Pac-10 jinx in a concern

Sporting News, The, Dec 18, 1995 by Bob Clark

What could be better for Washington's first bowl game in three years than to find the opponent in the Sun Bowl is Iowa?

The Hawkeyes have struggled to be competitive with the Pac-10 in recent meetings particularly in the postseason. Dating back to Washington's 28-0 rout of Iowa in the 1982 Rose Bowl, Iowa is only 2-6 against the Pac-10, and the victories were over a pair of Arizona teams that didn't approach bowl quality.

Iowa's most recent tangle with the Huskies resulted in a 46-34 loss at the 1991 Rose Bowl, a game the Huskies led 33-7 at halftime. Since then, the Hawkeyes have been drubbed 37-3 by California in the '93 Alamo Bowl, and 40-18 by Oregon during the '94 regular season when both Pac-10 teams exposed Iowa's lack of defensive quickness.

Why figure this Sun Bowl will be any different? The Huskies, after all, were co-champions of the league Iowa can't beat, and Washington Coach Jim Lambright calls his team "the most exciting football team in the Pac-10."

The Hawkeyes have only beaten one team with a winning record, Michigan State. The Huskies, by contrast, beat a pair of bowl teams (UCLA and Stanford), tied Rose Bowl-bound USC and suffered two of their three defeats to top 10 teams (Notre Dame and Ohio State).

Iowa will bring its usual large contingent of fans to El Paso, but not much hope for victory.

KAY MATCHUP

Washington's huge offensive line against Iowa's defensive front. The Huskies are not only talented from tackle to tackle, but deep and able to rotate players in and out to keep fresh blockers protecting quarterback Damon Huard and open holes for tailback Rashaan Shehee.

If the Iowa defensive front can't make an early stand, then the Huskies could roll.

STRANGE, BUT TRUE

An onside kick? A fake punt? A reverse on a kickoff return?

Expect anything with Washington's kicking game. In the three seasons since Jim Lambright took over as coach, the Huskies have become gamblers with their special teams.

The best example might be on kickoffs, where the Huskies have attempted onside kicks 14 times in the past three seasons, and only one of those came at the end of a game with Washington trailing.

SKULL SESSION

The best way to keep Washington's offense under control is to keep it off the field - and Iowa might be able to do that with its ball-control style of offense.

Junior tailback Sedrick Shaw, Iowa's career rushing leader, had two games this season with more than 40 rushes and more than 200 yards. Anything approaching that would help the Iowa defense stay fresh.

The month between the final regular-season game add the Sun Bowl also should provide recovery time for Shaw, who took a beating with nearly 300 carries this season.

Says Coach Hayden Fry: "Shaw is the best running back we've ever had at Iowa."