Idaho vs. Washington Second Half Open-Thread

After winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half, Washington’s offense nonetheless took the field after Keishawn Bierria recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff. Jake Browning then hit Dante Pettis on a 21-yard touchdown pass on the first play from scrimmage, giving Washington a 7-0 lead just 16 seconds into the game.

Idaho’s second possession went much better than their first, including two first-down conversions (one of them on fourth down), but nonetheless ended in a punt. Washington took possession on their own 15-yard line, and coughed up the ball five plays into the drive after left tackle Trey Adams was beaten by linebacker Kaden Elliss, who forced Jake Browning to fumble by stripping him from the blind side. On the next play, Idaho quarterback Matt Linehan hit wide receiver Buck Cowan for a 24-yard gain, but the play was overturned after the officials ruled that Cowan stepped out of bounds before catching the ball. Linehan later appeared to come close to throwing a touchdown, but JoJo McIntosh forced the fumble at the goal line and Azeem Victor recovered to give Washington the ball once again.

With the Idaho end zone 99 yards away, the Husky offense struggled to get out of the shadow of their own goal posts, going three-and-out and punting from the 5-yard line. With the Idaho offense starting from their 45-yard line, the Vandals made virtually no progress and failed to convert a fourth-down attempt that gave Washington the ball at their own 48-yard line. However, the Huskies were unable to capitalize after a few positive plays, and Browning pooch-punted the ball to give Idaho possession at their own 9-yard line.

After gaining 31 yards on their ensuing series, the Vandals were stuffed on a fourth-and-two attempt that gave UW the ball at the Idaho 41-yard line. Five plays later, Browning again hit Pettis for a five-yard touchdown pass to increase Washington’s lead to 14-0.

After a quick Idaho three-and-out, the Huskies took possession at their own 15-yard line and gained 35 yards on a Chico McClatcher reception. A few plays later, McClatcher took a tunnel screen for another 30 yards and a score to increase Washington’s lead to 21-0.

On the next drive, Washington’s Death Row defense dropped the Vandals for a loss on two consecutive plays to force a punt that gave UW possession at the Idaho 45-yard line. Browning then engineered a six play, 45-yard drive that culminated with a four-yard Myles Gaskin touchdown run, his first of the season.

Idaho’s next first-and-10 quickly became fourth-and-23, and the Huskies took possession at their own 28-yard line with 2:02 remaining in the half. Browning executed his first live-fire two-minute drill of the season with precision, eventually connecting with John Ross on a nine-yard slant to give Washington a 35-0 lead with 1:00 left to play in the second quarter.

Idaho’s final drive of the half went nowhere fast, and the Vandals let the clock run out to head into the locker room with Washington leading 35-0.

Be sure to share your thoughts about Washington's performance so far today in the comments below.

Key First Half Stats

Jake Browning: 20/25, 237 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs

Myles Gaskin: 9 carries, 44 yards, 1 TD

Dante Pettis: 5 receptions, 58 yards, 2 TDs

Chico McClatcher: 3 receptions, 76 yards, 1 TD

John Ross: 6 receptions, 59 yards, 1 TD