I'm predicting a 41-13 Stanford win , but that probably doesn't surprise anyone. For the other side of this coin, here's Kirk DeGrasse from UW Dawg Pound with some great insight on the Huskies. Read on, good people. Read on...

Browning was knocked out of the Oregon game with a shoulder injury, and Coach Chris Petersen has said his availability will be a game-time decision. With Browning, the Huskies are already at a disadvantage; without him things will be even worse. If our brothers are still making bets, Mark should end up smoking at least a pack of cigarettes on Saturday night.

Washington's offense has struggled this year, no doubt because they're breaking in a true freshman quarterback. Jake Browning certainly has the tools to develop into a star in the not-too-distant future, but he's been predictably inconsistent. His QBR numbers tell the story well: 83.9 and 91.5 against cupcakes Sacramento State and Utah State, then 15.4, 29.3, and 64.4 in conference play against Cal, USC, and Oregon; the Huskies were 1-2 in those games.

Of course, Washington features the best defense on the Cardinal schedule, so it's unlikely Stanford will be able to maintain its season-long streak of scoring more points than the previous game, but they'll certainly score enough to come away with an easy win.

It feels like Saturday night's game will give us a similar result. The Stanford offense has not looked this good since the halcyon days of Andrew Luck. This conservative, archaic offense has ravaged the Pac-12 thus far, posting 41, 42, 55, and 56 points in consecutive games to jump out to a 4-0 conference record and make the case that Stanford is the team to beat, no matter what people might think about Utah.

In recent years, however, the tables have turned in this football rivalry. Aside from the debacle of 2012 when the Josh Nunes-led offense failed to score a touchdown in a 17-13 loss, the Cardinal has had its way with the Huskies, winning six of the past seven games, often in convincing fashion. There was a 41-o win in 2010, and a 65-21 thrashing the year after, a game which featured a school-record 446 yards rushing for the Cardinal.

Sadly for Erik, this was smack in the middle of one of the most one-sided stretches Stanford has endured against any opponent. Starting in 1983, the Huskies beat the Cardinal ten straight times. Stanford won in 1994, but UW bounced back to win six more in a row. Losing to his brother's alma mater 16 out of 17 games was hard on Erik, and it could've been this despair that pushed him towards those twin sirens of distraction, nicotine and Jack Daniels. Soon enough Erik was making bets in the only currency he understood -- cigarettes. Not satisfied with beating his brother Mark, he wanted to corrupt him, and he crafted wagers that would have Mark smoke one cigarette for each point in what Erik hoped would be a Cardinal victory.

When it came time for college in the fall of 1987, one brother -- we'll call him "Mark" -- stayed close to home and chose the University of Washington; the other -- "Erik" -- headed south to enroll at Stanford. These twins, as if they needed another reason to compete, had one more point of contention. One more battle to fight each fall.

Once upon a time there were two twins growing up in Seattle. They grew up as brothers often do and became terribly competitive, battling each other to the death on the basketball court in games of full-court one-on-one, pushing each other to their limits as distance runners, and developing a shared love of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. They weren't identical, but they were close enough that people noticed them.

GMC:

It can take a while for a new coach to transform a football program. How are things going with Chris Petersen so far? Do fans still expect him to build Washington back into a conference power?

DeGrasse:

Petersen appears to be on track to building this program in his style. This was a significant change in culture from the emotional, edgy, and flashy vibe cultivated under Sarkisian to the disciplined, "Built for life" approach of Petersen, and that certainly contributed to what was thought by many to be a disappointing season last year. Given the uneven nature of the roster he inherited, it seemed inevitable that this year was going to be a rebuilding year, but the amount of youth that has risen to the top of the depth charts has been a bit of a surprise. The upside is just that - the upside of these young players. It's not hard to imagine this program taking a big step forward next year and being in the position to legitimately compete for the conference title in 2017. His recruiting has matched -- and in a lot of ways exceeded -- that of Sarkisian. And yet there is still a small but vocal contingent of Husky fans that aren't satisfied -- after a decade-plus of mediocre or worse football, they are running out of patience.





GMC:

This question has no bearing on Saturday’s game, but I’ve always been curious about the Oregon-Washington rivalry. Can you explain the significance of that game? How does it compare to the Washington State rivalry?



I've seen both extremes of this rivalry. As someone who grew up on Husky football with Don James in charge, the game with Oregon wasn't really a rivalry game from our perspective -- we expected to win every year (and under DJ, we went 15-3 vs. Oregon). It wasn't until 1994 when Kenny Wheaton got a pick-6 off of Damon Huard to preserve a win and help propel the Ducks to their first Rose Bowl in decades that Oregon really started to get Washington's attention. Duck fans had carried a huge grudge against the Huskies since the late 1940s when Washington lobbied other PCC members to vote Cal to the Rose Bowl over the Ducks, and that hatred built as the Huskies dominated the series. When the Ducks finally rose in 1994 and built off that success under Mike Bellotti, Husky fans acknowledged the hate from the other side and started reciprocating, especially as the series on the field became fiercely competitive up through 2000. Now, with Washington going through historic lows and Oregon hitting historic highs and the losing streak reaching a preposterous 12 games, Husky fans are in the position Duck fans used to be and vice versa.



Comparing it to the WSU rivalry is tough. For some, WSU will always be the primary rival given how perfectly the schools represent the widely disparate east/west divide within the state. But I'd guess that more Husky fans have an unbridled hatred for Oregon than they do WSU, and ultimately it comes down to success -- we still regularly beat WSU, but our all-time lead over Oregon keeps shrinking every year. DeGrasse:Comparing it to the WSU rivalry is tough. For some, WSU will always be the primary rival given how perfectly the schools represent the widely disparate east/west divide within the state. But I'd guess that more Husky fans have an unbridled hatred for Oregon than they do WSU, and ultimately it comes down to success -- we still regularly beat WSU, but our all-time lead over Oregon keeps shrinking every year.

GMC:

I realize that we haven’t heard much about Jake Browning’s status for this weekend, but let’s pretend that he’s going to play. What does he bring to the offense? What weaknesses concern you?

DeGrasse:

What Husky fans see in Browning when they imagine what he'll become is a pure passer with great anticipation and touch, terrific accuracy, and very cerebral. What he is right now is a true freshman that has gone from a terrific high school program where he rarely faced any significant pass-rush to now adjusting to the speed of the college game and learning how to deal with defensive pressure. He's also processing a fairly complex offense and isn't always on the same page with his receivers, either throwing to a route the receiver isn't running or simply missing his target. While the results haven't been great much of the time, it's interesting to note he's posted a higher passer rating so far than Jared Goff did as a true frosh. As his offensive line continues to mature he should become more effective, but he does need more support from his receiving corps.





GMC:

Running back Myles Gaskin has been dominant over the past two games. Does he remind you of any previous Washington ball carriers?

DeGrasse:

Gaskin has similar patience and vision to Bishop Sankey. He doesn't have the phenomenal jump-cut or ability to minimize contact that Sankey had, but he may have more burst. He's not that big and isn't going to break a lot of tackles or move the pile, but he does a very good job of hiding behind his line and waiting for a crease to open and then exploiting it. Besides getting bigger and stronger, his areas of improvement are his pass-blocking and receiving skills.

GMC:

The defense is clearly the strength of this team. Who are the stars of this group, and how do you expect them to attack Stanford’s prolific offense?

DeGrasse:

There are a lot of players to watch on the Husky D. Up front, Elijah Qualls is playing at a high level. He's not as big as Danny Shelton, but he's quicker and does a great job of getting upfield penetration. On the edge both Travis Feeney and Cory Littleton are rangy, long guys with plus athleticism. Azeem Victor is a good-sized middle linebacker with very good range and violent intentions. Sidney Jones is showing signs he could be the next Husky corner drafted in the 1st round. Budda Baker plays much like Earl Thomas -- an undersized but very athletic, fast free safety. Washington has shown some flexibility in formation and alignment based off of opponents and down and distance situations -- I would expect they'll utilize a bigger front in run situations, going with Qualls and Greg Gaines in the interior flanked by Jojo Mathis and Feeney with Victor, Keishawn Bierria and Littleton behind them to counter power alignments from Stanford. When they're in passing situations I expect them to go with their typical nickel look with Qualls and Tani Tupou in the middle flanked by Feeney and Littleton with Victor and Bierria behind them with three corners and two safeties in coverage.

GMC:

Finally, how do you expect the game to go? What’s your final score?

DeGrasse:

Stanford will be a tall task for the Huskies, even if Browning is 100% healthy. They are playing at a very high level and Washington is starting to get dinged-up (besides Browning, others that have been out or slowed lately include Mathis, Feeney, and Dwayne Washington). Washington's defense gives them a chance to keep this a low-scoring slog where turnovers and special teams could swing things in favor of the underdawg Huskies, but I don't have enough confidence in our offense right now to keep up. Let's call it Stanford 30, UW 20.