Locker injury saves Willingham’s job, for now

If it weren't an NCAA violation, Washington Head Coach Tyrone Willingham should send Jake Locker a fruit basket. Or a gift card. At the very least, send the injured quarterback a hand written note.

But not a get well note - a thank you note. Willingham should thank Locker for saving the coach’s job. Just about anyone who cared predicted that a Husky loss against Stanford and an 0-4 start would mean the end of the line for Willingham. If Locker doesn’t break his right thumb during the game and the Huskies still lose to Stanford on Saturday – the coach is out of a job on Sunday.

Now that Locker has had surgery to repair his hand and will be out for six to eight weeks, there is no way Athletic Director Scott Woodward could rationalize firing the coach and throwing the program into further disarray. Although, some Husky fans would argue the team has already hit bottom.

The Huskies defense continued to yield large swaths of real estate to opposing runners. Stanford’s Anthony Kimble rushed only 15 times for his 157 yards on the ground. As a team, the Cardinal gained 244 yards rushing and a 6.8 yard per carry average.

There were some good things to come out of another loss, though. Backup quarterback Ronnie Fouch looked to be a solid stand in for the injured Locker. The redshirt freshman completed 13 of 27 passed for 186 yards and a touchdown. Most importantly he took care of the football. Tight end Michael Gottlieb also had a good game with four nice catches for 65 yards.

However, it’s going to take more than small incremental improvements and a massive mailing of hand-written “I’m Sorry” cards to Husky fans to save Willingham now.