Home-and-Home: A post-spring look at Oregon and Washington

Our semi-regular conversation with Christian Caple of On Montlake.

Home-and-Home is a regular conversation between Christian Caple of On Montlake and Tyson Alger of The I-5 Corridor. With more than two decades of combined experience covering football in the Northwest, join On Montlake and The I-5 Corridor for their unique views on the Ducks, Huskies and Pac-12 football.

ALGER: Caple, here’s something for you: Remember how much I hated doing State of the Programs back at our last place? It’s not that I didn’t think they were useful — those suckers were comprehensive and I think did a pretty good job of honoring that feeling of picking up the Athlon season preview back in the day. But man, were they a lot of work right as the weather started to get nice. 

Well, here’s how I know I’m getting old and beginning to think with the business side of the brain: I’m bringing it back this year. It’ll be the State of the Progrum, for obvious — and perhaps copyright — purposes, and while I’m not going to give too many things away right now, the overall forecast for the Ducks after this spring is looking about as good as the weather hitting the PNW this coming week. 

If you were doing a Huskies SOTP, what’s the main bar? Is it Fisch? Is it a quarterback? What’s the pulse of the program (oooh) up there in Seattle as we move into the summer season? 

CAPLE: I’d call it hopeful, with a touch of apprehension. Maybe more than a touch, depending on the day.

I suppose you would have to start with the feel-good vibes of the 2023 national-title game appearance being subsequently dashed by Kalen DeBoer’s departure for Alabama, and all the ways Jedd Fisch’s program looks and feels different than his predecessor.

And if you’re going to do that, you pretty much have to start with the roster itself, which includes just two returning starters — and zero on offense — and is still in the process of being assembled. The Huskies lost their top six offensive linemen from a year ago and went through spring practices with seven healthy scholarship o-linemen, six of whom are either redshirt freshmen or true freshmen. They’ve added a couple transfers who will join the program — err, progrum — this summer, and probably still need another tackle or two. 

Some positions — cornerback, linebacker, running back, quarterback, receiver — actually look pretty solid. Others are closer to solid than destitute. It probably goes without saying that there isn’t nearly as much NFL talent on this team than what UW had last season. And everything pretty much hinges on that o-line, and whether — and how quickly — these transfers can elevate the group’s ceiling.

Meanwhile, Oregon is getting top-five buzz with a third-year head coach who continues to recruit well. What were your primary takeaways from the Ducks’ spring?