UW Football Barks, Then Bites, Beat Cougars 59-24 In Apple Cup

CSS HuskiesWashington Husky football
Written By Jacob Parr

By Jake Parr, edited by Charles Hamaker

Pullman, WA - The Washington Husky football team exacted revenge against the Washington State Cougars for last year’s Apple Cup tonight, scoring the most points they ever have in the 117 year history of the rivalry. The Huskies, led by expectedly excellent performances from quarterback Demond Williams Jr. and running back Jonah Coleman, could simply do no wrong on offense, scoring on every one of their drives that was not ended by the clock. While the Cougars were initially able to go score-for-score with the Huskies, they fell off the pace in the second half thanks to an onside kick in the third quarter, a pick six, and a fumble. After such a comprehensive pummeling of their in-state rival, the Huskies will return home next week to take on the number one ranked team in the country, the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Back and Forth

Picking up where they left off from last week’s touchdown party, the Huskies opened the game with a quick touchdown drive. Wide Receiver Denzel Boston hauled in the pass from Williams Jr. for a 29 yard touchdown, after already picking up 25 yards earlier in the drive. Boston had an excellent game tonight, including a second touchdown reception in the fourth quarter. True senior quarterback Zevi Eckhaus made a good showing of the Cougars’ first drive, with Washington State picking up at least three yards on every snap. But that changed quickly when, facing a 3rd and 6 from his own 43, Eckhaus looked up from the snap to see a feral pack of Huskies rushing him. Huskies linebacker Zach Durfee swallowed Eckhaus up, but the quarterback managed to just barely get rid of the ball. But Washington sophomore Deven Bryant managed to tip the ball up into the air, and Huskies safety Alex Mclaughlin was able to catch and return it for 27 yards.

That interception turned out to be a huge boon for the Huskies, as Washington and Washington State would spend almost the entire rest of the game going score-for-score. Whenever the Huskies scored a touchdown, the Cougars would answer back with one. Washington was forced to settle for a field goal late in the second quarter, and then held Washington State to three points on their next drive. But thanks to the first quarter interception, the Huskies always had the lead. Rather than a back-and-forth game it was a game of catch up as the Huskies would stretch to a two-score lead and the Cougars would fight and scrape and scrounge to bring it back to within one score. But that’s as close as they would get.

Desperation leads to errors

The Cougars received the ball to start the second half and managed to march down all 75 yards for a touchdown. Now once again within seven points of the Huskies, first year Washington State head coach Jimmy Rogers opted to attempt something rarely seen: a third quarter onside kick. Perhaps realizing that the Huskies were likely to score no matter where their drive started, Rogers decided to roll the dice. The success rate of onside kicks is roughly 10%, and the Cougars were not part of the 10% tonight. With excellent field position at the Cougars’ 35 yard line, it was easy for the Huskies to just let their star running back Jonah Coleman punch in the touchdown.

Forced by desperation or not, the onside kick was a conscious decision made by Washington State. However that desperation would also lead to mental and physical errors which put the game out of reach. Once again down by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, Zevi Eckhaus dropped back to pass for a 4th down conversion around midfield. Mclaughlin must have cast some invisibility spell on himself, as for some reason, Eckhaus didn’t see him right behind his receiver. Eckhaus put slightly too much air under the ball, and the 6’2” Mclaughlin was able to climb the ladder and intercept Eckhaus for the second time. But this time there would be no Cougar to haul him down, and Mclaughlin put six points on the board himself and extended the Huskies lead to 45-24.

The Cougars tried to run a read option on their very next play from scrimmage. Huskies edge rusher Isaiah Ward was able to get around the offensive line, however, and was right in Eckhaus’ face when the quarterback decided to keep the ball. He got a hand on Eckhaus and slowed him down just enough for freshman cornerback Dylan Robinson to charge in and jab his right arm and poke the ball free from Eckhaus. Huskies lineman Bryce Butler fell on the ball and recovered it for Washington. That fumble would lead to yet another Washington touchdown just three plays later as Jonah Coleman hauled in the 34 yard pass from Demond Williams Jr. Now fully demoralized and facing a 52-24 deficit, the Cougars would punt both of their final two possessions.

Is it still too early to start talking about hardware?

If you’ve had the pleasure of watching a Washington Huskies football game this year there is one name on your mind above all the rest: Jonah Coleman. The senior running back has been the standout player for the Huskies this year, and currently leads all of college football in rushing touchdowns with nine, two more than second place. He’s averaging 6.8 yards per rush and 18.8 per reception. He’s already picked up 347 rushing yards on the season. If anyone has a chance to catch Bishop Sankey’s 2013 total of 1,870 (avg 5.7), it’s Coleman. But as eye-popping as the numbers themselves are, they don’t capture his evasiveness and physicality. He has an uncanny ability to shake off tacklers like snow off a sled dog. He’s already been awarded the Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week award for his performance against Colorado State during week one. If he keeps up his monster season, he may be in line for the yearly award in addition to the weekly one.

Quick Husky football notes

  • 32,952 was the announced attendance at Martin Stadium in Pullman, Washington for this Apple Cup game between the Washington State University Cougars and the University of Washington Huskies.

  • With the win today, Washington is now 77-34-6 all-time vs. Washington State, including at 44-18 record in “Apple Cup” games (1963 to present). UW is now 14-7 in games played at Martin Stadium, and 34-15- 1 in away games (Spokane and Pullman).

  • Today’s game was the second earliest, on the calendar, that a UW-Washington state game has been played, second only to last year’s game at Lumen Field, which was played on Sept. 13, 2024. Next year’s meeting is scheduled for Sept. 5, 2026, at Husky Stadium.

    • The Huskies hadn’t visited Martin Stadium since the 2022 season, as the 2023 game was played at Husky Stadium, and the 2024 Apple Cup was played at Lumen Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks. Taking the shortened 2020 season out of it, the last time UW went two straight seasons without a road game at WSU (at Pullman, or at Spokane), was during World War II, as the Cougars did not field a team in ’43 or ’44 (Washington was one of a short list of teams in the Northwest who fielded a team those years).

  • Washington’s 59 points were the most ever scored, by either team, in the Apple Cup, breaking the mark of 56, set in 1991 (UW won, 56-21). It was also the largest margin of victory (35) in an Apple Cup game since 2000, when the Huskies beat WSU, 51-3, in Pullman.

  • Washington has scored a touchdown on their first possession in all three games this year. Last week vs. UC Davis, the Huskies scored a touchdown on all nine of their possessions, meaning that, with touchdowns on their first three possessions today vs. WSU, the Huskies scored a TD on 12 straight. The Huskies got a field goal on their fourth possession today.

  • Washington scored either a touchdown or a field goal on all but one possession today, and that was the 25-second possession that ended the game (one kneel down). So, as the Huskies scored on four of the last five possessions vs. Colorado State (three TDs, one FG and an end-of-game possession), on all nine possessions (nine TDs) in game two vs. UC Davis, and then went 8-for-9 vs. WSU (seven TDs, one FG), the Huskies have scored on 21 of their last 23 possessions, with 19 touchdowns, two field goals and two end-of-game possessions.

  • After just five starts, UW sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr. has moved onto the UW career top-10 list for rushing yards with 502. With 88 today, he moved up to No. 8 all-time, passing Warren Moon and Tom Manke.

    • Williams was 16-for-19 passing, good for an .842 completion percentage, good for the ninth-best singlegame percentage in UW history. He’s 50-for-68 for the season and 132-for-173 for his career.

  • Husky RB Jonah Coleman entered the week as the national leader in scoring with 21 points per game. He scored 18 tonight (three touchdowns), giving him 10 touchdowns on the season, through just three games. He scored 10 all of last year. He also set a new career high with 104 receiving yards.

  • Grady Gross' 51-yard field goal was the longest of his UW career. His previous long was a 47-yarder vs. Arizona State in 2023. UW's last 50-plus yarder was a 50-yd. kick by Peyton Henry vs. UCLA in 2022. Gross’ kick also tied for the 10th longest in program history.

What’s Next?

The Huskies will face their biggest challenge of the young season next week as they play host to the Ohio State Buckeyes at the greatest setting. Both teams are undefeated, with the Buckeyes matching the Huskies’ 70 point domination in week two with one of their own. They also just beat their in-state rival, the Ohio Bobcats, to the tune of 37-9. The Washington offense, led by Coleman, Williams Jr., and Boston, will surely be up to the task. The defense is in question however as, like a poor cell phone network, coverage has been spotty this year. Will the Huskies be the team to unseat the reigning champions?

Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 in the afternoon next Saturday the 27th. The game will be broadcast on CBS on TV and will be available on radio at SportsRadio 950 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

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

Jacob Parr
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