The two programs don't have much to cheer about in recent years, but they both have a win over the Pac-10's most dominant program, Southern California.
Taking Down The Top Ranked Teams
The 24th-ranked Huskies, winless last season, arrived on the national scene after knocking off the Trojans, 16-13, last week.
Stanford made waves two years, beating Southern California in the Los Angeles Coliseum on a last second touchdown pass from Tacoma, WA native Tavita Pritchard to Los Angeles native Mark Bradford.
Bradford spent the NFL fall training camp with the San Francisco 49ers. Pritchard, who made his first college start that day against the Trojans, has been demoted to a backup spot behind redshirt freshman Andrew Luck.
Former Pro Quarterback a Big Fan of College Guy
Washington's Jake Locker, who threw for 237 yards and ran for a touchdown in last week's stunning win, is an accomplished signal caller in his third year as the team's starter. He's also a professional baseball player, having signed a contract with the Los Angeles Angels in August.
"I have always been a big fan of his," Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh said of Locker. "I'm a fan of his competitiveness, his poise and his ability. There's no way to shut him down; you just focus on trying to take something away."
Luck is in his fourth week as a starter and has answered a lot of Harbaugh's questions.
"Three weeks ago he never played in a game," Harbaugh said. "Was he durable? Could he hold up? Would be stand in there? He's done all that and there's still the feeling we can do a better job."
Locker had his season end prematurely last year, as he broke a thumb in a 35-28 loss to Stanford in Seattle. The Huskies never scored as many points in a game the rest of the season.
Gridiron Challenge for Cardinal
"They have done a marvelous job there," Harbaugh said. "They present so many challenges. They have a defensive end (senior Daniel Te'o-Nesheim) who is the best player we've seen this year defensively."
Stanford running back Toby Gerhart also missed a lot of last year's game against Washington as he sustained a concussion and was limited to two carries for 14 yards.
"It was the weirdest thing I have ever been involved with," Gerhart said. "I don't remember the play at all and I don't remember anything until a couple of moments before halftime. It was a trippy moment."
Washington line backer Donald Butler and a safety were involved in the play, a screen pass in which Gerhart tried to split the defenders, and paid the price.
Gerhart said he wasn't too surprised that Washington beat Southern California.
Experts Were Expert in Picking Upset
"Even last year we knew they were better than their record," Gerhart said. "There's a lot of parity in college football these days and you can't take anyone lightly. All week long I was watching ESPN's upset alert and they picked Washington over USC."
Gerhart, remembering what Stanford felt following its win over the Trojans, imagined Washington was feeling pretty good.
"Their confidence is sky high and they feel like they can beat anybody," Gerhart said. "Any doubt is gone when you win like that."
The Cardinal lost its next game and Washington is hoping to avoid a similar letdown.
"We're not trying to avoid a letdown," Washington's first-year coach Steve Sarkisian said in a teleconference. "We're trying to put together a game plan against a physical Stanford team. It was a great win and want to remember the feeling and work to get back to it."
Experienced Talent Versus Raw Talent
While Locker has the experience, Luck is still learning.
"We have a winning record and that's a good thing," Luck said. "But there's so much to improve upon in making the right throws and the right reads. I have to learn not to try and make the big play every play."
His impressions of Locker?
"He's a heck of a quarterback," said Luck. "He's fun to watch because he does incredible things. He puts points on the board and gains yards. We're looking forward to facing them."
The winner takes undisputed possession of first place in the Pac-10.
Rick Eymer - I have written for The San Mateo Times, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat and am currently working part-time as an assistant sports editor at ...
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