Chalk Talk with Brock: Polk’s TD run; flaws in the Seahawks’ run defense

Chalk Talk with Brock is a weekly feature in which Brock Huard will break down some aspect of football. Whether it be a few plays from the the Huskies or Seahawks game or a more general football concept, Brock will explain it in terms an average football fan can understand.

This week, Brock breaks down the biggest play of Washington’s season – Chris Polk’s fourth-and-1 touchdown run that gave the Huskies a last-second win over Cal on Saturday.

As Brock explains, fullback Austin Sylvester made a key block, but the main reason the play worked was because coach Steve Sarkisian correctly guessed that Cal would expect the Huskies to run a quarterback sneak.

Below Brock’s video is a pre-snap shot of the Huskies’ formation and Cal’s defensive alignment.

Here’s a YouTube clip of the entire game-winning drive. Fast forward to around the 5:20 mark to see the final play.

Next, Brock analyzes some of the breakdowns in the Seahawks’ run defense that allowed the Chiefs to rack up 270 yards rushing on Sunday. Brock explains what Seattle will need to do differently against the Carolina Panthers, who despite their 1-10 record have averaged 129 yards rushing in their last four games.