Washington football is a retooling program that is looking to make the most out of a conference-only schedule in 2020.
Washington is a program that’s undergoing a shift heading into 2020. Legendary coach Chris Petersen decided to pull a major surprise and retire following the 2019 season and now the Huskies will be led by Jimmy Lake, who was the defensive coordinator under the departing head coach during his time in Seattle.
Lake is a well respected coordinator and has done a pretty good job on the recruiting trail, but there are some questions that this Washington team needs to face in order to contend in the Pac-12 in 2020.
The Huskies’ offense will need to replace quarterback Jacob Eason, who left school a year early to be a fourth-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts. He was a talented player, but never quite lived up to his talent level in his lone season as the starter in Seattle.
What could be an even bigger loss is the departure of last years leading rusher Salvon Ahmed, who had over 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns last season.
The big news that is surrounding not only the league, but the whole country, is the conference-only scheduling model that is being adopted by the Pac-12, Big Ten, ACC and SEC. The Pac 12 released its schedule and it will push back the start of the season to Sept. 26 and the conference championship to mid-December.
Washington has done very well against Pac-12 competition in recent season, so there is hope that the Huskies can keep the program going under new leadership.
Here is how Washington’s season will play out in 2020.