with the host city and its stadium. Preference will go to the No. 1 seed.”

Because of the “preference” angle, it’s basically certain that a No. 1-ranked Washington team would go to the Rose Bowl. Michigan has more “general familiarity” with the Rose Bowl as opposed to the Sugar Bowl, and given that the Wolverines’ likely opponent would be a team from the south, they’d likely get the Rose Bowl if they’re No. 1 overall. That would put a No. 2-ranked Washington team as the home squad in the Sugar Bowl, which is in New Orleans.

More UW Huskies coverage

Recap: No. 3 UW rallies to beat No. 5 Oregon, and secure CFP spot
Under-Dawgs: UW Huskies a CFP lock after ‘upset’ Pac-12 title win
As Rome Odunze chases his record, Reggie Williams urges: ‘Give him the rock’

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