Author Archives: Matthew

by | September 13, 2012 · 6:46 pm

Waiting for Deantre Lewis to Shine

Deantre Lewis is probably not a name familiar to most Pac-12 football fans, but it very easily could have been.  Lewis, an Arizona State Sun Devil, was a stray bullet away from being a star.

Lewis first started to make a name for himself in 2010 as a true freshman.  The running back burst on the scene as a major playmaker, the proverbial flash to Cameron Marshall’s thunder.  In his first game he scored three touchdowns and ended the year with over 500 rushing yards and another 370 yards receiving.  He looked like a potential star in the conference and was poised to form a dangerous duo with Marshall on a potentially great ASU team in 2011.

That offseason, Lewis made a short trip home to visit his sister and her new baby.  After commuting to a high school well out of his home neighborhood and earning his scholarship, Lewis thought he had avoided the trouble that surrounded him growing up.  That short two day trip was long enough for it to find him, though, as he was shot by a stray bullet.  He wasn’t involved in any kind of altercation and deserved no part of the blame.  It was just terrible luck.

Lewis escaped probable death when the bullet missed an artery by three centimeters, and somehow rejoined the football team with hopes of playing in 2011.  The bullet damaged his hamstring, however, and he never made it onto the field.  This year, he suffered through a few injuries in training camp and found himself behind not only Marshall but also true freshman D.J. Foster on the depth chart.

I’ve been a fan of the guy since his career started, beyond just feeling bad for him and hoping he could make it back.  I probably wouldn’t have known about him except for a Pac-12 fantasy league we Good Guys do.  I grabbed him early in 2010 and he helped me win the league, but my enduring memory of him came before ASU’s 2010 game at UW.  We have seats in the open end zone bleachers, which feel like they are almost in the end zone.  The Sun Devils were warming up right in front of us, and the running backs were getting ready to go through drills when some song came on.  All of the backs started dancing, which made Andrew and I crack up.  Most stopped after a couple of bars, but Deantre danced for a good couple of minutes, all by himself.  The guy could dance.  Every time we thought he would stop, he’d bust out a new move.  It was great, one of those meaningless moments that give you an idea of what type of person a player is and sets them apart as a little bit special.  I don’t have any recollection of that game except for Deantre Lewis dancing.  He seemed like a star.

This week news broke that he’s moving to the defensive side of the ball.  Evidently, he was really pounding people on special teams, and considering his spot on the depth chart, the coaches asked if he wanted to move to defense, in a hybrid DB/LB role.  He immediately said yes.  He went on to tell reporters that he still has a lot of anger and that he felt playing defense would help him let some of that anger out in a positive way.  I want to make clear that he didn’t sound like an angry guy.  It’s easy to stereotype a football player who grew up in a bad neighborhood and think he’s just an angry guy who only wants to hit people.  Deantre Lewis was shot, and it wasn’t in an altercation; it was while he was visiting his family after a life of trying to make good and stay out of trouble.  He has every right to be angry.

Position changes frequently amount to nothing, but I’m hoping this one turns Lewis into the star he always looked like.  We’re always in need of good stories, no matter which team they play for.  I’ll be cheering for Deantre Lewis every Saturday this fall, and if the Huskies get ASU at home in the next two years, I’m hoping Deantre still feels like dancing.

-Matthew

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by | September 8, 2012 · 11:00 am

UW vs. LSU Predictions

The Huskies face one of their toughest road games in years tomorrow, as they travel to Baton Rouge to take on the LSU Tigers.  The game is huge for a slew of reasons, especially because LSU is really good and the Huskies are reaching a point where they need to pull off a surprise.  We and everyone else have covered all of those reasons, so I’m going to talk about something else, like I usually do in these posts.

Before last season, after all of the conference expansion talk, I wrote about how I was sad about Texas not joining the Pac-whatever because it took away a chance to visit Austin.  Austin is high on my list of places to visit that I will probably never visit because I would probably only go for a few days and I don’t have the money to do that often, or at all.  Hope that made sense.  Just going to Austin for fun isn’t real likely, but if I could work a trip around a Husky game, that somehow makes it more possible.  I have no idea why that’s the case, but it makes sense in my head.

This is suffering from a serious lack of direction, so I’ll just cut to the chase and say that New Orleans is first or second on that list with Austin.  It’s a little more likely vacation destination, but a game at nearby LSU is an opportunity I shouldn’t have passed up.

So, for this travel themed UW-LSU prediction post, a purely travel based ranking of the Huskies’ 2012 road games.  The games themselves don’t matter, this is just a completely subjective look at which places I’d most like to visit:

1.  LSU:  It’s the food in large part, and the music.  I’m not a big partier, so I’ll skip Mardi Gras, but walking around listening to blues and jazz and eating gumbo sounds great.

2.  (Tie) Colorado: I’ve never been to Colorado except the Denver airport, and I’d love to see the mountains, plus Boulder and Denver sound like my kind of towns.  I would have put Cal ahead, because San Francisco is one of my favorite places, but I was already there this year and am always up for visiting somewhere new.

4. Arizona: The options really drop off here.  I’ll go with Arizona for Mexican food and sun in late October.  Arizona State would be a better option, because Tucson isn’t terribly appealing.

5. WSU: These last two are pretty much tied for last, but I’ll go with Pullman because I know a few people there, it’s a slightly shorter drive, and there aren’t any Ducks.

6. Oregon: No explanation is needed.

That’s kind of rough.  Not a lot of premier destinations. Only one out of conference game and no LA trip hurt.  In the future, how about Minnesota or Illinois in September, one of the Carolinas in October and any moderately good game in a big city.  What we really need is someone to provide The Good Guys with a travel budget!  If you have some extra cash or a road game you’d love to see on the schedule, put it in the comments.  For now, on to the predictions!

Andrew

I usually try to write something before I jump into my prediction but this week I can’t because Tigers are cool.  Sark brought a live one to practice.  How ridiculous is that!  It is so awesome.  Here we go!

As you pour through the numbers that set up this weeks matchup, there aren’t many that favor the Huskies.  Sure, there are a few spots to feel good about (I’ve got a post planned for tomorrow to show that), but the Dawgs have an uphill battle to climb.  LSU just doesn’t lose home games, especially non-conference home games.  The Tigers haven’t lost there since 2009 and that was against a number one ranked Florida team.  I look for Sark to pull out all the stops though.  He’s brought in a live tiger, he’s brought Shaq in to talk to his players (the basketball legend, not the true freshman), and it seems that this is more than just a normal game for him.  Even with that, I think the sheer power and speed of LSU will be too much.  I think we’ll be encouraged by the game but it won’t be the upset we’re dreaming of.

LSU – 31, Dawgs – 21

Matthew

There is no good reason to think the Huskies will win this game.  They are overmatched at every position except quarterback, tight end and maybe the secondary.  The mismatches on the lines appear huge.  For UW to win, they’ll have to gang up to somehow stop the run, hope for/force LSU mistakes in the passing game, and convert some huge plays on offense.  Upsets happen, and this wouldn’t be the hugest one in history or anything, but it’d be up there.  Coming into the year, a lot of people said a worthy goal was to stop being blown out against big favorites, and that’s extremely true here.  I think the Huskies hang around, but I doubt they’re ever in position to win in the second half.

LSU 31, UW 17

Dan

I can’t think of a tougher opponent than LSU, in Baton Rouge, in the evening.  This game is one that you pencil an L in months ago because creating a scenario where the Huskies pull off the upset is just not realistic.  UW can match LSU in the skill positions on offense, and that’s about it.  In the trenches, on the o-line and d-line, that’s where LSU has a huge advantage.  I’d expect LSU to have their way on offense because of this mis-match, and on defense, the Tigers will certainly have Keith Price running around all night, trying to squeeze the ball through tight windows.  Kasen, ASJ, and Price provide the small hope for the Huskies, and sometimes in college sports, a hot QB can win a game on his own.  I will certainly be hoping for this, but a common trend for lesser opponents facing LSU is a blowout loss, and that’s my prediction for tomorrow night.

LSU-44, UW-17

Joe

If we let history be our guide, this game should not be close.  24 point underdogs don’t win on the road, especially on the road in Death Valley, aka LSU.  The Huskies come off a good win over SDSU.  Not impressive, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but still, a win is a win.  The defense played well, essentially giving up no legit touchdowns and constantly dealing with the Aztecs going for it on 4th down.  The performance from the defense last week gives me hope the Huskies can keep this game close.  LSU will establish the run early and often, which I believe will lead to a worn out and battered defense.  Compound that with a UW offense that will struggle to run the ball, and this game has the recipe for being a slow death in the 4th quarter.  I really see no reason why the Huskies can win this game, outside of a complete flop by the Tigers.  Prediction:  UW offense struggles to run, leaving Price running for his life, while LSU ground and pounds to 200+ rushing yards, while UW covers.

LSU 31 – UW 17

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by | September 1, 2012 · 9:57 am

Gameday

Hello Dawg fans!

Gameday’s here.  There’s not much else to say.  We’ve covered pretty much everything this week.  The game basically comes down to this: if the Huskies play close to their abilities, they’ll win handily.  San Diego St. is a bit hard to figure.  They were solid last year with 8 wins, but they lost a lot and are expected to be no better than middle of the pack in the Mountain West this year.  It’s the first game though, so anything can happen.

If you’re looking for some reading, I’ll link everything we’ve written about the Dawgs this week.  Yes, this is a shameless excuse to plug our writing.

We have Andrew’s position previews: QB, RB, FB, TE, WR, OL, DL, LB.  Then he got lazy and didn’t do the DBs.  Come on!

Here are predictions for around the Pac-12, along with predictions for tonight’s game.  Also, I wrote quick previews of the conference and Huskies.

Finally, we have Andrew’s look at what could be this season, and a couple of different pieces, one from my sister about going to games and one from me about Deontae Cooper and other stuff.

Happy reading and go Dawgs!

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by | August 31, 2012 · 9:42 pm

UW vs. San Diego St. Predictions

And here we are.  In about 25 hours, the Huskies will have a game in the books.  It’s strange that, after waiting for months for the season to start, it will now be over in 3 short months.  By the end of September, the Dawgs will have played half of their home games.  Or slightly less than half if they host the Pac-12 championship.  Time keeps passing, but it will slow down for a few hours tomorrow night.

I just got home from dinner, and the drive took me along the east edge of Lake Sammamish, which is one of the better drives in the area, even in the dark.  Tonight, there was a clear sky and big moon lighting up some low hanging, patchy clouds.  It was exactly the kind of night I associate with autumn and football.  I grew up in Yakima, where clear skies are common, but in the fall as the temperatures drop, the sky takes on this misty quality that I can’t really describe.  The moon seems bigger, the stars brighter, the night clearer.

That kind of night will be forever linked in my mind with high school football games.  I never played, but I’m not sure I ever missed a game, either.  Our small stadium had bleachers sandwiched between a couple of small grassy berms where the students stood, on the left if you were in middle school, to the right for high schoolers.  There are not many places I remember more fondly than that stadium, huddled with friends, shivering in the cold.

I have no real reason for sharing all this, except tonight reminded me of those nights, which seems fitting for this weekend.  It’s not cold enough to really have the same effect, but I was glad that, a couple of miles up the plateau from where I drove, Skyline and Bothell were facing off in a bigtime season-opener.  Last night, Bellevue beat a Texas powerhouse in overtime in Memorial Stadium.  Tomorrow, the Huskies take on the Aztecs under the lights.  It’s the best time of year.

I hope you get to be at Century Link or your stadium of choice tomorrow.  I cannot tell you much joy it brings me to enter the stadium, waiting for kickoff.  If college games aren’t an option, check out your local high school.  There are few things better than cheering on a random high school team with some friends, or sharing a blanket with your lady (or man).  I’m rambling now, so I’ll stop and get on to the predictions.  Welcome to football season, everybody!

Joe

I have pretty high expectations coming into this season opener with SDSU. My expectation surround two areas: Keith Price and the defense.  Price is the unquestioned leader of the team, and a deep sleeper Heisman candidate.  Price has an opportunity early on to set the tone for year and show he is an elite level QB.  Look for Price to come out aggressive and throw deep a lot to give the fans some excitement right off the bat.  For obvious reasons, I’m excited to see the defense play.  After the nightmare in the Alamo Bowl, Sark fired the whole defensive staff and replaced them with young, energetic, but most importantly, talented defensive coaches.  Justin Wilcox is a clear upgrade at DC.  I’m excited to see how the unit gels over the first few weeks, and matching up against a solid Aztecs squad will be a great test.  Should be a fun Saturday night!

UW 31 – SDSU 20

Matt

I don’t really know what to expect from this game, except a win.  It could be close, it could be a blowout.  The offense could dominate, or it could struggle like in last year’s opener.  I’m hoping the offense can dominate without having to open the playbook too much and the defense can consistently tackle and make a few big plays.  I don’t think that’s too much to ask.  It doesn’t help that San Diego St. is hard to get a handle on, but I’m pretty sure the Dawgs are better.  I’m just hoping they play that way.

UW 38 – SDSU 17

Dan

No prediction from Dan yet.  I (Matthew) have decided that, since I’m the one compiling the predictions, I get to make fun of whoever doesn’t send one in.  So here goes.  Man, Dan is a smelly guy.  He is so smelly.  I think he forgets to shower and takes a bath in the drainage pond by his house instead.  Geez, that guy’s smelly.  I’m glad I’m not sitting by him right now.  Go take a shower!

Andrew

Season openers haven’t exactly been Steve Sarkisian’s strong point.  He’s 1-2 in them but the only good performance in these games came in his first season against LSU.  Last year, we had to sit through a nail biter as the Dawgs held on to beat Eastern Washington.  This year, they play a decent San Diego State team who will come to play.  I think the Huskies will be ready though.  Maybe I’m just being optimistic but I think as the second half wears on, the Dawgs will start to pull away and end up winning by 20.  Here are 3 reasons why:

1.  Keith Price is the best quarterback San Diego will face all year, and, even with 5 defensive backs on the field. the Aztecs just won’t have an answer to Price and ASJ.
2.  The Husky lines will be better than the Aztecs.  There haven’t been many times in the last decade where I think the Huskies will win the battle in the trenches but tomorrow is one of those days.  San Diego State is replacing quite a few guys up front and the Dawgs will rack up a surprising amount of rushing yards.
3.  The defense will be better.  Of course, it can’t be worse but I mean to say that the D will surprise some people.  They’ll have a few mistakes but they’ll make plays and they’ll look much faster.  Because they are.  Danny Shelton will have a good game and the secondary will cover up the linebackers mistakes.  At least for this week.

So, there you go.  Expect Shaq Thompson to wow you.  Expect to be frustrated at some points.  But, Keith Price and the Husky offense will be just too much for the Aztecs.

Huskies 45 – Aztecs 24

Go Dawgs!

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by | August 29, 2012 · 9:40 pm

A Down and Dirty Pac-12 Preview

The season kicks off tomorrow night for a third of the conference, so here’s a quick preview.

I’m just going to tell you two things: which player I would pick if I could have someone off each team for the Huskies, and how much they concern me.  I’ll rate them 1-10, 1 being a cakewalk win (actually kind of hard to do, cakewalks are tricky), 10 being an almost certain loss.  I’ll also go in the order I think they’ll finish.  So I guess I’m telling you three things.  It’s your lucky day.  My thoughts here aren’t worth much though, so you’re not that lucky.

South Division

1. USC

Player I want: Pretty much anyone off their roster would work.  Especially intriguing are their two 1,000 yard rushers, Curtis McNeal and Silas Redd, or how about All-American DBs Nickell Robey and T.J. McDonald.  Or LB Dion Bailey or one of their elite O-linemen.  That’s not even mentioning Heisman favorite QB Matt Barkley.  #1 USC is not hurting for talent.

For the Huskies though, it would come down to either of their uber-talented WRs, Marquise Lee or Robert Woods.  The Huskies could use a little depth here, and these might be the two best receivers in the conference and country.  Lee is incredible, but Woods is absolutely electric and a bit more versatile.  The only concern is an injury that hampered him in the offseason, but he seems fully recovered.  I’d take Woods and his potential 2,000 all-purpose yards in a heartbeat, as would every program in the nation.

Scare-meter: 9.  USC thumped UW last year, and they should be even better this year.  It’s not an impossible task, but there’s a reason they’re the preseason #1 in the country. Continue reading →

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by | August 29, 2012 · 10:49 am

2012 UW Huskies: It’s Time for Football

I feel like I should write some kind of preview for the Huskies, but I can’t think of any clever or particularly interesting way to do it.  There are tons of previews out there, most of them much better than anything I can offer.  Still, the best day of the year comes this Saturday, so here goes nothing.  I’m just going to give the things I’m concerned with for this year’s team and the things I’m excited about, with the (potentially) bad stuff first.  In no particular order…

Things That Make Me Nervous

  • The new defense.  This one’s complicated, because I think the defense will be much improved (see below).  The problem is that they have a long way to come.  One of the coaches noted that, while the team has looked great in practice, sometimes players get into games and forget what they’re supposed to be doing, especially with a new scheme.  The talent looks improved enough to be at least average, other than possibly the…
  • Linebackers.  The bane of last year’s defense (at least on the field) do look improved, but they have plenty of issues as well.  After receiving a bunch of new bodies from the safeties this spring, they proceeded to average an injured linebacker a day through much of fall camp.  Nate Fellner and Jamaal Kearse are still out for a couple of games, but everyone else is now back.  The enlarged John Timu at middle linebacker has been drawing accolades and should be the one constant throughout the year.  Princeton Fuimaono is probably the number two guy right now.  Former safety Travis Feeney is holding down Fellner’s spot, although Shaquille Thompson will take over a good share of the time in the nickel package.  There’s talent, speed and athleticism here.  Now it just needs to translate to tackles.
  • The offensive tackles.  File this under lack of experience as well.  Both tackles, Micah Hatchie and Ben Riva, left and right respectively, have seen little or no game action.  They have lots of talent and the practice reports are good, but only games will show if they’re actually ready.  I’m optimistic, but without Chris Polk, this line needs to be a strength.  Unless these two excel, it will likely be average at best.
  • The new home field.  Century Link is a great place to play, and it should still be plenty loud, but it’s tough having to adjust to a new routine and a new home.  You know those first couple of months after you move into a new house or apartment?  No matter how nice a place it is and how excited you are to be there, it takes a while to feel completely comfortable.  Hopefully, the adjustment for the Dawgs will be short and easy, with no effects on the field. Continue reading →

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by | August 11, 2012 · 10:17 am

Fighting the Impossible

Earlier this week as the Huskies started practice, I wrote about the potential comeback of Deontae Cooper.  The immensely talented and likeable UW running back was fighting to make his Husky debut after losing his first two seasons to knee injuries.  Unfortunately, that will be delayed at least another year, as Cooper tore his ACL again on Wednesday.  The only possible positive is that this time it was to his other knee, making a recovery slightly more likely, but that’s hardly anything to celebrate.

Cooper hasn’t said for sure either way, but the expectation is that he will try once again to return for next season.  No one would blame him in the least if he decided to retire, and he still might do so, but that doesn’t seem to be his desire at the moment.

Barring a comeback that would be improbable and miraculous, Cooper will never be a Husky great.  It’s extremely doubtful he ever even sees the field.  His lack of productivity has nothing to do with a lack of effort or desire, though.  He has knees of glass and a will of steel.  With every setback, he works and works to overcome it, always with a smile and positivity belying his terrible luck.  If his body would only oblige him, I have no doubt he would become the Husky legend that he should be.  Injuries are a cruelty of sport that separate winners from losers in a method that has little to do with skill.

***

Before the Olympics started, I read a short article about American sprinter Tyson Gay.  Gay is the fastest American 100 meter sprinter ever and the second fastest in the world with a time of 9.69 seconds.  It’s impossible to tell, but given the way sprint times have dropped so dramatically in the course of the modern Olympics, he might be the second fastest human to ever run the earth.

Unfortunately for Tyson Gay, he has shared the track with Usain Bolt, and that means that Gay has no world records and no Olympic gold medals.  Due to an injury in the 2008 Olympic trials, when he was at his best, he has no medals at all.  It is likely impossible for Tyson Gay to beat Usain Bolt when they are both running at their best, and yet he keeps training, keeps running, keeps chasing the one man in the history of the world who is faster than he is.

***

In most sports, performance keeps getting better and better over time.  Debates can carry infinitely on whether baseball or football players are better now than they were in the ‘30s, ‘50s, ‘70s, but records keep falling and overall athleticism keeps increasing.  In individual and time-based sports, average and record times sink lower and lower, jumps reach further, swimmers swim faster and gymnasts tumble in ever more difficult routines.

The high jump is one of the few sports where people aren’t getting better.  I’m far from an expert on the high jump, but from what I understand, records just aren’t falling like they used to or like they do in other events.  Perhaps the average high jumper is growing closer to elite, I’m not sure, but there’s not the unceasing push to new highs present everywhere else in the sporting world.  It seems the human body has reached the limits of its ability to jump.  People simply can’t jump any higher than they are now.  Eventually, there may be a breakthrough, perhaps in technique or genetics or training, that will push records higher.  For now, high jumpers continue to strain at a ceiling that all the desire in the world will not help them break through.

***

Three years ago, my wife and I moved into a new house at the same time as our new neighbor.  I didn’t get to know him well, but he was the kind of guy you wanted to know: young, fun-loving, big-hearted.  There was a steady stream of friends and family visiting every day, and he always had a smile and friendly greeting.  In the course of that year, he became a homeowner, husband and father.  And then, one night, he went to the emergency room for some stomach pain and came home with a diagnosis of colon cancer.

Over the next couple of years, he underwent every kind of treatment the doctors could find.  He continued to work full time.  He took care of his young son and wife.  There was no change in his love of life, even as his weight and energy dropped continuously and dramatically.  He would have fought the cancer forever if given the opportunity, but a couple of months ago, the fight was taken out of his hands.  He passed away, just days after his 26th birthday.

***

Every day, people run and fight against odds that seem, and in some cases, are, impossible.  That doesn’t stop them from running and fighting.

We understand winning as finishing first.  That’s fine, especially when we’re cheering at a sporting event.  Someone wins and someone loses.  That’s the nature of competition.  Its thrill pushes us higher, makes us strain for something greater, teaches us where we stand and how far we have to go.

Winning isn’t always that simple, though, especially off the field.  Sometimes the body is just not up to the task, no matter how hard we fight.  Everyone wants to win, but finishing first isn’t always the true definition of winning.  Often, winning is simply having the courage to stay in the fight, no matter the odds.

-Matthew

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by | August 6, 2012 · 9:12 pm

Here’s To Hoping

In the best sports news of the summer, college football is back!  The UW Huskies started their fall camp today and will play their first game in less than a month.  It’s hard to know what to expect from a Husky team with a bunch of new coaches and a still young roster.  They should be better, but maybe not enough to result in significantly more wins.  We’ll have a lot more coverage as the Mariners and summer winds down.

For tonight, let’s talk for a second about Deontae Cooper.  If you aren’t aware of the legend of Deontae, here’s the short version.  A running back in the 2010 recruiting class, Cooper took about two practices to whip Husky Nation into a frenzy.  Chris Polk had yet to become the unstoppable force he would be that year.  Running back was a bit of a question mark, as was the rest of the team, and Cooper looked like he might get a lot of snaps, if not challenge to be the starter.  He was extremely touted coming out of high school, with decent size, lightning speed and quickness, and excellent running instincts.  Hugh Millen is on record as saying he was the most talented running back to enter the UW since Corey Dillon.  Corey Dillon had 252 yards in one quarter, if you’ve forgotten.

Unfortunately, before the season ever started, Cooper blew out a knee.  It was disappointing, of course, but it happens.  He’d be back the next year, hopefully at full speed.  And then, before last season, he blew another knee.  When a running back has two knee surgeries, it’s hard to expect a lot from him in the future.  Even if he heals right, the explosiveness and speed might be gone.  It was entirely possible Deontae Cooper would never play a down in Husky Stadium.

Since the second surgery, most fans and media have stopped hoping for anything from Deontae.  It’s just too unlikely.  But still, there are whispers: “If Deontae could ever get healthy…”  and “Look out for Deontae.  If he can ever get on the field, he might run right past Callier and Sankey.”  The whispers grew louder as the season approached and he progressed in his recovery.  Several days ago, Steve Sarkisian said Deontae has been cleared for full participation.  Today, he took part in his first practice in what feels like years.  He’ll be limited for a while as they get him up to speed and used to playing football again, but the doctors have said he’s all clear, which is a bit of a miracle in itself.

It’s easy and appropriate to say that it’s great just to see him playing again, that any snaps he gets will be great, whether he has his old flash or not.  By all accounts, he is a great kid who has worked hard to come back when others might have given up.  Any reward would be deserved.  He’s a long way from actual game action, of course.  It’s possible that his knees don’t hold up and he is injured again or just becomes a bench player.  Everyone is hoping for the best, but anyone saying he’s a guarantee to be star or even a contributor is ignorant or naive.

This is the first day of camp, though, so let your imagination go for a minute.  Imagine that Deontae Cooper is back to the legendary skills he had coming out of high school.  Picture him slowly building up strength, and then, maybe in Eugene or Los Angeles, erupting for 200 yards and leading the Huskies to a huge upset.  It’s been a long time since the Huskies had lightning at tailback.  For everything Chris Polk did, that was not his game.  There’s something different about a running back flying around the tackle, bouncing outside, freezing a linebacker with a cut and outrunning the safety to the end zone.  Deontae Cooper can be that guy.

It’s likely that he won’t be that guy.  I hate to say it, but he faces an uphill battle until he actually plays half a season and sees how his knees hold up.  Sometimes these miracle comebacks actually happen, though.  Watch this one, because it has all the makings of a legendary story.

Here’s to hoping.

-Matthew

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