Associated Press
On offense, Michigan State will try to wear down
Washington with the running of Sedrick Irvin in
tomorrow's Aloha Bowl..
A Huskie task
In the 1990s, the Pac-10 rep
By Paul Arnett
has usually been favored in the
Aloha Bowl, only to lose
Star-BulletinThis decade, the Pac-10 hasn't shown how the West was won in the Jeep Aloha Bowl. Arizona, Stanford, UCLA and California exited the island chain with losses to Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Kansas and Navy, respectively.
The oddsmakers in Las Vegas gave the edge to the Pac-10 teams in all four of those games. Even unranked UCLA was a five-point choice over No. 11 Kansas in 1995. The Jayhawks won, 51-30.
Naturally, No. 21-ranked Washington would like to end that trend against No. 25 Michigan State in tomorrow's Christmas Day game at Aloha Stadium (the Huskies are a five-point favorite).
But to do it, Washington will have to stymie a physical Spartan team that likes to run over you first and ask questions later. Finesse isn't in their playbook.
"Michigan State typifies what the Big Ten is all about," Washington head coach Jim Lambright said. "They have a very talented offensive line that can wear you down over the course of a game.
"For us to win, we have to control their running game and be able to run ourselves. We're a much more balanced team offensively now that (top tailback) Rashaan Shehee is healthy. We're also stronger up front defensively with the return of (end) Chris Campbell."
Associated Press
But the Huskies have an offensive
advantage at quarterback with Brock Huard,
who could be NFL-bound after the game.
The Huskies began this season with high hopes of bringing a Rose Bowl crown and national championship home to Seattle. Injuries, coupled with a crippling loss to unbeaten and second-ranked Nebraska, dashed those dreams, leaving them beached in Hawaii.But despite Washington's three-game losing streak to end the regular season, Michigan State is still concerned about the Huskies' big-play potential on offense and multiple looks on defense.
"This is a challenging team for us," Michigan State head coach Nick Saban said. "Had they remained healthy, I doubt we would be playing them right now.
"This is a top-10 team with a healthy Rashaan Shehee and (quarterback) Brock Huard. The challenge for us is not to give up any big plays to a team that can strike quickly from any point on the field, and to be able to establish our running game against a defense that gives you a lot of looks."
Michigan State's aspirations this season weren't quite as lofty, although the Spartans conjured up some dreams of their own after opening the season with five consecutive wins.
A month's worth of losses to Northwestern, Michigan, Ohio State and Purdue brought them back to earth. And if not for a stunning win over Penn State, Michigan State would have played Air Force last weekend in the Las Vegas Bowl.
"We showed the country what we're capable of doing with that win over Penn State," MSU tailback Sedrick Irvin said. "We want to do the same thing to Washington by establishing the run to set up the pass."
Irvin paced MSU in rushing with 1,211 yards and nine touchdowns. He also was the leading receiver with 39 catches for 339 yards and four scores.
Washington counters with Shehee, who rushed for 862 yards and four touchdowns despite missing the last three games with a sprained knee.
Where the Huskies hold a decisive edge is at quarterback. Michigan State's Todd Schultz completed 163 of 275 passes for 1,783 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also tossed 16 interceptions.
Huard, who may be NFL-bound after the game, was 146 of 244 for 2,140 yards and 23 touchdowns. The sophomore threw only 10 interceptions.
"I feel as good as I have all season," said Huard. "I look around and see the team that was in the top 10, not the one that lost their last three games."
Defensively, the Huskies will counter consensus All-America tackle Flozell Adams with Campbell, who missed five games due to a broken fibula, and All-America outside linebacker Jason Chorak. Chorak led the Huskies with seven sacks and 20 tackles for losses.
Michigan State linebacker Ike Reese is a difference-maker, too. He led the Spartans with 127 tackles. Sophomore defensive end Robaire Smith topped the team in sacks with 15.
"We have to control their running game and make them throw in obvious passing situations," Reese said. "This is a very good football team now that they're healthy. We have to be as physical as we can and let them know what life is like in the Big Ten."
Aloha Bowl
Records: Washington, 7-4; Michigan State, 7-4
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