Road Trip Captain: Going in Opposite Directions

In this three-part series, A Blogger, Idiot takes you on the road as he follows the Washington Huskies football team on its ongoing quest to return to prominence.

PART 3: 11/17/2012 - Washington at Colorado

Ah, Colorado: a land where lifestyles are healthy, quality of life is high, and leggings totally qualify as pants.  Situated below the Flatirons¹, life on the campus of Colorado-Boulder seems to be pretty good, especially if you can push from your mind the tough transition the Buffalos have had to life in the Pac-12.  Since joining the conference in 2011, CU has a 3-14 record against its league foes.  This is not a good time to be a Buffs fan².  

Having lived through the debacle that was the 2008 Huskies team, I can empathize.  The road back to respectability for UW has encompassed four years of rebuilding, and after all that it brought them to Saturday's game as 20-point favorites.  Along with three friends (CU grads that I now work with in the Bay Area), I would be in attendance that morning.  

Saturday, November 17

I arrived in Denver in the small hours of the morning, and looked haggard.  I know that, because my friend Kelley was waiting for me and told me as much instead of using a more customary greeting.  

It's a short drive from Denver to Boulder, and we made that once the sun came up.  Our group assembled fully at a tailgate outside the engineering center, and from there we made our way into Folsom Field.  

It's a very scenic venue.  Students were on break (some people would contend that the team has been as well) so attendance was unspectacular, but it was obvious that the stadium could get loud under the right conditions.  Popular traditions at Folsom Field include running with Ralphie ("the mightiest mascot in college sports") and leaving the game after two and a half quarters to go eat and drink on The Hill.  

First quarter - It's a slow start for both teams.  Washington shows some ability to move the ball down the middle of the field, but stalls once it gets into scoring position.  By my count, the Huskies had three turnovers in or near the red zone during the first half.  CU, meanwhile, with injuries to contend with, was breaking in a new quarterback, and he had trouble getting into rhythm.  One bright spot for the Buffs was freshman running back Christian Powell, who displayed good size and tenacity.  The Husky defense keyed on him, though, limiting big plays and forcing many punts on the day.  Neither team scores in the first period. 

Second quarter - UW quarterback Keith Price throws a touchdown pass with a minute left in the half to make it 7-0.  Not much of note happening offensively for CU, but the game is close on the scoreboard.  From my vantage point the game is a mismatch athletically, though, in Washington's favor.    

Third quarter - A special teams miscue signals the start of Colorado's demise in this one.  Early in the period, Washington punts, but the ball hits a Buffalo player on its way down, ricochets toward the sideline, is saved by a hustling Husky, and ultimately recovered by the Dawgs.  A few plays later, armed with momentum and field position, UW scores on another passing play.  Shortly after that, the UW defense forces a turnover, and that one is also quickly followed by a passing score.  Fourteen points in the span of maybe three minutes, and it's 21-0.  Colorado would later piece together a promising drive but inexplicably elect to kick a field goal on fourth down (down 21-0, while showing less and less ability to play defense) instead of try to extend the drive and score a touchdown.  UW adds a field goal of its own, and it's 24-3 heading into the fourth. 

Fourth quarter - After UW scores on yet another passing play (Price would tie a school record with five passing TD's in the game), we elect to call it a day and head to The Hill ourselves.  38-3 would be the final, and now that I think of it, I haven't been to a more lopsided (in my team's favor) road game in the long, always- sometimes-popular run of Road Trip Captain.  As I remarked above, it's been a slow climb for UW from the nadir of 2008, but winning road games convincingly (or at all; this is the team's first two-game road winning streak in years) is a nice step to take.  Even if the team on the other end is heading in the other direction.  

Boulder institution (and Obama favorite, and Robert Redford place of work) The Sink

The 7-4 Huskies now have one game left to try and improve their postseason positioning.  Depending on the timing and location of UW's bowl game, this series may get one final installment in 2012.  

¹Apparently the Flatirons were "named by pioneer women after the flat, metal irons used to press their clothes."  

That's funny because it's sexist.    


²kirkd of UW Dawg Pound writes, "Poor Buffs fans - their team has been so bad this year that it's not enough to just beat them; no, teams are expected to win by several scores, and even a game that might normally be described as a "blowout" can be subject to grumbling by fans of the opponents if the win isn't humiliating enough for Colorado."