[Goose]

- returning 9 starters on offense (lost John Ross, who was undeniably a unique play-maker; and one of their o-linemen). They believe they have more than adequate replacements.

They could be wrong there. John Ross made the other guys look better by drawing the doubles and stretching the field. Without that, things may not be as easy. However, the replacements are certainly competent, if not world-beaters.

- returning Jake Browning who set the conference record with 45 TDs last year.
- returning Miles Gaskin, who is on pace to be the Huskies' all time leading ground gainer. His backup, Lavon Coleman, led the conference in YPC.
- returning two o-line who are projected to be 1st round picks in next year's draft.

This is the "guts" of it. Having these guys back makes them a real, real strong offense, no matter who the receivers are. They are right to be optimistic with this group of guys.

they lost some key pieces on defense, but
- returning several massive d-line, including Vita Vea who some say will be a top-10 pick in next year's draft
- returning all of their LBs
- lost 3 starters in the secondary (all drafted), but they think the next guys are just as good

And they may be. They may be "just as good". But, they are not experienced, and in the secondary, that really matters. This is where they could have a problem against Stanford. If our receivers can beat the DBs in a one-on-one situation, that could easily be fatal. And, WSU can also attack this unit. Fortunately for Washington, it is near the end of the year when these games will be played.

And they have Chris Petersen to guide them, another ultra-weak non-conference schedule, and no U$C. Stanford and WSU on the road are circled on the calendar.

Expectations are that anything short of a return trip to the playoffs will be disappointing. Frankly, it's hard to argue with that.

Hard, but not impossible. When John Ross was hurt, Washington wasn't the same team. In 2015, even though they had a great defense, had Gaskin, had Browning, they weren't nearly as good as last year. I expect that Ross being gone will make more of a difference than people in Seattle expect. They will be good, but just how good, we shall see.

[Goose]

- returning 9 starters on offense (lost John Ross, who was undeniably a unique play-maker; and one of their o-linemen). They believe they have more than adequate replacements.

They could be wrong there. John Ross made the other guys look better by drawing the doubles and stretching the field. Without that, things may not be as easy. However, the replacements are certainly competent, if not world-beaters.

- returning Jake Browning who set the conference record with 45 TDs last year.
- returning Miles Gaskin, who is on pace to be the Huskies' all time leading ground gainer. His backup, Lavon Coleman, led the conference in YPC.
- returning two o-line who are projected to be 1st round picks in next year's draft.

This is the "guts" of it. Having these guys back makes them a real, real strong offense, no matter who the receivers are. They are right to be optimistic with this group of guys.

they lost some key pieces on defense, but
- returning several massive d-line, including Vita Vea who some say will be a top-10 pick in next year's draft
- returning all of their LBs
- lost 3 starters in the secondary (all drafted), but they think the next guys are just as good

And they may be. They may be "just as good". But, they are not experienced, and in the secondary, that really matters. This is where they could have a problem against Stanford. If our receivers can beat the DBs in a one-on-one situation, that could easily be fatal. And, WSU can also attack this unit. Fortunately for Washington, it is near the end of the year when these games will be played.

And they have Chris Petersen to guide them, another ultra-weak non-conference schedule, and no U$C. Stanford and WSU on the road are circled on the calendar.

Expectations are that anything short of a return trip to the playoffs will be disappointing. Frankly, it's hard to argue with that.

Hard, but not impossible. When John Ross was hurt, Washington wasn't the same team. In 2015, even though they had a great defense, had Gaskin, had Browning, they weren't nearly as good as last year. I expect that Ross being gone will make more of a difference than people in Seattle expect. They will be good, but just how good, we shall see.