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DawgmanRadio: Is Washington's offense finding it's groove? Oct 02, 2019

Show notes

The Huskies seem to be hitting their stride a little bit on the offensive side of the ball.

They exploded for 52 points against Hawaii at home and then put up 45 points on the road against BYU before coming back home to score 28 against a tough USC team.

The Huskies are getting a lot of productivity from their tailbacks including redshirt freshman Richard Newton and Salvon Ahmed has shown a lot of progress as well, as evidenced by his 89-yard touchdown run against the Trojans on Saturday, a play that featured his ability to make someone miss and then use his breakaway speed to run away from the secondary.

By the way, that run was the longest for a Husky since Napoleon Kaufman broke off a 91-yard jaunt against San Jose State back in 1994.

Offensive coordinator Bush Hamdan isn't ready to say the offense is where he wants it to be, but he is happy about the progress the team has made, especially quarterback Jacob Eason and tailback Salvon Ahmed and he hopes it continues..

Senior left tackle Trey Adams says he's feeling good about the way he's playing individually and how the offensive line has come together and what it was like doing 50 push-ups as his penance for getting a personal foul in the Trojan game. Fellow senior, center Nick Harris, talked about the transition from guard to center and helping out Matteo Mele when he came in for Harris against Eastern Washington.

Tight end Hunter Bryant ranks second on the Huskies with 23 receptions, but he's leading the team with 334 yards through the air and he talked about his progress as an every-down tight end while Cade Otton talked about watching Will Dissly succeed with the Seattle Seahawks.

Offensive line coach Scott Huff relayed his thoughts on the communication for the offensive line and where things can break down at times.

Washington's defensive personality is starting to show Oct 01, 2019

Show notes

The Washington Huskies are about to play their sixth game of the 2019 season, so we're getting a better sense week-by-week about the collective personality of the team, as well as the players that make them go.

In talking with Washington Defensive Line Coach Ikaika Malloe and junior defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike, we got to know a little bit more about the guys they call the 'twins' - Tuli Letuligasenoa and Sam Taimani. And after speaking with junior defensive back Elijah Molden, you see just how competitive their room is, how the challenge to win the 'best hands in the room' in practice crosses over to production the field during games.

We also talked with Washington Linebackers Coach and Special Teams Coordinator Bob Gregory to get a sense for how the veteran nature of his starters - Brandon Wellington and Kyler Manu - has helped them so far this year, as well as when the moment was for redshirt sophomore placekicker Peyton Henry when everything came together, and how true freshman Tim Horn has already helped the kicking group as a whole.

Huskies getting ready for a different challenge from Stanford Sep 30, 2019

Show notes

In the past, going week-to-week from USC to Stanford wouldn't be considered that big of a change. Both were usually athletic, physical teams that would try and run at you and play stout defense.

Things have changed a little bit. Now USC runs a wide-open Air Raid-style offense, while Stanford still tries to run it at you but will also utilize their tight ends a lot down the field. And Stanford's defense isn't quite as stingy as it has been in the past. They're currently 92nd in total defense and 127th in third-down percentage defense.

Definitely un-Stanford like numbers.

Washington Head Coach Chris Petersen was asked about the defensive drop-off for the Cardinal, whether or not they have to game plan differently for Davis Mills compared to K.J. Costello, the hassle that playing night games on the road presents, and also about the sideline interference penalty assessed to UW Saturday in their 28-14 win over USC and whether or not it was on him, which led into a humorous back-and-forth about his policy toward unsportsmanlike calls and especially when they're levied against linemen.

Players and coaches talk about 28-14 win over USC Sep 29, 2019

Show notes

It was a solid win for the Washington Huskies, as they defeated USC 28-14 in front of a paid house of nearly 67000 fans at Husky Stadium, and the players and coaches had plenty to say about it.

The Lineup

Head Coach Chris Petersen

Offensive Coordinator Bush Hamdan

Defensive Coordinator Jimmy Lake

Quarterback Jacob Eason

Tailback Salvon Ahmed

Defensive Back Elijah Molden

Defensive Back Myles Bryant

DawgmanRadio: USC post-game thoughts with Greg Lewis Sep 29, 2019

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, Scott Eklund, and George Johnson - were joined post-game by the man who was Tony Casticone's sidekick on radio Saturday, UW legendary running back Greg Lewis.

If there was ever a guy to talk to about big wins over USC in Husky Stadium, it's Lewis. He was UW's running back that rolled through the Trojans during the 1990 'All I Saw Was Purple' game. The Huskies won that day 31-0, and while today's game wasn't quite as dominant, Lewis is always happy to talk about a UW win over the Trojans in Seattle.

He talked about what went well, and we also got a chance to talk to him about some of the local high school talent that he's kept his eye on lately, including recent 2020 OLB 5-star commit Sav'ell Smalls.

After they let Greg take off, the rest of the Dawgman crew dissected the good, bad, and ugly from the game, and if you're of the Purple and Gold persuasion, the vast majority of it was good.

They talked about the way Washington was able to scheme out USC's talented receiver trio and force the Trojans to beat them on the ground with long drives. They also talked at length about the 14-point swing in the middle of the third quarter that really turned the momentum of the game fully in Washington's favor.

Lastly, they talked about the recruits spotted on the sidelines, as well as some of the former players that were there, including Dante Pettis and Jermaine Kearse, as well as Third Quarter Legend Alameda Ta'amu.

DawgmanRadio: Our in-depth USC preview Sep 28, 2019

Show notes

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - got up bright and early Saturday morning in lieu of a pregame show on SportsRadio KJR to record a preview podcast to get you geared up and informed ahead of the USC-Washington game at 12:30 pm.

They talked about USC's key missing players, including quarterback Kedon Slovis, safety Talanoa Hufanga, and Olaijah Griffin, as well as spotlight the two or three key matchups that should tell the tale between the Trojans and Huskies.

Obviously there's going to be a lot of attention paid to the first career start for USC quarterback Matt Fink. Having that first start at Husky Stadium in front of a raucous crowd against him won't help things. But Fink has plenty of playmakers around him, especially at receiver (Michael Pittman, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tyler Vaughns). But will USC try and slow things down and ground the Air Raid a little bit to find their football via the run game?

And when it comes to Washington's offensive line going up against USC's defensive line, UW senior center Nick Harris already referred to the matchup as a 'bloodbath'. The Huskies know they're going to have their hands full, but it takes two to tango, and UW's offensive line is feeling good about themselves and riding some positive momentum after an impressive 45-19 win at BYU.

DawgmanRadio: Sav'ell Smalls breaks down his commitment to UW Sep 27, 2019

Show notes

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds was at Kennedy Catholic High School Friday when Sav'ell Smalls was presented with his game jersey for the 2020 Under Armour All-American game, which will be held in Orlando, Florida on January 2nd, 2020.

But Smalls had some other news to share too. He verbally committed to Washington over his other five finalists: Oregon, Florida State, Washington State, Tennessee, and Alabama.

The 5-star outside linebacker came full-circle in his recruitment. Washington was the first to offer him nearly three years ago, but when he cut down his list in the spring Washington wasn't on it. But the Huskies gave him some space, let him work things out, answered questions, and by the fall they were once again in the front of his mind.

Smalls broke down the reasons for the timing of his decision, what the rationale was for picking the hometown school, whether or not he'll sign in December, his relationship with Kennedy quarterback Sam Huard (a 2021 UW verbal commit) and a whole lot more.

"All my life I rep Seattle," Smalls said, responding to a question from the media. "I've repped it to the extreme. I've always said it's the best city in the world. There's no lie in that, and I still believe that, and I'm going to be at the Greatest Setting in College Football. So I'm excited."

DawgmanRadio: A USC preview with USCFootball.com's Ryan Abraham Sep 27, 2019

Show notes

There's always some kind of drama lurking around Heritage Hall. This season it's all about dealing with some leadership changes with a new university president and trying to find a new athletic director, as well as the ever-shifting status of head coach Clay Helton. That's why we had to go straight to the source and talk to USCFootball.com's Ryan Abraham to get the facts behind what's going on with the Men of Troy.

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds talked to Abraham about the embattled Helton and whether or not he has staying power as USC's head man. Abraham called the 26-13 win over Washington in 2016 the best win of Helton's career.

They talked about USC's new offensive identity, trying to run the ball within the new Air Raid concepts brought in by Graham Harrell, whether or not quarterback Jack Sears will return to USC, who will back up Matt Fink if he gets hurt, will USC run the ball more to protect Fink on Saturday at Husky Stadium, and more.

Defensively, they talked about the USC front, including true freshman defensive lineman Drake Jackson, their linebackers, the loss of Talanoa Hufanga and Olaijah Griffin, shoring up perceived tackling issues, and more.

They also talked about the difference for the Trojans playing on the road, compared to in LA. According to Abraham, there's definitely a difference.

Petersen unconcerned with who USC starts at quarterback Sep 26, 2019

Show notes

Chris Petersen used the word 'calculus' this week to describe the 'big test' ahead of Washington on Saturday. The No. 21 USC Trojans are coming to town, and it doesn't matter of JT Daniels, Kedon Slovis, Matt Fink, or Brandon Perdue plays quarterback for USC...that's not something Petersen can control.

What Petersen is very concerned about is UW's response to whoever is throwing the passes for USC, as well as defending who is on the other end of those passes. And in that sense, he knows the Huskies are in for the biggest exam so far in a young-ish 2019 season.

"Test day is on Saturday, and this is a big test," Petersen told the media on Thursday. "This is a big exam, for sure. Hard one. Lot of calculus out there trying to solve. Fast and tight situations, so we'll see how we do."

He also talked a little bit more about the subtle (and not so subtle) differences between USC's Air Raid attack and that of Washington State, the atmosphere Husky Stadium could generate on Saturday, how some of his younger defensive backs have risen to the challenge of starting early in their careers, and more.

DawgmanRadio: USC presents a lot of unique challenges Sep 25, 2019

Show notes

With their game against USC this weekend, the Huskies have plenty of challenges to prepare for.

First off, which quarterback will be at the helm of the Trojans' offensive attack? Kedon Slovis missed all but two plays of USC's big win over Utah last week and there is still some concern he might not be ready to go by the time they take the field against the Huskies on Saturday.

Washington defensive coordinator Jimmy Lake isn't necessarily worried about who takes the snaps (Slovis or Matt Fink) since the concepts of the Trojan offense are the same no matter who winds up distributing the ball, but he is more concerned about his players staying focused on their technique, their rules and making plays when the opportunity presents itself.

Ikaika Malloe's charges have their work cut out for them this weekend with USC's running game and trying to get some quick pressure on the young quarterback for the Trojans. He likes what he has seen from some of his younger players, especially now that they've gotten reps on the field, and he feels like the depth that USC has at every position has allowed them to absorb some of the injuries they've suffered and not missed a step.

Jordan Paopao loves the progress that his players have made, especially Hunter Bryant and his efforts as far as blocking is concerned.

The question also had to be asked, what was it like when they talked to Devin Culp about missing his block on the fake field goal attempt and how it was a great learning experience for the young player.

There's been a bit of adversity for running backs coach Keith Bhonapha to deal with as Salvon Ahmed has been determined to be week-to-week due to an injury, but he had players like Sean McGrew and Richard Newton step in and handle things and handled it well.

Lastly, Bush Hamdan said the offense is making progress, but he never wants to say they are where they want to be because the moment you do that, you can lay an egg and now you're right back where you started.

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