The recent AP Poll had Washington Huskies outside the top 25, with just four voters having them in their votes. Just one year removed from a National Championship Game appearance, there are several reasons why so many of the media are down on the Huskies this season. However, Washington could crash the top 25 at the end of the season.
Why are the media down on the Washington Huskies?
As we know, Washington has lost plenty of its starters to the NFL, with others following former head coach Kalen DeBoer to Alabama. The Huskies hired Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch, who brings several key players with him to Montlake. With all those changes, Washington will also be moving conferences, with them now in the uber-strong Big Ten Conference after all the realignment.
The Huskies’ schedule is tough now that they are in the Big Ten. They have home games against National Champions Michigan, USC, and UCLA. They also have three road games against current top-25 teams, Penn State, Iowa, and Oregon. Vegas has the Huskies with an over/under of 6.5, which, even if they manage to sneak past that total, wouldn’t be enough for a top-25 finish.
How can the Washington Huskies break the top 25?
Nine wins for the Washington Huskies would get them into the end-of-season top 25. Easier said than done, so how do they navigate this schedule to get themselves nine wins? The first three games should be in the win column, despite one being a rivalry game against Washington State at a neutral venue. Washington can win home games against Northwestern and UCLA, putting them on five wins.
Washington is also favored in both road games against Rutgers and Indiana. Win both those, and Washington will need two wins from the remaining five games. The problem is that the other five games are challenging. However, Michigan also has a coaching change, and plenty of starters have headed to the NFL. With all the changes and traveling to the Pacific Northwest, the Huskies could capitalize on that.
The other game Washington could take is at home to USC. Under head coach Lincoln Riley, they have always had preseason hype but failed to deliver. Star Caleb Williams is now in the NFL, selected No.1 in the draft. Miller Moss is the next guy up but doesn’t have the same excitement around him. It would not be surprising to see Washington win, putting them on nine wins.
Final Thoughts
Despite the media predicting the Washington Huskies will have a down year, there is a small opportunity to overachieve in 2024. Head coach Jedd Fisch has done an excellent job via the transfer portal, replacing departed players with experienced starters. Washington will be much better than people suggest, with nine wins being the ceiling for this team.
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