Here's What the Huskies Should Do at QB-1

With winless Arizona next up, the UW might consider doing the following.
Here's What the Huskies Should Do at QB-1
Here's What the Huskies Should Do at QB-1 /

Challenging for anything less than a championship and a big bowl game is unacceptable. 

Those were Jimmy Lake's famous last words before the University of Washington football season began. 

Let's see now, it's the halfway point of their regular-season schedule and the Huskies (2-4 overall, 1-2 conference) occupy last place in the Pac-12 North Division standings. 

Unacceptable, right?

Based on injury, illness, indecision or performance, Lake and his coaching staff have swapped out starting players in every position area except for two: Outside linebacker and quarterback.

As bad as Zion Tupuola-Fetui wants to play with that newly mended Achilles tendon of his, the highly motivated Hawaiian with the colorful hair and playing style won't need long before he answers the opening bell at edge rusher once more, leaving just one Husky position group untouched. 

QB-1 and friends. 

It might be time to finally shuffle that spot, too.

Redshirt freshman Dylan Morris, the UW starter for 10 games over two seasons, earned the job because he didn't make mistakes. 

Well, that's changed.

In Saturday night's 24-17 setback to UCLA, Morris threw an interception to end the Huskies' first drive of the game and he tossed another to kill their last series with 4:50 remaining to play.

Dylan Morris gets pulled down by the Bruins.
Dylan Morris gets pulled down by the Bruins.  :: Joe Nicholson/USA TODAY Sports

The picks gave him 8 this season, the most by any Pac-12 quarterback by a wide margin.

Morris' record as the starting quarterback has fallen 5-5.

Lake needs to take a trip to the mound, call for the ball and summon a reliever from the bullpen.

The lefty.

It's time to take the most heralded quarterback recruit in school history and change things up a bit.

Sam Huard didn't come to Washington to sit and watch, or redshirt and ponder his future. 

Sam Huard has appeared in one UW game this season.
Sam Huard has one Husky appearance behind him :: Stephen Brashear/USA TODAY Sports

College football is a results business, and the Huskies haven't been getting the desired ones. 

The team needs to win again and soon.

Arizona, winless in six games and the most beatable Pac-12 opponent on the Husky schedule, is next up.

There's no better place to break in Huard, who has one college mop-up appearance behind him. 

There's no better time to redirect the negative conversation surrounding the team from what's happened so far.

Continue down the current path and Husky Stadium will be practically empty when the team returns after a pair of road games.

Huard is the Logan Gilbert of this Seattle ballclub. It's time to put him in the spotlight. Face the middle of the order. Unleash that big arm of his. Let him hand off a lot. 

Preserving his eligibility for the next Husky coach whoever that might be and whenever that might be is last on the program needs right now.

Maybe just sit out Morris for the game in Tucson and have him recharge. Let him take stock of his career crossroad before he's damaged beyond repair by the continual losing. 

Remember, Dylan still is a fairly young QB, too.

Change can be good. Take a chance. What could it hurt?

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Dan Raley
DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.