Huskies pick 'em
How will UW do in 2019?
Jake Browning and Myles Gaskin are gone. Jimmy Lake's defense is reloaded again. After winning the quarterback battle, what can Jacob Eason do in his first season behind center for the Huskies? Make your predictions below and compare with our experts.
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
-
Your pick:Mike VorelPercy AllenLarry StoneMatt CalkinsJon WilnerPaul BarrettAlex IniguezSean Quinton
Huskies 2019
Staff predictions
Mike Vorel
Huskies beat writer
A lot has to happen for Washington to win 10 games. Jacob Eason needs to play well and stay healthy. The same goes for the veteran Husky offensive line. The team’s young defensive talent needs to prove that it can play – particularly the inside linebackers. UW needs to reestablish a pass rush after losing that last season. But this group is still high on potential, with a very forgiving schedule. I think Chris Petersen’s team will play its best football at the end of the season. It remains to be seen whether that results in another Pac-12 title game appearance and New Year’s bowl game.
Percy Allen
Huskies beat writer
I'm predicting a rocky 3-3 start for a UW team breaking in new quarterback Jacob Eason and revamping the Pac-12's top defense that lost nine starters. But this team should gel as the season progresses. Washington has a bye between the Oregon and Utah games, which concludes a perilous five-game stretch that will likely decided the Pac-12 North champion. Washington is 14-1 against OSU and Colorado since the start of the Pac-12 in 2011 and neither team should challenge the Huskies. And at this point, there's no good reason to believe UW's six-year winning streak versus WSU will end this year at Husky Stadium.
Larry Stone
Times sports columnist
The Huskies are fully capable of another run at a Pac-12 title and even a national playoff berth, but there is more of an air of uncertainty this year than in recent seasons. That’s what happens when you lose so many key players, including four-year starters Jake Browning and Myles Gaskin on offense, and a slew of defensive stalwarts. Chris Petersen’s program, however, is in “re-load” rather than “rebuild” mode; just how far they go is dependent on how the new cogs, particularly quarterback Jacob Eason, perform.
Matt Calkins
Times sports columnist
The Huskies have consistently proven that they can overcome an exodus of stars with young, hungry talent matching their predecessors' impact. The big variable for this year's team is whether quarterback Jacob Eason can deliver, but if he can, a third Pac-12 title in four years is well within reach.
Jon Wilner
Pac-12 Hotline columnist
Best-case scenario: Jacob Eason is comfortable with the playbook and his receivers from the outset, UW’s offense rolls through September and gives the revamped defense time to find its footing. Worst-case scenario: The offense and defense sputter early and UW exits the first month with multiple losses, Eason is erratic, the receivers flatline, the pass rush remains on vacation, the young defensive backs get beat a few times too many, losses mount within the division, UW is out of the race by Nov. 1 and Petersen is left to assess the state of the program after a significant backslide.
Paul Barrett
Sports Editor
The Jacob Eason era will start 5-0, but navigating a four-game stretch vs. Stanford, Arizona, Oregon and Utah is a big ask. QB K.J. Costello and the Stanford offense should win the matchup vs. the UW defense, and Utah running back Zack Moss and a strong Utes defense will more than offset UW’s home-field advantage. Utah also will avenge its loss in last season’s Pac-12 title game, winning this year’s matchup and preventing the Huskies from reaching another New Year’s Six bowl.
Alex Iniguez
Assistant Sports Editor
The Jake Browning and Myles Gaskin era at UW is over, but a fresh take can be a good thing. Quarterback Jacob Eason should have a stronger mindset as the clear-cut guy after an open competition. It’ll be fun to watch speedy running back Salvon Ahmed, who was exciting in small doses last year, get a larger chunk of carries this season. Mix those with a veteran offensive line and a favorable schedule and, barring injuries, the Huskies very well could get to 10 wins.
Sean Quinton
Assistant Sports Editor
How well can the Huskies play at home this season? That might be the question that defines success in 2019. If Husky Stadium provides the home cooking Washington needs to take down USC, Oregon, Utah and Washington State, the Huskies will roll to another Pac-12 title game and a legitimate shot at a College Football Playoff berth. But, with 13 starters gone from last season, a new QB and an unproven group of wide receivers, it's hard to see UW fully living up to lofty expectations.