Chris Polk News

UW tailback Chris Polk, looking for running room against Oregon, has amassed 352 yards in his past three games.

Nothing like a little trash talking to get Apple Cup week started. A normally mundane Monday, accentuated by Washington coach Steve Sarkisian insisting his team wouldn't get caught throwing verbal jabs at rival Washington State, got a little spicier only minutes later thanks to tight end Kavario Middleton .

When the 2009 season began, the Washington coaching staff spoke of the possibility of a rotation of running backs.

At the start of the season, most of the questions about the UW football team were centered around the defense.

It was a massacre. An embarrassment. A good ola TM fashioned butt whuppina TM. Photo by John McLellan .

Among the many aspects of Saturday's 48-21 loss to Oregon State on Saturday that made it, in the words of Washington coach Steve Sarkisian, the most disappointing game of the season for the Huskies, was the lack of decent kickoff returns.

Associated Press Oregon State's Keo Kamat and Walker Vave pull down Washington's Chris Polk, right, as the Beavers beat Washington 48-21 last Saturday in Corvallis, Ore.

Darrion Jones had hoped to get off to this kind of start many times in his career.

Once again, Oregon State has played its way into the thick of the Rose Bowl race.

Coming off another heartbreaking loss on the road, this time to the UCLA Bruins, the Huskies once again head to the road as they travel to Corvallis, Oregon to take on the No.

Maybe Oregon State's defensive players didn't get the memo about Jake Locker. New Huskies coach Steve Sarkasian has spent a lot of time trying to covert the talented junior into more of a pro-style quarterback who stays in the pocket.

That has been coach Steve Sarkisian's mantra since he came to Washington. He has preached this with all the passion of an evangelist.

Let's play a little game of "guess who won." Two college football teams with identical records face each other on a Saturday in November and one team wins 24-23. UW quarterback Jake Locker and the rest of the Huskies are left wondering what happened after a loss to UCLA.

Francis Specker / Associated Press Washington's Jermaine Kearse catches a touchdown pass over UCLA's Alterraun Verner in the first half of the Huskies' 24-23 loss to the Bruins on Saturday.

Washington coach Steve Sarkisian has the Huskies headed in the right direction. It's been a struggle at times this year, but they've identified some playmakers to go with quarterback Jake Locker, right.

Kevin Craft realizes he was coach Rick Neuheisel 's third and last choice to take over UCLA's offense, the senior quarterback's tumultuous two-year history with his coach only made his part in the Bruins' slump-stopping win over Washington that much sweeter.

Chris Polk has 100 yards on just seven carries and the Washington Huskies lead UCLA 16-14 at halftime at the Rose Bowl.

Steve Sarkisian didn't try to sugarcoat the problem. In his opening comments to the media after Oregon's 43-19 win over the Huskies Oct.

Maybe it was watching Jake Locker sprinting out of the pocket and darting across the Dempsey Indoor field that convinced Steve Sarkisian.

In a matchup that features two teams that desperately need a win to salvage the season, the 3-5 Huskies travel to the Rose Bowl to take on the 3-5 UCLA Bruins.