Links, notes and more to set up the Pac-12 championship showdown.
Live coverage as UW takes on Colorado »
UW GAME DAY
No. 4 Huskies (11-1, 8-1 Pac-12) vs. No. 9 Colorado (10-2, 8-1)
6 p.m. Friday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
TV: FOX (Channel 13). Radio: KOMO-AM 1000/FM-97.7
LATEST LINE: Huskies favored by 8.5 points.
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UW KEY PLAYERS:
QB Jake Browning: 40 TDs, 7 INT, 181.64 rating; 4 rushing TD
RB Myles Gaskin: 1,180 yards, 6.0 ypc, 10 TD
WR John Ross III: 72 catches, 1,071 yards, 16 TD
NT Greg Gaines: 28 tackles, 7.5 TFL
DB Budda Baker: 61 tackles, 9.0 TFL, 2.0 sacks, 2 INT
CU KEY PLAYERS:
QB Sefo Liufau: 11 TD, 3 INT, 140.76 rating; 7 rushing TD
RB Phillip Lindsay: 1,136 yards, 5.4 ypc, 15 TD
WR Devin Ross: 65 catches, 758 yards, 5 TD
CB Chidobe Awuzie: 54 tackles, 4.0 sacks, 1 INT, 9 PBU
S Tedric Thompson: 55 tackles, 7 INT
WIN … AND THEY’RE IN: The Huskies are No. 4 in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings this week. The CFP committee will release its final rankings and major-bowl pairings on Sunday morning. The Huskies aren’t a “lock” to get in, but they’re pretty darn close to it if they beat Colorado. “I feel pretty good. Pretty confident,” UW coach Chris Petersen said. “I’ve always said that. We take care of business, everywhere I’ve been, those people usually do the right thing. Our whole focus is on Colorado. We’ve got a big hurdle there, and if we can get over that hurdle, yeah.” A loss likely sends the Huskies to the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 2.
HEISMAN MOMENT: UW’s Jake Browning will likely need a strong showing against Colorado to earn an invitation to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony next week (finalists are announced Monday). Browning needs just three touchdown passes to tie the Pac-12 single-season record, and he’s done so with just 329 passes attempts. That means he is throwing a touchdown on 12.2 percent of his pass attempts, which according to ESPN puts him on track to break a 42 year-old FBS record.
Pac-12 Single-Season Touchdown Passes
1. Jared Goff, Cal, 2015 — 43 (on 529 passing attempts in 13 games)
2. Marcus Mariota, Oregon, 2014 — 42 (on 445 passing attempts in 15 games)
3. Jake Browning, UW, 2016 — 40 (on 329 passing attempts in 12 games)
T4. Cody Kessler, USC, 2014 — 39
T4. Matt Barkley, USC, 2011 — 39
TICKETS, ANYONE? The crowd noise at a sold-out Martin Stadium in Pullman a week ago helped cause several early false starts on UW’s offensive line. It figures to be a much different atmosphere for the Huskies at Levi’s Stadium, which is hosting the Pac-12 title game for the third year. On at least one flight from Seattle to San Jose on Thursday, Alaska Airlines gave away two free tickets to the Pac-12 title game to every passenger on board the crowded flight. The 49ers’ stadium has a capacity of 68,500. Last year, with Stanford and USC in the conference championship, the Pac-12 announced an attendance of 58,476. Two years ago, the announced figure was 45,618 for an Oregon-Arizona title bout.
INJURY UPDATE: Keishawn Bierria, UW’s standout weakside linebacker, is expected to return from a “minor” injury, Petersen said. Bierria missed the second half of the Apple Cup last week with the injury.
LINKS:
— Game preview: An unlikely meeting for UW, Colorado
— Pac-12 title game a matchup of elite defenses
— Three keys to the game for the Huskies
— Three questions for Colorado
— UW, Colorado have similar styles
— These teams don’t want their charmed seasons to end
— Podcast: Debating UW’s playoff possibilities in this week’s episode of the Husky Headlines podcast
— Nice profile of Budda Baker in this week’s Sports Illustrated
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