2011 Washington Football Predictions

The Washington Huskies didn?t exactly have the season they were hoping for with starting quarterback Jake Locker deciding to skip the NFL Draft for his senior season. Washington finished the regular season just 6-6, but did manage to go 5-4 in conference play. The Huskies suffered an embarrassing 56-21 loss to Nebraska in the third game of the season, but went on to beat the Cornhuskers 19-7 in the Holiday Bowl to finish the year off with a winning record at 7-6.? Looking ahead to the 2011 season the Huskies have 15 starters back, but lose Locker, who ended his career? with the second most passing yards (7.639) in school history. 2011 also marks the third year under head coach Steve Sarkisian, who should start to see his recruits make an impact on the field.

To get a better idea of where Washington might be headed this season, let?s take a look at who they will be sending to the field on both sides of the ball, plus I will give my prediction on where they will finish the season in the PAC-12.

Offense:

While Locker didn?t have the senior season that everyone was expecting, he still was a big reason why this team won seven games in 2010. Sophomore Keith Price appears to have the job locked up after really impressing the coaches in spring practice, but with no real starting experience it?s hard to really gauge what he will look like on the field this fall. If Price is as good as advertised, Washington should easily make it back to a bowl game in 2011.

The return of junior running back Chris Polk will make life a lot easier on Price. In 2010 Polk rushed for 1,415 yards and nine touchdowns, and comes into this season as one of the best backs in the conference. Washington also returns sophomore Jesse Callier, who was second on the team with 433 yards? as a true freshman.

Washington also has some great talent back at wide receiver, as senior Jermaine Kearse is considered to be one of the best at his position in the PAC-12. Kearse caught 63 passes for 1,005 yards and 12 touchdowns in his junior season, but will need Price to live up to expectations for him to match those numbers in 2011. Fellow senior Devin Aguilar will also be back in the starting mix after catching 28 passes for 352 yards and two scores last year. Freshman wide out Kasen Williams and freshman tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins are two of the Huskies top recruits, and should step in an play right away this season.

The weakest unit offensively will be up front on the offensive line. The Huskies have three starters back from 2010, but left tackle Senio Kelemete is the only senior expected to start. Junior Drew Schaefer returns at center, while sophomore Colin Porter is back at right guard. Redshirt freshman Ben Riva looks to have the edge at the open right tackle spot, while sophomore Erik Kohler takes over at left guard. Not a real strong unit when you compare them to the other offensive lines in the PAC-12, but I don?t expect to see much of a drop off from last year.

Defense:

With all four starters back from the second half of last season, the Huskies should have one of their best defensive fronts in years. Senior defensive tackle Alameda Ta?amu is one of the top tackles in the country, and should continue to make everyone around him better. Sophomore Sione Potoa will play alongside Ta?amu at the other tackle spot, while senior Everrette Thompson and junior Talia Crichton are back at the two defensive end spots. After spring practices Crichton might not end up being a starter come this fall, as the Huskies really like the pass rushing ability of redshirt freshman Josh Shirley, who transferred here from UCLA.

At linebacker the Huskies bring back talented senior middle linebacker Cort Dennison, but will have to find two new starters on the outside. Sophomores Garret Gilliland and Thomas Tutogi (JC transfer) are the leading candidates to step in and start heading into the fall. With the lack of experience on the outside this unit figures to be down a notch from 2010, but with all the talent up front the two sophomores should perform just fine.

Three more starters return in the secondary, and the Huskies should have one of the better corner duos in the conference with junior Desmond Trufant and senior Quinton Richardson. They also return junior free safety Nathan Fellner, who led the team with five interceptions in 2010. Sophomore Sean Parker will take over at strong safety, and the Huskies really like his potential to be a big time playmaker on this side of the ball.

PAC-12 Prediction: 5th PAC-12 North - I have Oregon State, California and Washington all lumped together in the middle of the North, as none of these teams have a shot at challenging Oregon and Stanford for the division title.? I think the loss of Locker is going to have a bigger impact than Washington would like to think, but if Price performs at a high level they could jump up to the No. 3 spot in the North.

Need some help beating the college football odds this season? Steve Janus and the rest of our experts will be bringing you their best college football picks all season long, so stop back and make sure you finish 2011 with a profit!

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