What a day for a sea cruise. Where else can you pay $11.75 or whatever the car/driver price is now and sail the seas on a beautiful Washington State-owned ocean liner with a boat-load of football fans.
Actually, I stayed down on the car deck today, leaning on the rail and taking in the scenery on a breezy, sunny day. Saw not one, but two, Husky hats drop in the ocean from the top deck.
I’m at Husky Stadium now, perched high above the field in a press box that won’t be here this time next year. The press box, I’ve been told, will be located in the bowl part of the stadium when the stadium opens for the 2012 season. Games will be played at CenturyLink Stadium, home of the Seahawks, next year. This year’s Apple Cup game against Washington State, which is smoking Idaho State 30-0 as I type this, will also be at CenturyLink. It’s been moved to Nov. 26. Washington’s last game at the old venerable stadium will be Nov. 5 vs. Oregon.
Fans are going to be closer to the action when the much-needed renovation is complete.
Eastern, by the way, is coming back to Seattle to play the Huskies on Sept. 6, 2014.
Random thoughts and notes:
UW running back Chris Polk is suited up, but nobody knows if he’s going to play. He’s coming off arthroscopic surgery on his knee.
Do the EWU Eagles have a chance to upset Washington? Of course. And don’t count Eastern out if it gets off to a slow start. The Eagles overcame a 19-0 deficit in the second half to beat Delaware 20-19 in the Football Championship Series championship game a year ago.
South Kitsap head coach D.J. Sigurdson, a former Eastern linebacker, will be here today to pull for the Eagles and ex-SK standout Renard Williams, a preseason All-American at defensive tackle.
Listened to parts of the Husky Honks show on KJR coming over. Dick Baird, the former assistant who lives on our side of the pond now, said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Huskies didn’t borrow a page form the Stanford playbook and go with two tight ends at times. Washington’s not real deep at fullback with freshman Nick Holt listed as the backup behind untested junior Jonathan Amosa. Nick Holt’s dad, also Nick Holt, is the UW’s assistant head coach/defensive coordinator.
Hau’oli Jamora came to the forefront as a dominant defensive end a year ago. Now a sophomore, the Huskies expect big things from him. Of all the Pac-12’s defensive players, tackle Alameda Ta’amu is rated the best NFL prospect by some. Talia Crichton and Everette Thompson, Sione Potoa’e and Auburn freshman Danny Shelton are other touted d-linemen. Washington’s expected to rotate six players in and out.
Eastern’s 92-man roster includes 60 players form the state of Washington, and 41 are from the Puget Sound area. You think some of those guys grew up wanting to be Huskies?
Washington’s 0-12 season in 2008 seems like ancient history.
Vegas bookies don’t have a betting line on the game, but I’ve been told an offshore wagering site has the Dawgs listed as 18.5-point favorites.
