Christine getting his chance under Husky Stadium lights

Gregory Christine stood on the sidelines last year - all of last year --- except for the final 13 snaps of a season-ending blowout against California, the only time in his life that the walk-on, backup offensive lineman stepped between the lines during a college football game. But those snaps will not define the junior's Washington football career, and by the time this season is over, people might not even remember that he was a walk-on to begin with. That's because Christine will start at left guard when the Huskies meet LSU in their season opener at Husky Stadium on Saturday, the most surprising depth chart shakeup of fall camp. And it's hard to say the guy doesn't deserve it. Christine, who hails from Camarillo, Calif., self-funded his first three years of school and was rewarded a scholarship on Thursday for his efforts this season. He impressed head coach Steve Sarkisian so much with his work ethic and toughness that he's beginning this season as a major part of the Huskies plans for a rebuilding O-line. "He communicates well up front," Sarkisian said. "He's physical. He's tough. He's got a blue collar mentality, which you love to have from an offensive lineman. I think he brings a lot of energy up front to our group that a lot of guys feed off of." Christine said he was a little surprised to see his name wind up at the top of the depth chart. He'd played a little bit with the No. 1 offensive line unit, but said that wasn't necessarily an indication that he would be a starter. A lot of guys have been getting different looks at a lot of spots. "I was really excited," said Christine, whose father will be in attendance on Saturday. "We were all rotating in camp, just trying to see who could play what position because they wanted to people to be able to play more than one position. So it definitely was unexpected." He attributes his sudden rise up the O-line depth chart to getting thinner, studying the play book and doing what is asked of him by coaches. Christine said it was abundantly obvious last season that the offensive line wasn't in good enough shape to be competitive, and that strength coach Ivan Lewis has done a good job in the weight room of making sure all of the Huskies linemen are in playing condition this season. "That was definitely obvious," Christine said. "We didn't play well, obviously. We definitely were not in the best shape to be playing at the best level we could, either. "I needed to slim down, get faster, get stronger, more powerful. We were really big last year, not as athletic as the offense is designed for. We had to slim down and become more athletic." That overweight, out-of-shape offensive line translated to a poor running game, poor pass protection and an 0-12 record last season. But the 6-foot-2, 286 pound Christine suits Sarkisian's vision of sleeker, more mobile linemen, and the new coaching staff took notice of Christine's work ethic. And the coaching change might have as much to do with him getting his shot now as anything. Much has been made of Sarkisian's 'clean slate' policy, which allowed players who were stuck in Tyrone Willingham's dog house to start fresh with the new coaching staff. That's helped Christine as much as anyone - not for disciplinary reasons, obviously, but because he was buried behind others on the depth chart and was greeted with an open mind by the new staff. Offensive line coach Dan Cozetto told Christine that he'd see playing time as long as he kept taking care of business in fall camp. Apparently, that's what he did. "Their biggest thing is just if you can be coachable," Christine said. "That, I think, is their main focus: Can you do what we want you to do instead of making up your own thing?" Reach sports editor Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.

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