Dawgman Radio: A Washington Huskies athletics podcast

Washington players WR Ja'Lynn Polk, OL Roger Rosengarten, LB Alphonzo Tuputala, and DB Elijah Jackson spoke to the Seattle media ahead of Friday's departure to Houston and their Monday National Championship clash with Michigan.

Washington's Head Coach Kalen DeBoer, Quarterback Michael Penix Jr., and EDGE player Bralen Trice field questions Wednesday about UW playing Michigan in the National Championship.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds in New Orleans and Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund in Seattle - break down Washington's historic 37-31 Sugar Bowl win over Texas to get to the National Championship game in Houston a week from now.

How did it happen? Setting the scene, Kim talked about the atmosphere and also the night that UW quarterback Michael Penix Jr had, throwing for 430 yards.

We weren't able to have Kim on for the full podcast, so he gave us the flavor of the post-game from the mood in the locker room, to how healthy the team came out of the game, to the response from the players and coaches after coming up with the goods when it mattered most.

Here's a hint; job's not done.

After a quick break it was just Chris and Scott to bring things home, so they went quarter-by-quarter and talked about the highlights - including setting the tone early in both halves, taking their shots when they could, eventually winning the turnover battle, winning the time of possession handily, and also the coaching decisions and time management questions both had as the game reached its boiling point in the fourth quarter.

Before they signed off, the guys talked about what UW fans can expect next, as the team now sets their sights on a national championship and everything that entails. What is the schedule going to look like in the coming days?

And then Chris and Scott gave their final thoughts on the game and everything that sits right in front of the Huskies moving forward to Houston.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - got together early Monday morning to ring in the New Year and give our final thoughts on the Sugar Bowl matchup between No. 3 Texas and No. 2 Washington. The winner of tonight's game will be one of the teams playing in Houston in a week for the National Championship.

To start, Kim sets the scene from New Orleans, as he's done for almost the last week, and then we starting checking out the main matchups between Texas's offense and Washington's defense. And what do we expect to see from the coin toss? Will the winner defer or want the ball in the hopes they can score and set an early marker?

Then the talk turns to the other side - Washington's offense versus Texas's defense - and this is the matchup that has most of the country talking. How will UW's Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line stack up against the biggest and toughest defensive line they will have faced to date? Will Ryan Grubb be able to get Texas's massive front on the run in the hopes they'll wear down as the game goes on?

Will Washington be able to give Michael Penix Jr. enough time to throw downfield? Will Dillon Johnson be able to provide enough run game to provide the balance necessary to keep Texas guessing? And just how close does Texas match up with Oregon in terms of the Ducks being a proper measuring stick for what the Huskies will see tonight?

After a break, Kim asks Chris and Scott two questions each. First - what does UW need to do to win the game and then what has to happen in order for the Huskies to lose the game?

To finish the podcast, the guys give their final thoughts - including if the Huskies are able to defeat the Longhorns, who would be the team they want to see in Houston? The Michigan Wolverines or the Alabama Crimson Tide?

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds caught up this weekend with Yogi Roth from the Pac-12 Networks, and Yogi found his way to New Orleans for Monday's Sugar Bowl between the Texas Longhorns and Washington Huskies.

Roth is in a position to offer a very unique perspective into this game because he knows both programs well. His connection with Texas Head Coach Steve Sarkisian goes back nearly 20 years ago to their time together at USC.

He also knows Washington's program through his years and years covering all the Pac-12 programs as part of his role as an analyst and commentator for the Pac-12 Networks.

The conversation starts out strong, as Yogi laid out his argument for why Washington should have been the number-one seed, which meant they would have been playing out west at the Rose Bowl, regardless of who they would have been matched up with.

And then they transition to his time with Sark and not only the moment where he found out he got the Washington head coaching job (spoiler: Yogi was in the room when the call came through), to how he helped the Huskies get back on their feet.

Then Kim gets Yogi's take on current UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer, his initial impressions when he saw the Huskies in training camp over a year ago and what he feels has made DeBoer so successful so quickly.

Yogi also offers up a Washington player that he feels could end up being a difference-maker Monday night during the Sugar Bowl.

Kim also asked Yogi for his take on Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. What makes Mike special as a player? Yogi definitely has thoughts about this, as well as thoughts on a number of the other veteran Huskies that have created the foundation for the current UW program, as well as the identity that has been forged inside that locker room.

To finish out the conversation, Yogi offers up his thoughts on Steve Sarkisian's journey from Heritage Hall to Austin, including his time on Montlake and the associated trials and tribulations he went through during those years to come out the other side and eventually become the head coach of another major FBS program in Texas.

Washington OC/QB Coach Ryan Grubb, Receivers Coach JaMarcus Shephard, OL Coach Scott Huff, Co-DC/Safeties Coach Chuck Morrell, and Cornerbacks Coach Julius Brown spoke to the media about winning the Pac-12 Championship, the upcoming Sugar Bowl against Texas, and future decisions for certain players.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds in New Orleans and Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund in Seattle - break down the biggest media day of the run-up to Monday's Sugar Bowl clash between Texas and Washington - Saturday's Media Day at the Caesars Superdome.

This is the day where basically no one is off limits for either team, so it's a free-for-all for the media to find players and talk with them. And in the case of Texas, apparently they don't get to talk to any players or coaches until after games are played, so this was an even bigger day for them than it was for the UW media.

The Texas Longhorns were first to the Superdome, and Kim caught up with former UW assistants Pete Kwiatkowski and Jeff Choate. Kim has detected an air from the Texas side of things that resembles more than just belonging in this game; they are supposed to be here. But UW? Apparently the Huskies still hold outsider status, but it's an odd juxtaposition because UW has been given loads of credit for what they've done during the 2023 season yet the media as a whole outside the Pacific Northwest aren't believers. They still think the Huskies are bound to slip up, even though they hold a 20-game winning streak - tops in the country.

After a quick break to pay some bills, the talk turns to the coaches and players Kim talked to of the Purple and Gold persuasion, starting with JaMarcus Shephard and Scott Huff.

Then the guys talked about the players Kim was able to speak with, starting with the Chuck Norris of UW Football, Zach Durfee and then moving onto conversations with Austin Mack, Dylan Morris, Curley Reed, and others.

To finish off the podcast, Kim talked about his first impressions of being inside the Caesars Superdome and what the players might be dealing with on Monday in terms of the atmosphere, the lights, and more. And he also dropped an interesting nugget about New Year's Eve and how the Canal Street parade and following French Quarter proceedings could impact one team more than the other.

Washington QB Michael Penix Jr, QB Dylan Morris, QB Austin Mack, WR Jalen McMillan, OL Parker Brailsford, OL Nate Kalepo, EDGE Zach Durfee, and DB Curley Reed all talk ahead of Monday's National Championship Semifinal Game in New Orleans versus Texas.

Friday was Day Two of the media getting a chance to talk to players and coaches from both Texas and Washington ahead of Monday's Sugar Bowl National Championship Semifinal game in New Orleans, and Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds spoke with players and coaches from Texas's offense and UW's defense, including both defensive coordinators, William Inge and Chuck Morrell.

In the first part of Friday's podcast, Dawgman.com's Chris Fetters talks with Kim about the things he heard and saw from both media sessions, including the fact that the Texas media session felt a little more buttoned up and reserved than their offense was the day before. He also talked about comments made by Texas OC Kyle Flood about Washington's defense, as well as thoughts on a conversation he had with Texas WR Xavier Worthy.

After a quick break the tables are turned to the other side of the line and Kim's conversations with the Washington defensive coaches and players. Not only did Kim get a chance to catch up with Inge and Morrell, but he also talked to Bralen Trice, Alphonzo Tuputala, Edefuan Ulofoshio, Jabbar Muhammad, and Dominique Hampton.

There was also a bit of recruiting news to talk about, as Washington received an early Friday commitment from former California WR Jeremiah Hunter. Kim relays some information he received from sources inside the Cal program on what UW fans should expect from Hunter, but more importantly - what does his commitment mean for the scholarship numbers going forward in the receivers room?

Is Hunter's ride simply taking the one used by Rome Odunze now that Rome is turning pro? Or does it mean one of either Jalen McMillan or Ja'Lynn Polk are definitely gone?

And to finish up the podcast, Kim asks for Chris's advice about travel plans if the Huskies do win the Sugar Bowl. Should he come back to Seattle, only to turn right back around and travel to Houston? Or should he road trip from New Orleans to south Texas?

The guys from Dawgman.com - Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund in Seattle and Kim Grinolds down in New Orleans - go through Day 3 of Dawgman being in the Big Easy for the Sugar Bowl, but the reality is that it's really Day One of both Washington and Texas settling into their game preparations. And that includes their media responsibilities.

So today the Texas Longhorns practiced early and the Washington Huskies practiced later in the day. And some defensive coaches and players from Texas were made available to the media, as well as some of Washington's offensive players and coaches.

To start today's podcast out, Kim set the scene in terms of what it's like to meet with the players and coaches, what restrictions - if any - there might be in terms of who they can talk to and how long they can talk, and the general feeling he got from both teams.

First up, the Texas defensive players and coaches, with an emphasis on Longhorns Defensive Coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski, who manned the same post at Washington under former UW Head Coach Chris Petersen.

Then the talk turned to who was made available to the media on Washington's end, which was offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, as well as QB Michael Penix Jr, RB Dillon Johnson, WR Rome Odunze, Tight End Jack Westover, and LT Troy Fautanu.

After a quick break the guys talk about the improvement of the offensive line and the difficult task ahead of them dealing with Texas's imposing defensive line. There's also talk of how both teams are generating their own sense of disrespect - whether that's Texas and talk of avenging their 2022 Alamo Bowl loss at the hands of the Huskies, or whether it's UW and a general feeling of disrespect after being considered underdogs in most of their high-profile matchups this season.

The guys finish up the podcast with Kim's interactions so far with the Texas media, as well as the national media that has descended upon New Orleans ahead of the Sugar Bowl. There has certainly been two schools of thought so far; those who are tired of picking against Washington because they've been proven wrong at every turn, or those who have picked against Washington all season and continue to do so for this CFP semifinal game because they believe they'll be proven right about the Huskies at some point.

Which way do you feel?