Bye week coming at right time for UW

Oct 26, 2009, 12:00 AM

They're the last team in the Pac-10 to get their bye week, and for the Washington Huskies, it could be argued that it's coming at the best possible time. Fresh off their worst performance of the season, the Huskies get Oct. 31 off before traveling to UCLA Nov. 7 to continue a quest for a bowl game that just got a whole lot more difficult. "It's an opportunity for some guys, that maybe aren't playing as much as they want, to put themselves out there to get an opportunity to play more," UW head coach Steve Sarkisian said after his team's 43-19 loss to Oregon on Saturday. "And the positive is we are playing hard still. Our kids are trying hard. We've just got to get back to playing our brand of football." That's a brand of football that has been getting progressively less consistent. But the Huskies (3-5, 2-3 Pac-10) get two bye weeks mixed in between their final four games, giving them a chance to get a little fresher as they attempt to qualify for their first bowl game since 2002. "We need to get healthy and come back in the weight room and get strong and fresh," UW defensive coordinator Nick Holt said. "They are working hard and doing some really nice things out there." THAT THIRD QUARTER The biggest problem for the Huskies on Saturday? Forgetting to show up for the third quarter. It started with a three-and-out. Then the Ducks scored. Jake Locker threw an interception on UW's next possession. Then the Ducks scored. Chris Polk fumbled on UW's next drive. And again, the Ducks scored. Trailing 15-6 at halftime with a chance to trim the lead even further, the Huskies watched as UO rolled up 196 yards and operated its offense flawlessly, turning a competitive game into another yawner. "They got on a roll there in the third quarter, the fourth quarter, and that was the ball game right there," Holt said. "I thought the first half was really good defensively." He's right: The Huskies held Oregon to 60 yards rushing in the first half. But in just one example of how easy it was for the Ducks in that third quarter, quarterback Jeremiah Masoli ran for 63 yards by himself - after rushing for -21 in the first half due to a couple of big losses on sacks. Reach Sports Editor Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.

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