Strike up the band and clear the streets, Washington will open 2013 in the renovated Husky Stadium against Boise State.
Or just bring the band to the game and deal with traffic. Be excited its an opener. Hey, its not Portland State, right?
In a move to pacify the masses and pump up the return to Husky Stadium, Washington announced on Wednesday the Sept. 7, 2013, opener against the mighty Broncos. The Huskies will hoof to Idaho on Sept. 19, 2015, to return the favor.
Historically, the Huskies at Husky Stadium have taken on great opponents, Huskies coach Steve Sarkisian said. And not just in the Pac-10 now going to be the Pac-12 but in the non-conference schedule, as well. Having the first game at Husky Stadium against Boise State is something special.
Almost. Boise States rise and Washingtons simultaneous decline lead to the claim this is big news. Its not. Its all right news.
The 2011 and 2012 schedule backoff became necessary for a rebuilding program. Tyrone Willinghams final parting gift was the ferocious scheduling of the last two years. This is not college basketball. The RPI is of little issue when the title game is not an option. Why frontload the non-conference schedule when you play in one of the best conferences in America?
Washington and Boise State have only played once. The Huskies beat the Broncos, 24-10, on Sept. 8, 2007, at Husky Stadium.
Thats also part of the underwhelming aspects of this announcement. Boise States recent visit dulls this news. A big-name, big-tradition treat was expected. A rare bird flying west.
Boise State is a powerful team. One to be respected, that is a dominating 38-2 the last three seasons. One of the best programs in the country.
For whatever reason, the news carries moderate weight, not the anticipated anvil.
Washingtons 2011 schedule:
Sept. 3: Eastern Washington
Sept. 10: Hawaii
Sept. 17: at Nebraska
Sept. 24: Cal
Oct. 1: at Utah
Oct. 8: BYE
Oct. 15: Colorado
Oct. 22: at Stanford
Oct. 29: Arizona
Nov. 5: Oregon
Nov. 12: at USC
Nov. 19: at Oregon State
Nov. 26: Washington State
2012 non-conference schedule:
Sept. 1: Portland State
Sept. 8: Nevada
Sept. 29: at LSU
2013 non-conference schedule:
Sept. 7: Boise State
Sept. 14: at Illinois
Sept. 21: TBD
Conference games to follow.
2014 non-conference schedule
Aug. 30: at Hawaii
Sept. 6: Eastern Washington
Sept. 13: Illinois
2015 non-conference schedule
Sept. 5: Sacramento State
Sept. 12: at Hawaii
Sept. 19: at Boise State
2017 non-conference schedule
Aug. 31: at Wisconsin
2016 non-conference schedule
TBD
2018 non-conference schedule
Sept. 18: Wisconsin
5 Comments
This doesn’t feel small at all to me, Todd. As you indicated in paragraph #2, at least we’re not getting PSU. Boise State has proven their worth for several years now — they’re clearly a big name team. They just haven’t been in the public conciousness all that long, and they have the misfortune of playing in a non-BCS conference. Like TCU, I’d imagine they’ll get that part fixed fairly soon.
It seems like a pretty big deal to me, I have a friend who is a big BSU fan and we are making plans to attend
Weak choise. BS are johnny come lately’s. They play one or two meaningful games a year, what average to decent team would n’t have a good record w their schedule. BS has done well w what they have. That game should be a cream of the crop opponent, take your pick Ohio St., LSU, Alabama, by the way we ned to win, maybe thats why it’s Boise.
While I recognize Boise State is a very good football team, I hoped AD Scott Woodward would utilize his ties to the SEC to bring in one of the nation’s elite teams: Alabama, Florida, Auburn, etc. Think of the buzz it would’ve created if we could’ve gotten Auburn to come up here, them coming off a National Champiuonship win! But I also recognize the logistics of scheduling an SEC team is tough because of the cost to travel across the country, time change, etc. In my opinion, the problem with playing BSU is it is really a no win situation for UW in terms of national perception; if we beat them, it’ll be viewed as we were supposed to beat them because we’re from the stronger conference. If BSU wins, we’ll be viewed as yet another Pac-10/12 team that BSU upset, discarded and beat. Don’t get me started on playing BSU in Boise in 2015. That is ridiculous for us to agree to play on that blue turf! Regardless, I’ll be there on 9.7.13 in our new digs and that is what is really important here- that the Husky Stadium renovation gets done. I am really looking forward to seeing how it all pans out. GO HUSKIES!!!
Always a crap shot scheduling teams 2 or 3 years down the road. A decade ago, the thought of a Miami or Florida State coming to town would have been met with great fanfare. Now, its no longer a marque match up. Heck, these days, I wonder if the fans of Boise State are excited about us coming to Idaho in 2015.