Mishael Powell is back. Dominique Hampton is back. Asa Turner is back. Jordan Perryman is back.
Which means, for Washington’s struggling secondary, injuries are no longer an acceptable excuse.
Of UW’s starting defensive backs, senior safety Alex Cook is the only player to appear in all eight games this season. Cornerbacks Powell (four games out) and Perryman (three games out), safety Turner (three games out) and “husky” nickel Hampton (one game out) have sustained overlapping injuries.
And with an obvious lack of continuity, UW’s pass defense has unsurprisingly struggled — ranking eighth in the Pac-12 in interceptions (six) and opponent completion percentage (64.3%), ninth in pass yards allowed per game (256.6), 10th in pass efficiency rating (155.21), 11th in opponent yards per pass attempt (8.2) and dead last in pass touchdowns allowed (20).
But the band was back together Friday against No. 24 Oregon State (6-2).
“It’s a bunch of veteran guys who have played, had snaps before, know what it looks like, know what it’s supposed to be like in the game,” said Cook, who leads the Huskies with 55 tackles. “I think the communication piece is probably the biggest part. It’s something we struggled with the fifth and sixth games (losses at UCLA and Arizona State). There were young guys out there kind of just hanging on for dear life. But it’s definitely nice to have those guys out there communicating, anticipating stuff, just knowing that trust factor is always there with the DBs.”
The return of Powell — a 6-foot-1, 204-pound sophomore — paid dividends in the 28-21 win at Cal that preceded the bye week, as the former walk-on contributed five physical tackles.
“I take big pride (in my physicality),” Powell said Tuesday. “That’s what separates people. When it comes to playing defensive back, people are known for covering as well. But if you can add that physical side, you can come up and fill gaps and read screens and things like that, it adds more to your résumé. It adds more to your ability. You can be used in a lot of different places.”
From a pass defense perspective, there were few available excuses Friday — in a rainy/windy Montlake mix that deterred opposing passers; against an offense that arrived ranking eighth in the Pac-12 in pass efficiency rating (141.89), 10th in passing touchdowns (12), 10th in completion percentage (61%), 11th in pass yards per game (230.1) and dead last in pass attempts per game (26.6) and interceptions (11).
That also should have made for a successful night on third down, where Washington ranks 127th out of 131 teams nationally in opponent conversion percentage (47.75%).
“I’m not sure why it’s been so hard (to get off the field on third down),” Powell said. “I would just say the next couple games you’re going to see when we get to third-and-long we’re going to be making a lot more plays.”
Halting Martinez’s momentum
Perhaps the primary challenge for UW’s defense Friday surrounded stopping freshman running back Damien Martinez (6-0, 216) — who entered the game with 517 rushing yards, 6.5 yards per carry and five touchdowns … including 289 rushing yards, 7.6 yards per rush and three scores in his last two games.
“The biggest thing is, he knows how to get north and south,” said UW co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach William Inge. “That’s always the challenge that you have when you’re on defense and you have a running back that will get you going in a direction and put his foot in the ground and get north and south. Because when his shoulders get going north and south he’s always falling forward for yards.
“That’s a really good trait that I’ve got a lot of respect for. What we have to do is make sure we have our shoulders under our pads so when we make contact, we can stop it right on contact.”
Extra point
- UW junior linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio tweeted prior to Friday’s game that he’d make his 2022 debut against Oregon State. The 6-1, 235-pounder and 2020 second-team All-Pac-12 performer last played in a 21-16 win against Arizona on Oct. 22, 2021, before suffering a season-ending injury. He entered Friday’s action having contributed 147 tackles, seven tackles for loss, four sacks and four forced fumbles in 26 career games.
- UW’s bye week was important both to rest established starters, and to get backups and young players invaluable reps — including quarterbacks Sam Huard and Dylan Morris. “(Offensive coordinator Ryan) Grubb’s done a really good job of trying to get Sam (Huard) reps in particular,” UW coach Kalen DeBoer said Monday. “I think you look at Sam and Dylan (Morris) and how you can get them more reps, they certainly got that (last week). We did a two-minute drill last week and those guys each got their chances in different move-the-ball sessions or two-minute. That’s really helpful and great learning experiences for them. Those would be two guys that benefit from a bye week.”
- Oregon State entered Friday with a five-game road losing streak in the series, dating back to the Beavers’ 34-13 win inside Husky Stadium on Oct. 18, 2008.