Washington Football: 5 reasons Chico McClatcher injury won’t hurt Huskies

Washington football lost one of its top players over the weekend, but here’s why they are still the Pac-12’s best team after the Chico McClatcher injury.

It’s been a sparkling start to the 2017 season for Washington football, but the Huskies suffered a major blow over the weekend with the news that Chico McClatcher would miss the remainder of the year. He suffered a broken ankle against Colorado, which has ended his junior year early.

Luckily for the Huskies, and McClatcher, he’s eligible to medically redshirt. That would give him another two years of eligibility if he were to come back after next season. He was ready to become the Huskies No. 2 receiver in Pac-12 play, but the injury is forcing others to step up.

Despite it being a tough blow to one of the Huskies’ three 100-yard pass-catchers, Washington will be just fine without the rising junior, and here’s why.

5. Washington’s defense will keep team in games

Four games into the season, the Washington Huskies’ defense looks just as effective as it was last season when they made the College Football Playoff. In fact, Washington has allowed just 11.8 points per game, which ranks 10th in the country.

On top of that, the Huskies’ total defense ranks ninth in college football, allowing just 274 yards per contest. Washington hasn’t exactly faced off against the toughest teams in college football — Rutgers, Montana, Fresno State and Colorado — but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the defense looks solid yet again.

Washington’s total defense ranks second in the Pac-12 behind only Washington State and that could be an indication that losing one offensive player won’t hurt the Huskies in conference play against lackluster secondaries.

It’s still early, but it looks like Washington’s defense will keep it in multiple games.