Dawgman Radio: A Washington Huskies athletics podcast

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - break down the top storylines coming out of Washington's 39-28 win over Michigan State, as well as what to look for this coming weekend after talking to the players and coaches. The Huskies host the Stanford Cardinal Saturday night at Husky Stadium. The Cardinal are 1-1 and fresh off a bye week.

To start, the guys talked about what UW Head Coach Kalen DeBoer and the two coordinators - Ryan Grubb and William Inge - had to say this week, specifically about the lack of physicality and efficiency at the goal line in the run game.

Talk also turned to talk of DeBoer potentially being a candidate at Nebraska, a thought roundly shot down. And would some of his assistants be looking to become head coaches down the road, like Grubb?

After the coaching carousel discussion, the guys then talk about some of the conversations they had with the UW players, namely Julius Irvin and Michael Penix, Jr.. Could a Heisman Trophy winner this year come from outside the Big Ten or SEC?

Back to the coaches, the conversation went to discussions had this week, including Nick Sheridan and Scott Huff.

They finish off the chat with their final thoughts heading into the Stanford game, where the Huskies are trying to get to their first 4-0 start since 2017.

Nick Sheridan, Scott Huff, Chuck Morrell, and Julius Brown speak to the press about UW's 39-28 win over Michigan State, maintaining a 1-0 mindset, and the challenges they'll face versus Stanford this weekend.

Michael Penix, Jr., Wayne Taulapapa, Rome Odunze, Ja'Lynn Polk, Roger Rosengarten, Troy Fautanu, Cam Bright, and Julius Irvin spoke to the media ahead of Washington's game versus Stanford Saturday at Husky Stadium.

Co-Defensive Coordinator William Inge, Offensive Coordinator Ryan Grubb, and Head Coach Kalen DeBoer talked about what went right against the Spartans as the Huskies try and flush that game away quickly in preparation for conference play against Stanford this coming weekend.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - made their way through the throng of fans and students to press row and rehash a famous 39-28 win for the Washington Huskies, one 21 years in the making.

The year 2001 was the last year UW won a home game over a ranked Power-5 non-conference opponent, and it happened to be MSU's neighbors from Ann Arbor. But this year's Huskies made quick work of the Spartans, pushing out to a 36-14 third quarter lead before the visitors made a full-throated push to get back in the ballgame.

In the first part of the podcast, the guys talked about the environment and how Washington was able to get on top of the game quickly - mostly due to the play of quarterback Michael Penix, who finished with 397 yards and four touchdowns. They also talked about the historic game of receiver Ja'Lynn Polk, who caught six passes for 153 yards and three scores, the last one being a 53-yard bomb that looked to put the Spartans away before their furious comeback.

After a quick break, talk turned to the defensive side of the ball, and how the Huskies were able to make Michigan State go one-dimensional due to their need to score a lot of points quickly. Credit is due to MSU quarterback Payton Thorne, who passed for over 160 yards in the fourth quarter alone, but the Huskies were able to find sudden-change plays when they needed them most to keep the visitors at bay.

To finish the podcast, Scott provided a quick update on the recruits that were at the game, including some on official visits and a host of others that were visiting from out of state. There were a number of committed prospects at Husky Stadium, including Anthony James, Zachary Henning, Kahlee Tafai, Diesel Gordon, and others.

And then the three gave their final thoughts on what they saw, including what the win means in the short term, as well as how it might play longer term in recruiting and also with the culture piece that Kalen DeBoer and his staff are in the middle of rebuilding. Trust and belief were two words DeBoer used a lot in his post-game press conference.

Michael Penix, Jr., Wayne Taulapapa, Ja'Lynn Polk, Kamren Fabiculanan, and Alex Cook spoke to the media after Washington's 39-28 win over 9/11 Michigan State Saturday night at Husky Stadium.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - give their final thoughts ahead of Washington's next game, and this one is a big one. They are hosting the No. 9/11 Michigan State Spartans, with a start time of 4:30 pm Saturday afternoon.

There are a ton of storylines going into this game, including which streak is going to be broken; UW's 21-year winless streak when trying to beat a Power-5 non-conference opponent at home, or MSU's decades-long streak of losing games on the west coast.

Starting with UW's defense, how are the Huskies going to win the game when their secondary is so thin? Jordan Perryman is not expected to play, and others on that side of the ball may not be available. But Julius Irvin has steadied things at cornerback a little bit but that group will have their hands full against a big, physical group of Spartan receivers.

And have the Huskies held some things back specifically for this game? Did they treat the first two opponents - Kent State and Portland State - as 'preseason' opponents? Have they kept some things in their pocket, especially on defense, to try and get MSU off-balance on offense? A big key to the game for the Huskies is going to be how well they contain the Spartans on the ground, and will that allow them to pin their ears back and get after MSU QB Payton Thorne.

And is there a chance one of these teams 'shreds' the other via the pass? And what will the UW RBs do against a pesky Michigan State run defense?

After a quick break to pay some bills, the guys continue to talk about Washington's offense, namely Michael Penix, Jr. and what he might do against the Spartans. They talk about Penix's history against the Spartans when he played at Indiana, and also about the UW receivers that could play a huge role in helping the Huskies try and pull the upset.

To finish up, Scott gives a recruiting update, and Washington has targeted this game specifically in terms of bringing in a couple of top targets in for official visits, as well as a bunch of committed players and top local prospects for the 2024 and 2025 recruiting classes. UW won't roll out the recruiting red carpet often during the season, but this game demanded it.

Kim, Chris, and Scott then give their final thoughts, including a note for fans driving to the game; WATCH OUT FOR I-405. Both directions will be closed Saturday while the DOT excavates and replaces a damaged culvert near exit 9 in south Bellevue. Check traffic and leave early if you are affected!

The Dawgman.com interns - Luke Mounger, Jack McCauley, and Josh Wodka - get behind the microphone and break down how they see the Michigan State-Washington game going this weekend.

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds spoke this week with Stephen Brooks from Spartan Tailgate of the 247Sports Network, and Brooks was able to offer up a lot of insight into Washington's opponent this weekend, the Michigan State Spartans.

The first part of the show started with Stephen's take on Mel Tucker and how he's been received at MSU after leaving Colorado after only one season in the Pac-12. Then there was a quick take on what Seattle fans might expect with former MSU RB Kenneth Walker when he gets healthy.

Talk then turned to the offense and what UW fans should expect to see from the Spartans on that side of the ball, starting with their base scheme and some of the top skill players MSU will use, as well as Stephen's outlook when asked about the Spartans' OL. If it was third and three, would he be more comfortable seeing MSU run it, or throw it?

After a quick break, the talk turns to the other side of the ball, and Stephen breaks down MSU's defensive scheme, including the areas where they have tried to improve from last year, especially in the secondary and on the edges of their defensive line.

And when talking about special teams, does Michigan State have the kicker they would trust to kick a 52-yarder to win the game? It sounds like their punting game can stand up against anyone in the country.

To finish off the preview podcast, Stephen talks about MSU's history going up against Michael Penix and what he thinks is going to happen Saturday at Husky Stadium, as well as his keys to the final result.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - got together to hash out some of the main storylines and thoughts that were brought to the fore after talking to the Washington players and coaches earlier this week as preparations continued for UW's Saturday matchup with top-10 Michigan State.

Game time is 4:30 pm Saturday afternoon at Husky Stadium, and the game will be shown on ABC.

On Monday we spoke with Chuck Morrell, Ryan Grubb, and Kalen DeBoer, and the talk went more to do with general thoughts about the Huskies through the first two games, what they've done well, what they need to work on, and any surprises - like running more wildcat? And are they just showing that to put more on tape for their opponents to prepare for?

On Tuesday we spoke with Michael Penix, Jr., Richard Newton, Jack Westover, Jeremiah Martin, Sav'ell Smalls, Carson Bruener, Makell Esteen, and Jaden Green. We focused on those conversations during the next segment.

After a quick break, we talk about the conversations we had Wednesday with Lee Marks, JaMarcus Shephard, Inoke Breckterfield, Eric Schmidt, William Inge, and Julius Brown. A lot of good stuff to chew on here.

We finish with our final thoughts on what we learned from the players and coaches this week, and the conversation also included a quick recruiting update as the Huskies are expecting to host a few official visitors and a number of committed players.