UW Football grapples with rough start amid high expectations, new challenges

SEATTLE — When you're talking about a program with the prestige and history of Washington Football, nobody's going to be happy with a 4-3 start to the season including a lopsided loss at Iowa and of course an Apple Cup defeat at the hands of WSU.

That's not okay with a rightfully proud fan base like the Dawgs.

Expectations are good to have, it's better to have the caliber of program that leads you to expect outstanding results always. But sometimes expectations and reality aren't on the same wavelength.

The reality is that those lofty expectations weren't on course for the kind of team UW was going to be this year.

Think about it, you come into an entirely new program essentially, with new players and coaches all over the place. And not just any players right? You're losing NFL first-round draft picks like Michael Penix, Jr., Rome Odunze, and Troy Fautanu, not to mention guys already making an impact in the NFL like Ja'Lynn Polk, Jalen McMillan, and Roger Rosengarten among others.

That doesn't even include the many stars who transferred out of the program once Kalen DeBoer left like Parker Brailsford and Germie Bernard who followed DeBoer to Alabama or Nate Kalepo who left his hometown team for Ole Miss. Local star Meesh Powell went to play for another top-10 team in Miami where he has three interceptions for the Hurricanes.

That's a lot to lose!

You're asking a new coaching staff to come in and fill a roster---which Jedd Fisch did admirably--- but nobody can replace that loaded 2023 team that made it to the national title game.

Not to mention, you're trying to lay that foundation with another gargantuan task: Joining the Big Ten.

The opponents are one thing, the travel is another.

It's a lot to ask a team to play what's essentially a 9 a.m. start Pacific time not to mention against really good teams like Iowa. A late-season East Coast road trip to Penn State sounds pretty daunting too. There are no layups on this conference schedule.

This isn't to make excuses, Fisch will be the first to tell you that. I'm saying for Huskies fans hang on for a bit, that day when the expectation and reality will align once again.

It may not be this season but the thought that the Dawgs would have to replace all but two starters on defense and replace an offense where more than half the starters from 2023 are active on NFL rosters (or a different Top-10 college team) this year just isn't terribly reasonable.

Now, it is reasonable to expect a good team, and we've seen glimpses of it with the impressive win over what was a top-10 team in Michigan. But you have to give this program a hot minute to regroup and be in a position to achieve the sort of things Husky fans thrive on.

Yes, DeBoer came in right away and was successful. To be fair, while he deserves all the credit in the world for bringing Penix, Jr. to Seattle, there was more talent still with this team when he took over. Not to mention, there was no move to a bear of a conference like the Big Ten.

2024 may be a bumpy ride, another 9:00 a.m. road game with a ranked team is next at Indiana for the Dawgs on the other side of the bye week.

There's plenty to work out but as the weeks go on you're looking for a team that can ride out the tough days and figure out ways to further acclimate to this wild new reality. Time will tell if they're able to do that, but six games into a new "everything" really is a tall task.

It may get much tougher before it gets better (or maybe not) but in a world that assumes immediate results, hang on just a while Husky fans.

The hottest fire makes the strongest steel and let's see how UW can emerge from a tough first six games in this brand new era.