Washington football felled by inconsistent QB play in 25-21 USC loss

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For a brief moment on Saturday evening, it looked like Demond Williams Jr. would author a signature drive in a Washington uniform.

Forced into fourth-and-2 from his own 27-yard line, the third-year quarterback dropped back to pass but was pressured quickly by a USC blitz. He stepped up and heaved a prayer downfield as two defenders converged on him, finding an open Chris Lawson, who had slipped past USC safety Christian Pierce as Pierce hesitated to defend against a Williams scramble.

That play took Washington to the two-minute timeout and left Huskies fans likely wondering where that Williams had been all night.

The Williams that those fans had seen the rest of the game reappeared after the stoppage, however, taking a sack from Trojans edge rusher Kameryn Crawford with 45 seconds left on the clock to force Washington to use their final timeout and draw up a fourth-and-10 play from the 18-yard line. On that play, Crawford rushed unblocked, meaning Williams needed to throw his hot route, which was likely Dezmen Roebuck underneath. Roebuck was covered and likely would not have converted a first down, but may have been able to get out of bounds and stop the clock before a 4th and short.

(And, if you're looking for what would've been a magical play, Rashid Williams had a step on his defender coming across the field on what was likely Williams' first read had the play not contained a free rusher.)

"I saw they had six up to our five-man (pass protection), so I knew I was going to have to make one miss, but situationally I've either got to throw it away or get somebody one-on-one and then take my lost yardage," Williams said on Saturday of the sack.

Williams then came out of that final timeout and launched another prayer, this one into double coverage for Roebuck in the corner of the end zone on a play that showed mostly covered Huskies on the replay. Roebuck went up with one hand, but the ball was knocked away as Washington officially squandered a 21-10 lead and suffered a 25-21 loss at No. 18 USC.

It was the latest frustrating entry into a tenure as starting quarterback that head coach Jedd Fisch has played off as youthful missteps. Williams completed only 4-of-10 passes in the first half for 39 yards, and the Huskies needed Roebuck to throw a trick-play pass to generate their first touchdown of the game. Another trick play, where Roebuck again took a halfback toss and threw the ball back to Williams, who then hit tight end Baron Naone for 17 yards, accounted for nearly half of Williams' passing yards in the opening half.

This all came against a USC defense that entered the weekend 119th in the FBS in EPA/dropback allowed and moved defensive coordinator Gary Patterson to the booth for the first time in his storied coaching career in a last-ditch attempt to find answers for the Trojans. USC was also missing defensive playcaller Desman Stephens II, who was suspended after a targeting hit on and subsequent taunting of Oregon quarterback Dante Moore last week.

It was the run game that buoyed Washington in the first half, with freshman Brian Bonner Jr. finding running room for the first time this season and piling up 57 yards in the first two quarters. Williams chipped in with 31 rushing yards of his own as Washington leaned more into designed quarterback runs to give the run game a jolt.

Up 14-10 at halftime, Washington's defense forced a three-and-out, only the third of USC's season but the second of the night, before Williams delivered a pass down the right sideline to tight end Decker DeGraaf, who kept his balance as two Trojans defenders tried to push him out of bounds and scored from 42 yards out. A seven-minute drive by USC brought the game back within 5, but Williams scrambled left on a third down, pump-faked a pass to an open Kade Eldridge, then tried to load back up to throw the ball to the tight end as he cleared USC linebacker Jadyn Walker. Williams was instead stripped of the ball by Elijah Newby, then USC defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart picked it up and returned it 48 yards to retake the lead for USC.

That fumble came a week after Williams and Fisch both acknowledged that the third-year quarterback held the ball for too long against Minnesota, a game in which Williams was sacked seven times.

There were other factors at play here – Washington lost the time-of-possession battle by over 8 minutes and committed six penalties in the second half, including a pass interference on cornerback Dylan Robinson that extended a USC drive despite replay evidence that receiver Tanook Hines was the one pulling Robinson down, not the other way around. The Huskies were also 1-for-12 on third down, while USC converted 5 of their 14 opportunities. But Washington also received plenty of luck from untimely USC penalties: an illegal formation call wiped out a 37-yard touchdown pass to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt in the second quarter, a facemask by freshman edge rusher Luke Wafle erased a 12-yard loss on a high snap from Kolt Dieterich later that quarter, and another illegal formation prevented the Huskies from starting on their own 1-yard line when USC receiver Boobie Feaster downed a punt in the fourth quarter.

Quarterback Jayden Maiava also flat-out missed Hines on an out-breaking route the play before to give Washington a chance to drive down and win the game in the first place.

Washington will preach patience, as they have throughout Williams' tenure. The Huskies remain an extremely young team compared to their competition – although USC had plenty of freshmen contributors on the field as well (and is one of two teams in the Big Ten with a younger average roster age). Flashes of brilliance, like the 43-yard connection to Lawson or a touchdown on fourth down to Naone last week, are hard to ignore and easy to get excited about. But Washington has also made clear in the way it has operated that their offense goes as their quarterback does, which renders the best rushing performance of the season and a solid defensive showing effectively meaningless when Williams is not playing to his potential.

20 starts in, Washington is still in pretty much the same spot it was when they started. Williams can bail the Huskies out of some big holes on individual plays, but he can also dig those holes himself. That's a comfortably livable place in college football when that player can also save a team from poor situations in the macro.

Williams has yet to show he can consistently be that caliber of passer, not playmaker. Until he does, Huskies games will likely feel a lot like Saturday's did, regardless of the final score: meat left on the bone, the potential of a top-flight offense, and a general sense of wanting more.

This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington football felled by inconsistent QB play in 25-21 USC loss

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