Washington Football: Huskies hope rebound leads to Playoff berth

Washington football failed to repeat as Pac-12 champions last season after dropping the tiebreaker against Stanford. Can the Huskies reclaim the conference in 2018?

Chris Petersen has already built a powerhouse at Washington to the point where not playing in the Pac-12 championship game felt like a lost season for the Huskies. A year after winning the conference and reaching the College Football Playoff, only a tiebreaker against Stanford prevented Washington from a chance to defend their league crown.

Ranked No. 6 in both the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll, the Huskies will once again be a favorite to take the Pac-12 North. But they are hardly the only team with a legitimate shot of winning the league. As long as Washington keeps winning, the depth in the Pac-12 North this year will bolster the Huskies’ high rankings.

Petersen and his staff benefit from the return of a slew of veteran talent on both sides of the ball. They have a solid schedule that avoids the top two teams in the South and offers a great opportunity to come out on top in a tough division. Everything sets up well for a run at a top-four spot.

Can the Huskies actually capitalize on those favorable conditions and deliver their fan base a second College Football Playoff appearance in three years? Let’s dive in deeper to look at the Washington offense and defense before we evaluate their schedule and how the season might develop in Seattle this season.