This was a big game for both teams as it opened up conference play for each squad and posed the toughest competition either team has faced all year. It rained throughout most of the game so its no surprise there were a combined 110 rushing attempts between two teams that lack great arm talent from their quarterback position. The two draftable prospects that helped themselves the most in this game were Huskies while one Arizona defender flashed some intriguing versatility.
(JR) Bishop Sankey, RB, Washington, (#25), 5’10, 210
Sankey had an impressive outing, carrying the football a school-record 40 times allowing the Huskies to control the clock and the lead throughout the entire game. He is built well and has a strong lower half to run through arm tackles and to pound the ball inside. Against the Wildcats he won by allowing his blocks to develop and sticking his foot in the ground with a physical downhill mentality. He flashed big time power lowering his shoulders and running over defenders on a few runs and then the speed to outrun angles. At this rate, it wouldn’t surprise me if he declared at season’s end.
Sean Parker, S, Washington, (#1), 5’10, 190
Parker had an outstanding game showing playmaking ability in coverage as well as sure tackling ability. Parker is an undersized strong safety prospect who made his presence felt early after diagnosing and breaking on a dig route in front of him and intercepting an errant throw in his direction. He also had a nice pass break-up on a skinny post where he found the ball quickly at the receiver’s break and dove in front of him to bat down the pass. He was asked to make a handful of one on one space tackles and showed short area explosiveness and wrap up ability to limit any yards after catches. He is gaining momentum as one of the top strong safeties in the 2014 class.
Keith Price, QB, Washington, (#17), 6’1, 202
Price played well enough to lead the Huskies to victory in a big game, but from an evaluation standpoint he only grades out as a fringe draftable prospect. All the intangibles are there as he’s been the Huskies’ leader since his sophomore season and is very well respected by teammates and those around the program. However, many of the physical deficiencies were magnified in bad weather Saturday. Price simply doesn’t generate the necessary trajectory off his hand to make NFL throws consistently. His placement on intermediate to deep routes were shaky as well, resulting in receivers constantly having to adjust to off target throws and limiting yards after catch.
Marquis Flowers, OLB, Arizona, (#2), 6’3, 230
Flowers is a former safety who packed on about 15 pounds of muscle before switching to his current outside linebacker position in 2012. He is very athletic and he brings a lot of the same coverage skills to his new position, which makes him an ideal matchup against the big time tight end talent in the Pac 12. He had a solid day statistically and didn’t make any “splash” plays but he looked fluid covering the flats against Austin Seferian Jenkins and Sankey. However, he’s a liability against the run as he can be slow to react and struggles to get off blocks.
Other Notes
–Ka’Deem Carey (#25) had his usual impressive performance rushing 30 times for over 130 yards but he also had a nice day as a receiver. He showed nice over the shoulder ball tracking ability down the sideline for a big gain and displayed solid hands throughout. He’s put together some impressive tape as his large slate of skills is in the refinement stage at this point.
-Tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins (#88) had a quiet day which was mostly attributed to Price’s inability to find receivers downfield. ASJ still showed outstanding movement skills for his size running routes downfield and stretching safety help. His conditioning still seems like a work in progress as there were plays he looked sluggish in the 4th quarter but expect him to become a bigger factor as the season continues.
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