Reliving Washington’s 2023 season: Washington tops Oregon 36-33

In a game Washington fans will never forget, the Huskies asserted themselves as one of the nation’s best teams in 2023 with a 36-33 victory over Oregon.

In what was arguably the game of the year in the Pac-12, the No. 7 Washington Huskies beat the No. 8 Oregon Ducks 36-33. With both teams getting two weeks to prepare, all the hype coming in was with the Ducks, even though the Huskies were three point favorites.

Many media outlets coined coach Dan Lanning’s team as tougher, but the Huskies were able to pull off a victory after a missed field goal in the waning seconds by Oregon kicker Camden Lewis.

While dealing with cramps, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. still turned in an extremely impressive performance throwing for 302 yards and 4 touchdowns against what wide receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard had called “the best secondary in the United States of America” in the days leading up to the game.

Penix also went viral after the game when wide receiver Jalen McMillan revealed that ESPN cameras caught him freestyle rapping about making his team making the comeback while Washington trailed 33-29 and Oregon was driving with a chance to end the game.

Two weeks after his lowest output of the season against the Arizona Wildcats, wide receiver Rome Odunze turned in a legendary performance while playing with a broken rib and punctured lung he suffered in that game. He pulled in 8 receptions for 128 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-winning score with 1:38 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Running back Dillon Johnson had an impressive game, rushing for 100 yards for the first time last season and a touchdown, shouldering the entire load of Washington’s rushing attack. Wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk also hit triple digits, adding 6 catches for 118 yards and a score.

In the absence of Jalen McMillan, who suffered a setback with his knee injury in the first quarter, wide receiver Giles Jackson played in his first game of the season after injuring his thumb during fall camp and added 6 catches for 58 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, the Huskies had a lot of trouble stopping Oregon, who totaled 541 yards of offense behind quarterback Bo Nix, but came through when it counted. A key sack from linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio in the second quarter forced a field goal attempt, while Lanning made a few gutsy calls that didn’t pay off, with the Ducks going 0-3 on fourth down.

The biggest of those three calls came with 2:16 to play when the Ducks went for it on fourth and 3 near midfield and thanks to great coverage from defensive back Mishael Powell, Nix’s pass fell incomplete.

“Forget being patient,” ESPN’s Chris Fowler said as Penix and the Huskies needed just two plays to score, starting with a 35-yard pass to Polk and finishing with an 18-yard strike to Odunze.

In what will go down in history as one of the greatest installments in the storied rivalry between the two schools, Husky fans will always remember where they were on October 14, 2023.

As we look back through Washington’s magical run to the national championship in 2023, enjoy some of the best photos of the journey from our USA TODAY network of photographers.