Husky Football Gets Trapped in Doghouse, Loses 24-7 at Michigan

CSS HuskiesWashington Husky football
Written By Jacob Parr

By Jake Parr, edited by Charles Hamaker

Ann Arbor, MI - The Washington Huskies offense, which has been one of the most dependable units in all of college football for the first half of this 2025 season, faltered this morning against the Michigan Wolverines. In the heart of “The Big House” in Ann Arbor, the Huskies failed to convert red zone and enemy territory field position into points. Star running back Jonah Coleman punched in the lone Washington touchdown but was otherwise held to just 50 yards on the ground. Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. threw for 209 yards and 23 completions, but three of those were caught by Michigan. Back-to-back interceptions in the third quarter proved to be a dagger in the heart of Washington, as they watched a very winnable game quickly slip out of reach.

Slow roll

As today’s game started at 9AM Pacific time, fans in Seattle watching at home while sipping their morning coffee may have been more prepared for football than either offense. The first half was a defensive showdown, with neither team able to muster a long, tone-setting drive. Michigan suffered a three-and-out on their first drive, while the Huskies could only pick up 17 more yards themselves. The Wolverines could tell that points were going to be at a premium today, and felt that they were in four-down territory on their second drive at the Washington 33. Luckily for the Huskies, freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood’s perfectly placed pass bounced off of junior wideout Semaj Morgan’s hands.

With that error, the Huskies took over with 67 yards to pick up. They got 48 of them on their first play when Williams Jr. uncorked a massive pass to Denzel Boston, who broke free on a double-move post route. But Washington was only able to get one more yard over the next three downs and sent out field goal kicker Grady Gross. Gross hasn’t got to kick many field goals this year, only seven through six games, as the Huskies have been so good at scoring touchdowns. Perhaps that scoring efficiency and lack of practice for the senior place kicker explains why his 36-yard kick missed right. It’s the second closest unblocked miss of his career, the closest being a 33-yard shank from all the way back in 2022.

Playing catchup

The Husky defense finally faltered at the end of the first quarter. Underwood carved them up with a series of dinks, dunks, and check downs before finally unloading and picking up 19 and 22 yards on back-to-back plays. Left reeling after giving up the touchdown, the defense didn’t have long to recover as Washington’s next drive only lasted 5 minutes before being ended by a punt. The Wolverine pass rush was daunting and both brought heavy pressure on Williams Jr. and kept Jonah Coleman boxed up on the ground. Washington head coach Jedd Fisch trying to give the Wolverines a new look by handing the ball off to sophomore Adam Mohammed, who picked up 6 yards. But a penalty and an incompletion brought up 2nd & 15, which quickly melted into 4th and 17, forcing that punt.

But Washington caught a break when Wolverine kicker Dominic Zvada, who had been 28-31 on 40+ yard field goals in his career entering this game missed a 48 yard try, handing the ball back to the Huskies at their own 30. Jonah Coleman was finally able to make an impact on their next drive, rushing for a first down conversion on 3rd and 1 and finished off the 70 yard drive in the end zone on a 1-yard punch in. But, surprisingly, he did not have the highlight reel play of the drive. That belongs to Freshman Raiden Vines-Bright, who made just three receptions today but picked up 31 yards on one of them, carving up the Michigan secondary sitting in zone coverage.

Letting ‘em have it

That 7-7 tie stood until deep in the third quarter. Both teams’ defensive units stood strong and forced a quartet of punts after halftime. With just 1:26 left in the 3rd, the Huskies took over at their own 18. Williams Jr. dropped back and hurled it towards Denzel Boston on a slant route. But Michigan sophomore linebacker Cole Sullivan read the play like a book and broke out towards Boston’s route before Williams Jr had even pulled his arm back. Sullivan hauled in the pick in stride and returned it 8 yards. Just one play later, Michigan running back Jordan Marshall punched in the 14-yard touchdown. While devastating, that interception alone would not have cost the Huskies the game. After all, another touchdown of their own would tie the game.

But just three plays into their next drive, Williams Jr. did it again. After a couple of nice medium passes to pick up 17 and 16 yards on back-to-back plays, he dropped back and looked to fire it over the middle. But he fired behind tight end Decker DeGraaf and straight into the arms of senior linebacker Jimmy Rolder. Williams’ second pick of the third quarter also led to a touchdown, putting the Huskies in a two-score hole. That hole got even deeper after a Washington four-and-out was made worse by a fumble which led to a Michigan field goal.

Finally, with just four minutes left in the game and needing a miracle, Williams Jr. dropped back and fired it deep into Michigan territory. The pass was good, but it bounced right through Boston’s hands and fell, frustratingly and literally, into the lap of Michigan’s Jacob Oden on the ground, who had fallen over on the play. The football gods had chosen a side. There would be no miracle comeback for the Huskies. Washington got into Michigan territory five times and scored only once. For the Wolverines, it may be their best defensive performance of the season so far.

Quick UW Football notes, from UW Athletics

  • Today’s announced attendance of 110,701 was the second largest crowd ever to watch a Husky football game. Here are the updated top-10 attendances in UW football history (seven of the top 10 are vs. Michigan, either in Ann Arbor or at the Rose Bowl):

    • Aug. 31, 2002 at Michigan (L, 31-29) 111,491

    • Oct. 18, 2025 at Michigan (L, 24-7) 110,701

    • Nov. 9, 2024 at Penn State (L, 35-6) 110,233

    • Sept. 11, 2021 at Michigan (L, 33-10) 108.345

    • Jan. 1, 1982 vs. Iowa (Rose Bowl; W, 28-0) 105,611

    • Jan. 2, 1978 vs. Michigan (Rose Bowl; W, 27-20) 105,312

    • Aug. 30, 2003 at Ohio State (L, 28-9) 105,078

    • Jan. 1, 1981 vs. Michigan (Rose Bowl; L, 23-6) 104,863

    • Jan. 1, 1992 vs. Michigan (Rose Bowl; W, 34-14) 103,566

    • Sept. 15, 1984 at Michigan (W, 20-11) 103,072

  • The Huskies’ last nine true road games (not counting the Sun Bowl, nor the neutral site game last season vs. Washington State) have all been announced sell outs, including today’s game at Michigan.

  • Washington entered the game with just three turnovers all season, but doubled that total with three today.

  • UW defensive linemen and twin brothers Armon and Jayvon Parker, fourth-year juniors from Detroit, played in the same UW football game for the first time ever.

    • Armon had not played at all prior to this season, due to injuries, and Jayvon had not played this season, also due to injury. Early in the third quarter, they were both on the field at the same time.

  • Husky running back Jonah Coleman entered the week as the nation’s leader in scoring (12.0 points per game), rushing touchdowns (11), and total touchdowns (12), and was second total points (72).

    • He added his 12th rushing and 13th total touchdown late in the second quarter on a one-yard run. He needs one more rushing touchdown to reach the top 10 in UW single-season history, and three more total touchdowns to make that top 10.

What’s next?

The Huskies will have something of a soft landing after this rough loss, as next week they play host to the 5-2 Illinois Fighting Illini. Illinois did pull off an upset against USC earlier this year, but were also thumped by Indiana and Ohio State. Readers will remember that the latter team was responsible for Washington’s first loss of the season in a deceptively close contest.

Kickoff time for next week’s showdown has not been announced yet, but as always it will be at the Greatest Setting. Likewise, the TV station for the game has not been announced, but if you’re feeling like warming up the old vacuum tubes, you’ll be able to listen to it on the radio at Sports Radio 93.3 KJR.

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Instagram: @CirclingSeattleSports Twitter: @CirclingSports Threads: @CirclingSeattleSports Tiktok: @CirclingSeattleSports Facebook: Circling Seattle Sports BlueSky: @circlingseasports.bsky.social 〰️

Follow our accounts dedicated strictly to University of Washington athletics! Instagram: @CSS_UWHuskies Twitter: @CSS_College

〰️

Follow our accounts dedicated strictly to University of Washington athletics! Instagram: @CSS_UWHuskies Twitter: @CSS_College 〰️

Jacob Parr
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