So Thursday night football came and went to the University of Washington, but the massive traffic problems never materialized. Chalk it up to officials taking the time to get the word out and the Seattle Times scaring the bejeezus out of everyone, including UW Interim-President Phyllis Wise.
I think the blackout theme was a success. The uniforms looked pretty good and I could see them adding some black to the home uniforms in the near-future. I think it helps make the purple and gold pop. I am less of a fan of the black pants, but hey, I've seen worse.
One of the common themes emanating from the players on both squads was that UW played like they wanted it more. Good to hear if you are a Husky fan, but really tough to stomach if you are a Bruin. The seat is starting to get hot for Rick Neuheisel, though I think he will survive to coach at least five seasons in Westwood.
Jake didn't have a great game statistically but you could feel his leadership out there on the field. Is nine more days of relative rest enough time to heal that rib? Washington will need more production out of its passing game if they hope to beat California.
Semisi Tokolahi had his best game as a Husky. It is shame that they didn't redshirt him last season because he barely saw the field because of injury. I was watching the replay and was really impressed by the way the defensive line in general was using their hands to get off blocks.
Vic Aiyewa leads the conference in tackles for loss. Too bad he also didn't redshirt and equally bad he didn't get an earlier start at linebacker. He has markedly improved as the season has gone on. Vic has made the most of his time at UW and is an excellent student.
The Board of Regents approved the stadium plan and the project is now going forward even if they don't raise any more private money which is pretty doubtful. Steve Ballmer just sold $2B worth of Microsoft stock, so maybe he can provide some spare change.
So what did Steve Sarkisian whisper in Rick Neuheisel's ear after the game? I guess that is a question for Bob Rondeau to ask during the coaches show. Not sure if there is a lot of love there