From the flight to the finish, nothing about Washington's trip to East Lansing was pretty. But it ended in a 21-14 win, and that's all you can ask of a team that arrived at their final about ten hours before kickoff. Thanks to some clutch offensive playmaking and a stout defensive performance, the Huskies were able to achieve bowl eligibility for the fifth straight season.
Here's everything to take away from the victory over Michigan State.
1. Timely Offensive Plays Lead to a Win
Throughout Jedd Fisch's tenure, the offensive play-caller has had to face the music regarding his team's slow starts. After scoring just six points in the first half last week against Penn State, Washington's offense put up 14 in the first two quarters, scoring on 50 percent of their first-half possessions.
Rather than sleepwalking through the opening periods, it was the second half that proved sluggish.
Outside of taking a knee to finish the game, the Huskies had five possessions after halftime. The first four all ended in a punt, but when it mattered most, quarterback Demond Williams Jr. and company delivered. With over 7 minutes left to play, UW conducted an 8-play, 78-yard drive that chewed up 4:48 off the clock, capping it off with a 1-yard touchdown run from veteran running back Jayden Limar. Sophomore wide receiver Chris Lawson contributed to the winning effort, hauling in three catches for 49 yards on the final drive in a 5-reception, 124-yard, 2-touchdown performance.
2. Defense Tightens Up Down the Stretch
The more quarterbacks Michigan State played, the less they produced. Pat Fitzgerald went through three signal callers on Saturday night, as starter Alessio Milivojevic went down in the second quarter and backup Cam Fancher exited the contest in the fourth quarter. That left third-stringer Kayd Coffman to try to play hero, as the true freshman gunslinger only has one career start under his belt, coming against No. 4 UCLA earlier in the season. Between the trio of pass-throwers, Sparty had a combined 252 yards passing, one touchdown, and one interception. Both the touchdown and pick came at the hands of Fancher.
In spite of giving up a pair of first-half scores, Ryan Walters' crew rose to the occasion, especially in the second half. Michigan State won the time-of-possession battle 32:41-27:19, meaning the defense was on the field for over half of the game. The reliable unit had every reason to use fatigue as an excuse, due to both on- and off-the-field factors. Instead, they saved their best for last.
MSU's drive chart in the second half consisted of the following: punt, interception, punt, missed field goal, punt, fumble. With their backs against the wall throughout the game, the defense delivered one of its best performances of the season, all things considered.
3. Special Teams, Special Plays, Special Player
There's a real argument to be made that punter Hunter Green has been Washington's best player this season. While that's probably not ideal, it's the truth, or at least close to it. Saturday night was no different, as the midseason Ray Guy Award watch list selection was brought out four times, averaging 45.5 yards per punt and pinning a hobbled Michigan State offense inside the 20-yard line twice.
As Fisch has mentioned multiple times, having a special teams weapon like Green drastically changes the offensive approach, especially when around midfield. Rather than feeling the pressure to go for it on fourth-and-short, the Huskies have had the ability to pin opponents deep inside their own territory. Factor in the effectiveness that the defense has had throughout a majority of the season, and the San Diego State transfer has had an even greater impact than one might think.
Sure, highlighting a punter isn't the biggest flex in the world, but it has contributed to helping the Dawgs find a way to win on the road, which is a step in the right direction for a team that was 2-7 in Big Ten away games coming into the season.
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Immediate reactions from Washington's narrow win over Michigan State
