1981 Washington Huskies football team
American college football season
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The 1981 Washington Huskies football team was an American football team that represented the University of Washington during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its seventh season under head coach Don James, the team compiled a 10–2 record, finished first in the Pacific-10 Conference, shut out Iowa in the Rose Bowl,[1][2][3] and outscored its opponents 281 to 171.[4]
| 1981 Washington Huskies football | |
|---|---|
Pac-10 champion Rose Bowl champion | |
| Conference | Pacific-10 Conference |
| Ranking | |
| Coaches | No. 7 |
| AP | No. 10 |
| Record | 10–2 (6–2 Pac-10) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Bob Stull (3rd season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Jim Lambright (4th season) |
| MVP | Mark Jerue |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Husky Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 Washington $ | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 16 Arizona State | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 14 USC | 5 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Washington State | 5 | – | 2 | – | 1 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UCLA | 5 | – | 2 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Arizona | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stanford | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon | 1 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oregon State | 0 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Linebacker Mark Jerue was selected as the team's most valuable player; Jerue, James Carter, Vince Coby, and Fletcher Jenkins were the team captains.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 12 | Pacific (CA)* | No. 17 | W 34–14 | 45,134 | [5] | ||
| September 19 | Kansas State* | No. 15 |
| W 20–3 | 52,343 | [6] | |
| September 26 | at Oregon | No. 16 | W 17–3 | 40,685 | [7] | ||
| October 3 | Arizona State | No. 12 |
| L 7–26 | 50,410 | [8] | |
| October 10 | at California | W 27–26 | 33,600 | [9] | |||
| October 17 | Oregon State |
| W 56–17 | 52,324 | [10] | ||
| October 24 | at Texas Tech* | W 14–7 | 36,335 | [11] | |||
| October 31 | Stanford | No. 18 |
| W 42–31 | 53,504 | [12] | |
| November 7 | at UCLA | No. 16 | L 0–31 | 41,818 | [13] | ||
| November 14 | No. 3 USC |
| W 13–3 | 47,347 | [14] | ||
| November 21 | No. 14 Washington State | No. 17 |
| W 23–10 | 60,052 | [15] | |
| January 1, 1982 | vs. No. 13 Iowa* | No. 12 | NBC | W 28–0 | 105,611 | [16] | |
Game summaries
Washington State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cougars | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 |
| • Huskies | 0 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 23 |
- Date: Saturday, November 21
- Location: Husky Stadium, Seattle, Washington
- Game start: 1:30 pm PST
- Game attendance: 60,052
- Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C), Overcast
- Television network: ABC (regional)
| 2 | WASH | Nelson 39-yard field goal | WASH 3-0 | |
| 2 | WSU | Martin 6-yard run (Leland kick) | WSU 7-3 | |
| 2 | WASH | Skansi 15-yard pass from Pelluer (Nelson kick) | WASH 10-7 | |
| 3 | WSU | Leland 27-yard field goal | Tied 10-10 | |
| 3 | WASH | Jackson 23-yard run (Nelson kick) | WASH 17-10 | |
| 3 | WASH | Nelson 28-yard field goal | WASH 20-10 | |
| 4 | WASH | Nelson 34-yard field goal | WASH 23-10 | |
The Cougars entered the Apple Cup with an 8–1–1 record and a road win over Washington at Husky Stadium would clinch the Pac-10 title and a Rose Bowl berth, WSU's first bowl game in 51 years.[18][19] The Huskies prevailed at home, 23–10, for their eighth straight win over the Cougs,[20][21] who were invited to the Holiday Bowl.[22]
Conference leader UCLA lost by a point to rival USC, which gave Washington the Pac-10 title and Rose Bowl berth;[23] the top five teams in the Pac-10 had two losses each in league play.
Vs. Iowa (Rose Bowl)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Huskies | 0 | 13 | 0 | 15 | 28 |
| Hawkeyes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Date: January 1, 1982
- Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
- Game attendance: 105,611
- Referee: Rich McVay
- TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg, Merlin Olsen
- Sources:
| 2 | UW | Robinson 1-yard run (Nelson kick) | UW 7-0 | |
| 2 | UW | Coby 1-yard run (pass failed) | UW 13-0 | |
| 4 | UW | Robinson 34-yard run (Pelluer pass to Skansi) | UW 21-0 | |
| 4 | UW | Cowan 3-yard run (Nelson kick) | UW 28-0 | |
Roster
| 1981 Washington Huskies football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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NFL draft selections
Two University of Washington Huskies were selected in the 1982 NFL draft which lasted twelve rounds with 334 selections.
| = Husky Hall of Fame[29] |
| Player | Position | Round | Overall | Franchise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Jerue | LB | 5 | 135 | New York Jets |
| Fletcher Jenkins | DT | 7 | 169 | Baltimore Colts |