Dawgman Radio: A Washington Huskies athletics podcast

One having to be out for a few games...It was really hard. One of the worst things I've had to do is watch games from home. The guys stepped up and battled. It was great to be back on the field battling with them this past weekend.

On watching the games...I had the play-call sheet out and was watching the game live. It was surreal honestly.

On dealing with COVID...I was just fine. I was able to get back quickly and be with my team.

On being frustrated with the losses...We are doing our best not to get too high or too low. Just focusing on the tight end group, we needed to get back to basics. I still believe we have a really talented team and we have a lot of good players and we think we can play with anyone.

On Rome Odunze...It's great because he's my locker mate. He's really chill. You see his personality and how dynamic he is on the field. He's been playing big-time football for a long time and you can see his maturity and why he has success.

On understanding the ups and downs of football...It is hard because we don't lose this many games around here. My grandpa (Sid Otton) lost a lot of games early, but you keep grinding and eventually he was able to build a strong football program and he had success. My dad has taught me that even though things aren't going well, we keep working hard and good things will come. We still have a lot to play for and we do it for the alumni, former players, the fans, the coaches and ourselves.

On how he's feeling...I'm good. I'm fine. Gotta have more awareness on the sidelines. It was a lack of awareness on a punt. I was watching one of the aspects of a punt return that I am responsible for and instead of watching the play and seeing a guy get pushed out of bounds, I didn't see it and he ran into me. It was in the late first quarter I think.

On assessing the tight ends through six games...At times we haven't ran the ball as well as we wanted to, but overall, our guys are playing physical football so I've been pretty happy so far, but obviousl, still a ways to go. Proud of Devin Culp in the Cal game where he stepped in and had a really good night catching the ball.

On how much more Cade Otton adds when he's in there...You have a veteran who has produced consistently well in the run and pass game. His football IQ is high and he can work some of the things out on his own on the fly. He can just understand how to adapt to things when maybe a team didn't show us a look, he can figure out how to counter that look and that's something you only can do when you have the experience or you have played a lot.

On why he chose Washington...Definitely the culture. Coming from Bishop Gorman, they already had all the gear and treats, but it was a family atmosphere here and I always wanted to be a Dawg.

On his position growing up...I was always a quarterback in peewees and little league. When I went to high school, I actually played defensive end, I got after DJ Uiongelele in our game against St. John Bosco that year. Eventually I transitioned to wide receiver and it went smooth. I always felt I could get it done from wherever I was playing, so it wasn't that hard.

On the top receivers all being out early in the season...It was hard because we all wanted to helpt he team, but we had to keep working and getting healthy.

On handling the adversity of things so far...We always talk about adversity and how to handle it. Whether it's the pandemic or the way things have gone this season, we've always worked hard to overcome adversity.

On his first TD catch last week against UCLA... I have always felt the pressure to make plays. I wanted that one back on the other side of the field where I misplayed it, but I was able to come back and say "hi mom", so that was cool. I went over and pointed at her.

On handling the 2-4 start...It's frustrating. UW has a history of success and we want to amplify that and we have the athletes to do that. It's not ideal, but we still have six games and we're going to keep working hard and building on things and hopefully we'll come out with some wins.

On the wide receiver room...We're all pretty tight. It's about lifting each other up and about "being one". You want your brothers to succeed and they want you to succeed. Coach Junior Adams has done a good job of building that culture.

On being a Dawg...I'm really happy here. I love it here. I love being a Dawg. It's a test we're going through right now with how the season has started, but we're drawing closer together and we're working as hard as we can to come out of it.

On wearing a net over his head during practice...We have glasses too, but we're always looking for new tricks to enhance our game and make things harder so that when we take them off, it's easier.

On what the team needs to do to be more consistent...We need to take advantage of our opportunities. We've left some plays out on the field. We need to execute.

On lifting Dylan Morris up...He knows he needs to play better and we need to do a better job to go up and make plays to help him. He's a good leader, he is working his ass off to get better and we know he can play better. We know we all can play better.

Washington Head Coach Jimmy Lake spoke to the media Monday ahead of their Friday night game at Arizona. Because of the short practice week, this was the only time the media would get a chance to speak to Lake before the game. They asked him about what the tape showed after UW's 24-17 loss to UCLA, whether he's thinking about making a change at quarterback, trying to get the run game going on offense and stopping the run on defense, the return of Zion Tupuola-Fetui, a couple of questions about their next opponent, and more.

Washington Head Coach Jimmy Lake, running back Kamari Pleasant, and cornerback Trent McDuffie, all spoke with the media after UW's 24-17 loss to the UCLA Bruins Saturday night at Husky Stadium. Here's what they had to say after the game.

The guys from Dawgman.com - Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters, and Scott Eklund - picked through the myriad bits of Washington's latest loss, a 24-17 defeat to the UCLA Bruins Saturday night that was definitely worse than the scoreline suggested. Did that look like a team that had maximized their time away during the bye week?

That said, the Huskies had their moments to do something to alter the final scoreline but were not able to finish the deal. And finishing was a big part of the focus when talking to the Washington coaches and players post-game.

The guys talk about that, the key moments in the game - including the turnover battle and the fourth-and-1 play at Washington's goal line that looked less like a football play and more like a rugby scrum that lasted well beyond the normal amount of time for a play that was seemingly stopped short of paydirt.

But make no mistake; that play didn't cost Washington the game. If the Bruins didn't score on that play, they would have scored on others, because they were rolling by the end of the game. Washington's defense was on fumes and couldn't get off the field.

The guys also tackle some of the thornier subjects coming out of the game. Jimmy Lake was asked if he would think about replacing quarterback Dylan Morris, and he said no. He was also asked if he has the coaches in place to turn things around, and he said yes. The Dawgman guys talk about both of those things in-depth. Are there easy answers to those questions? Perhaps, but there are definitely no easy fixes for a Washington team searching high and low for something positive to hold on to after another close loss. 

One positive was the return of Zion Tupuola-Fetui, who immediately made his presence felt and visibly changed how UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson tried to attack UW's defense. But a handful of snaps for a returning outside linebacker was nowhere close to what was required when looking at a defense that stuck doggedly to their nickel base scheme, often to their detriment when the game was on the line.

As Washington prepares to take on UCLA later today, there are a lot of questions as the Huskies prepare for the final seven weeks of the football season. Head coach Jimmy Lake and his staff have said this is the most healthy their team has been all season. What impact will that have on the game?

Can the Huskies, who are allowing almost 150 yards per game on the ground, stop a very good ground game for the Bruins that features a one-two punch in Brittan Brown and Zach Charbonnet? What impact will Washington's defensive line, led by Sam Taimani, Faatui Tuitele and Tuli Letuligasenoa, have on this game?

Is Dylan Morris ready to play his best game of the season so far? If he doesn't, it could spell trouble for the Husky offense as UCLA's defensive line is allowing less than 93 yards per game on the ground.

The guys from Dawgman -- Kim Grinolds, Chris Fetters and Scott Eklund -- sit down and discuss each one of these topics and touch on recruiting as well as what happened earlier this week at the Pac 12 basketball media day.

The Dawgman.com interns - Jack McCauley and Intern Emeritus Luke Mounger - break down what they've seen from the UCLA Bruins so far this season and how they match up against the Washington Huskies going into Saturday night's game at Husky Stadium.

What to make of the Bruins? They've certainly been a bit of a contradiction in 2021. They had an early win over LSU that was a huge feather in the cap for the Pac-12 Conference. But then they lost to Fresno State and former UW quarterback Jake Haener. They bounced back with a strong win at Stanford, but then lost by nearly 20 at home to Arizona State.

Jack and Luke break the UCLA offense down, starting with veteran quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson. They also have one of the top run games in the conference, led by Zach Charbonnet and Brittain Brown. And when DTR doesn't hand it off or tuck it and run it himself, he's got a couple of capable pass-catchers in Kyle Philips and Greg Dulcich.

How will the Huskies try and slow down UCLA's potent offense? How will they contain DTR? Jack and Luke give their thoughts on what UW may do to force the issue, including some breaking news on the potential return of a UW defender?

On the defensive side of the ball, the guys talk about some of the UCLA names to watch, like former UW commit Ale Kaho and Bo Calvert, brother of former UW linebacker Josh Calvert, who is now at Utah, as well as DB Qwuantrezz Knight. Luke throws down the stats to see where the Huskies might be able to attack a Bruins defense that has given up yards and points on a fairly consistent basis in 2021.

And lastly, Jack and Luke throw out their confidence levels for a Washington win. 

Jimmy Lake met with the media one last time before the UCLA game on Saturday evening and reiterated his belief that the bye week came at the right time to get his team healed up. And that includes his coaches. Derham Cato was injured on the sidelines two weeks ago at Oregon State and is still a little dinged up but will be coaching this weekend. Same with UW Defensive Coordinator Bob Gregory, who has been dealing with an unspecified, non-COVID-related illness.

But he stopped short of confirming whether or not Zion Tupuola-Fetui would be available against the Bruins.

Dawgman.com's Kim Grinolds was in San Francisco Wednesday to talk to Mike Hopkins, Jamal Bey, and Nate Roberts during Pac-12 Media Day for men's basketball. In exclusive interviews with all three while on the rooftop of the Pac-12 Networks building, Kim talks to them about what went wrong last year, what's improved since then, revamping the lineup and coaching staff, and what the expectations are for the 2021-22 season.