Washington dominates Washington State to win Apple Cup: 3 takeaways

The No. 17 Washington Huskies crushed the No. 13 Washington State Cougars on Saturday night, 41-14. Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Apple Cup.

Though it remains one of the biggest rivalries of note in Power 5 college, the 2017 Apple Cup was a complete snooze, as the No. 17 Washington Huskies annihilated their in-state rival No. 13 Washington State Cougars to the tune of 41-14 on Saturday.

This third loss for the Cougars knocked them out of the Pac-12 Championship Game. Washington’s domination of Washington State sends the Stanford Cardinal to the conference championship game as the Pac-12 North Champion. Stanford will play the USC Trojans for the Pac-12 crown at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on Friday night.

Here are the three biggest takeaways from the 2017 Apple Cup.

It was a night to forget for Luke Falk. Luke Falk might be one of the greatest quarterbacks in Pac-12 history, but he had a terrible Apple Cup for Washington State. He struggled to find composure behind a collapsing pocket and had no problem turning the football over.

Falk had three picks, all of which were forced throws. It led to the lopsided affair over in the rain in Seattle. He has all the talent, if not more pro talent than Huskies quarterback Jake Browning. Yet this game will definitely have a negative impact on Falk’s draft grade as he is about to turn pro.

Sure, the Cougars lost a lot of players to the NFL this past offseason. However, one would have thought that Washington State would have knocked off the Huskies at some point in the last two years. This was Falk’s big moment and he blew it.

So why couldn’t you beat Arizona State and Stanford, Washington? Come on! This is a Washington team that could have beaten last year’s Pac-12 champion Washington team. The 2017 Huskies’ defense is absolutely menacing. They just played their most dominating game of the season.

That being said, Washington won’t even play for a conference championship. Why, you ask? Because the Huskies lost to both Stanford and the Arizona State Sun Devils. Losing to Stanford is understandable, given that the Huskies and Cardinal are division rivals. However, falling to Arizona State was embarrassing. Arizona State is probably about to fire head coach Todd Graham.

If you want to understand why the Pac-12 will not be getting a team into the College Football Playoff for the second time in four years, look no further than Washington. When they are at their best, the Huskies can play like a top-10 team. Tonight was proof of that. Great win, but no division title for you.

Vita Vea is a lock to be a first-round pick. The dude is a monster. Washington has some guys on this football team. Browning can really sling it at quarterback. Dante Pettis is electrifying with the ball in his hands. Myles Gaskin has the chance to be an excellent NFL running back.

But one Husky stands out among the rest. That would be defensive tackle Vita Vea and Gaskin had a four-touchdown game for the Huskies in the Apple Cup. Vea was the reason Falk had no chance to succeed in the pocket. It was all gone because Vea ate it all up as the greatest space eater in the Pac-12.

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Because Vea can create pressure in addition to stopping the run, he has a chance to be a high-end first-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Keep in mind that Vea still has a year of eligibility left. He is only a junior. It’s good to be Vea and the Huskies, not so much for the Cougars.