UW seals CFP bid with success in Pac-12 goodbye

Kyle Bonagura, ESPN Personnel WriterDec 2, 2023, 12:04 AM ET

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• Covers the Pac-12.
• Signed up with ESPN in 2014.
• Participated In Washington State University.LAS VEGAS– In the last Pac-12 football

  game before the conference realignment wrecking ball comes, Washington put the finishing touches on one of the best conference seasons in history.In beating No. 5 Oregon 34-31, the third-ranked Huskies ended up being the first Pac-12 group to reach 13-0 before bowl season, punching a ticket to the College Football Playoff in the process.”It is sad to see it occur and that be the last football game there,” Washington coach

  Kalen DeBoer said.” However I believe the other part is just comprehending how strong the conference was this year.”There were eight teams [from the Pac-12] at one point, I think, that were ranked in the Top 25, and we played the best ones and we played one of them twice. I don’t think there’s anybody else in the country that’s gone through what we went through. “Editor’s Picks 2 Associated The Huskies technically still need to wait for the choice committee to decide to include them in the four-team field Sunday, but that is just a procedure. They will play in either the Rose Bowl or the Sugar Bowl with their challenger to be determined.With Friday night’s game being played in Las Vegas, it was fitting that a person of the subplots coming in was the point spread.

  In spite of carrying a 19-game winning streak and having beaten Oregon earlier in the season, the Huskies can be found in as a 9.5-point underdog. It didn’t go undetected within the Washington locker space.”I believe it was 10-point underdog, which is absolutely insane, “Washington running back Dillon Johnson said.”We absolutely took that individual

  , and we knew entering into the game that we were going to win this game, and we’ve been preaching it all today. We came out and got the W.” The point spread looked even less warranted as Washington roared to a 20-3 first-half lead. But the Ducks didn’t go quietly. After a touchdown prior to the half cut the deficit to 20-10, Oregon added another goal drive to open the second half and took a 24-20 lead with 1:51 left in the third quarter.At that point, it might have been time to worry for the Huskies. They did not. Rather, they retook control with back-to-back long goal drives of 10 and 12 plays.” I think we simply always make use of our experiences,

  and I mean there is a deep, deep, deep belief today in our football group that when the minutes get hard we can really hone in and guys will just do their job, not get overwhelmed and go carry out, “DeBoer said.Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was named the game’s MVP after finishing 27 of 39 passes for 319 yards and a goal. Penix needed a big game to offer himself a possibility to win the Heisman Prize, and while it’s uncertain if Friday’s performance sufficed, he will likely make the trip to New York as a finalist.As the Huskies celebrated the triumph on stage after the game, Penix’s teammates made it clear where they based on the issue, chanting: “Heisman, Heisman, Heisman.””It is just a true blessing to be able to be because talk, but for me, constantly the main thing always for me was to win,

  and to be able to do that today on a stage like this, it is unbelievable,”Penix said.”I’m going to constantly prefer and relish this minute. I’m just super excited right now. I’m just truly living in this minute. Whatever takes place followed weekend, it is going to take place.”Johnson had a big game, rushing for 152 yards on 28 brings with a set of ratings. He was likewise credited with a goal pass that came on a brief shovel pass to Germie Bernard. Rome Odunze(8 catches, 102 yards)and Jalen McMillan(9 catches, 131 lawns )both opted for more than 100 getting yards.