As June starts to roll into July, and July eventually leads us to the start of fall camps at the beginning of August, the 2023 college football season will be here before we know it. What a season it projects to be in the Pac-12 Conference, as well. With a handful of College Football Playoff contenders, and a group of Heisman Trophy candidates leading their prospective teams, we could be set up for one of the best football seasons out west that we’ve seen in decades. To help get us prepared, we at Ducks Wire wanted to go through each team in the conference and give a comprehensive breakdown of each school, breaking down their 2023 outlook. Welcome to our Pac-12 Previews. New editions will be published every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to the start of fall camp.
Check out our previously published previews: Arizona Wildcats — Arizona State Sun Devils — California Golden Bears — Colorado Buffaloes — Oregon State Beavers — Stanford Cardinal — UCLA Bruins — USC Trojans — Utah Utes
The Washington Huskies surprised the college football world last season by going 11-2 and winning the Alamo Bowl over Texas, 27-20. Nearly everything went right for the Dawgs, which was a far cry from the two previous seasons with Jimmy Lake as coach.
But even then, no one could have expected for quarterback Michael Penix, an average and often injured signal caller from Indiana, to come to Seattle and tear it up. And then he surprised people by announcing he would return for one more season.
Washington also returns one of the best receiving corps in the country with Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan leading the way. But the offensive line doesn’t have a lot of experience and the defense could be a weak point many Pac-12 teams will exploit.
They have a tougher schedule than one would expect, but the talent in Seattle should be enough for another successful season in 2023. They won’t go 11-2 again, but considering where the program was just two years ago, Huskies fans will be satisfied.