Washington Falls to No. 1 Ohio State as Buckeyes Pull Away in Second Half
SEATTLE, Wash. — The Washington Huskies showed on Saturday that they just aren’t quite there yet.
UW looked like it belonged on the same field as No. 1 Ohio State, but the Buckeyes pulled away late for a 24-6 win in front of 72,485 fans at Husky Stadium.
Washington’s first loss of the season ended a 22-game home winning streak. The Huskies’ ability to finish drives in the end zone against Colorado State, UC Davis and Washington State didn’t translate against the Buckeyes.
The Huskies (3-1 overall, 0-1 Big Ten) held up against Ohio State’s deep and experienced lines for much of the game, but the dams on both offense and defense broke late. Ohio State sacked quarterback Demond Williams Jr. six times and limited the Huskies to one third-down conversion in 11 attempts.
“It’s frustrating, because we know that we can compete with the best,” said Huskies running back Jonah Coleman, who finished with 13 carries for 70 yards but was held out of the end zone for the first time this season. “And if that was the best, then we’re a helluva good team and learned a lesson.”
The Huskies, who will travel to the East Coast on Thursday for Saturday’s game at Maryland, took some steps forward from last season when they were crushed by high-end opponents, but Ohio State had too much talent and background in big games for UW to win its first Big Ten game of the 2025 season.
“We played the No. 1 team in the country, and we played them really well,” Fisch said. “It was a heavyweight fight until the last (five minutes) of the game.”
Takeaways from the loss:
Early Mistakes Costly
After stuffing Ohio State on fourth down on its first drive, the Huskies killed their second possession with a sideline interference penalty and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Fisch, plus an illegal snap penalty against center Landen Hatchett.
Washington got the ball back after Quentin Moore forced Buckeyes punt returner Brandon Inniss to fumble after a long return, and Decker DeGraaf pounced on the loose ball to set UW up at the Washington 21. The Huskies drove to the Ohio State 2, but Jonah Coleman (13 carries, 70 yards) lost a yard, and right guard Gereian Hatchell false-started.
"We went backwards five yards, and that makes it very challenging,” Fisch said. “Because now it’s second-and-7, and they wind up playing certain coverages where they’ve got guys playing zone, hole players all throughout the red zone.”
Third Down Disasters
Washington went 1-for-11 on third down, while Ohio State converted six times in 10 attempts. The Huskies hurt themself with penalties on third down, the offensive line couldn’t get push on third-and-short, and Williams was often pressured when he couldn’t find receivers.
“It just came down to our best,” Coleman said. “When our best was needed, we didn’t keep going on third down.”
Ohio State was able to keep Washington receiver Denzel Boston at bay with just three catches for 26 yards. True freshman Dezmen Roebuck led the Huskies with four receptions for 58 yards.
“An Incompletion Is Okay”
Demond Williams Jr. completed 18 of 22 (82%) of his passes for 173 yards. But, Ohio State limited his runs and got to him in the backfield six times for -46 yards. Williams finished with -28 yards rushing.
“I’ve got to help Demond understand that an incompletion is okay,” Fisch said. “Sometimes he doesn’t throw many incompletions at all. Sometimes — sometimes — that leads to holding the ball, you know, a little bit longer. And, unfortunately, at times, could turn into a sack.
“But, Demond is extremely accurate. He’s really good with the ball. He makes extremely good decisions. He protects the ball at all costs.”
Sometimes, that cost is a negative play that kills a drive against a team like Ohio State.
That was never more apparent than late in the third quarter, when the Huskies faced third-and-goal from the 3 trailing 14-3. Ohio State defensive tackle Kayden McDonald broke through and sacked Williams for a 7-yard loss. That negative play took away any thought of going for it on fourth down. Washington’s Grady Gross booted a 28-yard field goal to close the gap to 14-6 with 3:51 remaining in the third, but that’s as close as the Huskies would get against the Buckeyes.
“We’ve got to throw that away so we have a chance to go for it on fourth-and-3,” Fisch said. “And you know, unfortunately, we took a sack there and had to kick a field goal to make it 14-6. But we’ll learn from that.”
Injuries Costly to Huskies
Washington played the game without starting cornerback Tacario Davis, who Fisch said was close to being able to play and may be able to go against Maryland. The Huskies also missed starting middle linebacker Taariq “Buddah” Al-Uqdah and nickel Rahshawn Clark. UW left tackle Carver Willis (knee) and edge Zach Durfee (elbow) were lost during the game. Fisch said MRIs this week will dictate how long both are missing.
Atmosphere Solid, But It’s Been Louder
The Huskies crowd was the largest since the 2010 Nebraska game, and most since the stadium was remodeled in 2013. The weather was near perfect for a late September Saturday. The crowd provided the UW defense noise at times, but seemed to lose some decibels after halftime.
Ohio State never seemed particularly bothered by the crowd and committed just one pre-snap penalty among its five penalties for 60 yards. Washington was penalized six times for 49 yards.
“Coach (Ryan) Day has been preaching that to us all week ‘Having poise in the noise out there,’” Sayin said. “I think we did a good job of having poise in the loud environment. Our mindset was keep swinging. Things aren’t going to go our way the whole time. There's going to be momentum shifts, so we've got to keep swinging.”
Washington Defense Came to Play
The Huskies continued to struggle to get pressure on the quarterback, but shut out Ohio State for most of the first half. Buckeyes receiver Jeremiah Smith (eight catches, 81 yards) finally broke free for a touchdown with 1:08 to go in the half for a 7-3 lead. Ohio State consumed 7 minutes, 41 seconds to open the second half with a touchdown drive, capped by CJ Donaldson’s 1-yard plunge.
But allowing 24 points with a young, but decorated quarterback, a veteran offensive line and a receiver who’s a Heisman candidate was commendable. Washington simply needed more from its offense, which entered the game as one of the nation’s best in most statistical categories.
“Our goal was to make sure that we have a roof on the defense,” sixth-year senior safety Makell Esteen said. “You shout it every week, but that's what they're known for. But to have a roof on the defense, I feel like we did a good job, but just gave a few little plays here and there.”
No Moral Victories
Though the Huskies were disappointed, they believe they showed some progress compared to last season’s thumpings by Penn State, Iowa, Indiana and Oregon.
“Our guys are excited,” Fisch said. “We don’t have moral victories, but we also know that, like, okay, we went toe-to-toe. We were physical. We could stop them on short yardage. We were able to move the football. We were able to have drives down in the red zone.
“You just need that confidence sometimes, too, that it’s real — that you’re there. Forget what people are saying. You’re real.”
