CORVALLIS, Ore. — The decisions made the difference.
It was fourth-and-1 on Washington’s 39-yard line, with 4:23 remaining in the second quarter of the Huskies’ 19-7 win inside Reser Stadium on Friday night. The Husky offense looked lethargic, with 107 total yards in five uninspiring and abbreviated drives. They had managed three punts, an interception and a 47-yard field goal. Jacob Eason was erratic, the running game was ineffective and the game plan almost certainly hadn’t called for a heaving helping of penalties and punts.
So UW head coach Chris Petersen defied conventional logic. He decided to go for it.