UW Huskies’ offense starts to ‘click’ in rout of Eastern

SEATTLE – It wasn’t perfect. And yes, it came against an FCS-level opponent.

Game recap | Box score

But after a sluggish first two games, the UW Huskies’ offense finally got untracked in a 48-16 rout of Eastern Washington on Saturday. The Huskies scored 31 first-half points and finished with 546 total yards.

“I thought that we did some good things on offense today,” UW head coach Jedd Fisch said. “Disappointed that we weren’t able to finish one drive in the (red) zone, and there were a couple times that I thought we had some opportunities that we didn’t execute.

“But I felt for the most part, we played the type of offense that I’d like us to play.”

UW began the season at No. 17 in the AP Top 25 poll, but dropped out of the rankings after back-to-back underwhelming performances in a 24-10 Apple Cup win over the WSU Cougars and a 16-14 victory over Utah State. Over those first two games, the Huskies mustered just four touchdowns combined.

On Saturday, Washington (3-0) scored four touchdowns in the first half – including back-to-back 70-plus-yard scoring marches to open the game.

“It was all about starting fast,” UW quarterback Demond Williams Jr. said. “And once we got that out of the way, we were able to click throughout the first half, and really the rest of the game. It felt really good.”

Demond Williams Jr. finds Rashid Williams for 6️⃣ @UW_Football

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Williams completed 27 of 33 passes for 373 yards, four TDs and an interception. He also ran for 33 yards on seven carries and finished with 406 yards of total offense.

Sophomore wideout Dezmen Roebuck, who had a pair of uncharacteristic drops last week, bounced back with nine catches for a career-high 121 yards.

Sophomore tight end Baron Naone had two catches for 103 yards, including a 75-yard catch-and-run to the 1-yard line that set up a TD.

And after missing the second half of last week’s game with an injury, fourth-year wideout Rashid Williams hauled in six catches for a career-high 86 yards and two TDs. On the latter of his two scoring receptions, he made a spectacular one-handed snag in the front corner of the end zone.

“He does it on a daily basis – he makes those type of plays,” Demond Williams Jr. said. “So for me, it’s just putting the ball in his vicinity and letting him go be himself.”

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Four-star freshman running back Brian Bonner injected some much-needed life into UW’s ground game, which had been reeling without top running backs Quaid Carr and Jayden Limar, who both suffered injuries in the Apple Cup that are expected to sideline them until at least November.

Bonner ran for a team-high 81 yards on six carries, including a big play in the second quarter when he burst through a hole on the right side and raced down the sideline for a 55-yard gain.

However, aside from Bonner’s long run, UW’s running backs combined for just 57 yards on their other 17 carries.

“We were a couple blocks away from really being explosive,” Fisch said of his team’s rushing attack. “But for the most part we’ve gotten better.

“We’re not looking to lead the country in rushing, by any means. We just want to get better each week. And then on the same token, as we’re getting better in the run game, see how good can we get in the pass game, and then see what type of offense we can be.”

After a relatively light non-conference slate, the competition now ramps up for Washington. The Huskies host Minnesota in their Big Ten opener next week, followed by a road trip to No. 12 USC and a home matchup against No. 18 Iowa.

“Having a good game to have under your belt, especially before Big Ten play, is super important for us and our confidence,” Demond Williams Jr. said.

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