Gazette-Times reporter

There was a time not too long ago when the University of Washington was one of the power programs in college football.

Even in this day of scholarship limits it’s rare to find a riches to rags story like Washington’s.

The Huskies have gone from perennial Pacific-10 Conference contenders and a shared national title in 1991 to the conference cellar.

What happened?

There have been several contributing factors. The program really hasn’t been stable for years. It is a program in limbo.

Expectations among fans and boosters that should have been tempered after the end of the Don James era remained ridiculously high.

The UW administration was often weak-kneed or slow in dealing with problems.

When it did act, it was poorly-timed or ill-informed.

The Huskies jumped the gun on getting rid of Jim Lambright and grabbing Rick Neuheisel.

Neuheisel was the glamorous choice. Young and fresh off four good seasons at Colorado, Neuheisel seemed to be a perfect coach to jump-start the UW program.

He did, at least on the field.

The Huskies got back to the Rose Bowl after the 2000 season and Neuheisel took the Huskies to the Holiday Bowl twice.

There was trouble off the field. Neuheisel was fired after the 2002 season when he lied to investigators about gambling in an NCAA basketball pool. Neuheisel wound up suing Washington for wrongful termination and won a hefty $4.7-million settlement.

Turns out he left a mess in Seattle.

Keith Gilbertson stumbled through two seasons and was quickly replaced by Tyrone Willingham.

The move was supposed to have the same impact as the Neuheisel hiring without the baggage.

Instead, talk about Willingham’s possible (and probable) dismissal has been circulating throughout Seattle since last season.

Willingham’s recruiting ability has been questioned.

The level of talent has dropped. But is the cupboard really empty in Seattle? Are the Huskies really this bad?

No. Clearly, Willingham’s teams do not reflect the talent level found on the roster. That’s good and bad news for Willingham.

It means he can bring in good players to UW. Jake Locker isn’t the only player with potential to have signed with the Huskies.

For whatever reason, Willingham hasn’t been able to mold them into winners. His players haven’t been developed to the degree found elsewhere in the Pacific-10 Conference.

Willingham is in his 14th season as a head coach. Much has been made of his successes. He took Stanford to four bowl games, most notably the Rose Bowl after the 1999 season, in seven years.

However, the trips to the Liberty Bowl and Sun Bowl were in his first two years and without his recruits. The Rose Bowl was a great accomplishment, but the Cardinal went 8-4 during a down year in the Pac-10.

He did lead Stanford to a 9-3 record and the Seattle Bowl in 2001 before leaving the Bay Area for Notre Dame.

The Fighting Irish finished 10-3 and went to the Gator Bowl that first season, but two seasons of struggles followed, including a blowout loss to Oregon State in the Insight Bowl. The Fighting Irish dumped Willingham and the Huskies grabbed him.

Between those bowls have been several low points. Willingham has had seven losing seasons and is headed for an eighth.

At Washington, he’s gone 2-9, 5-7 and 4-9 and has not finished higher than ninth in the Pac-10.

The Huskies just might hit bottom this season. They stand 0-5 overall with Oregon State headed to town on Saturday.

There are major shortcomings on both sides of the ball. Now that Locker is out, the offense is in trouble. The defense? It’s been in trouble all season. The Huskies give up 42 points a game and are last in the Pac-10 in total defense, allowing 495.4 yards a game.

Bad news for Willingham. This is his team, the one built with his recruits.

Maybe Willingham’s star has flamed out. Maybe he never burned as brightly as some believed.

Either way, his time in Seattle is limited. Maybe that’s bad news for the rest of the Pac-10.

Kevin Hampton is a columnist for the Gazette-Times. He can be reached at kevin.hampton@lee.net.

PAC-10

POWER POLL

1. USC: Washington State is next. Will the Trojans score more than 66 points?

2. CALIFORNIA: The Golden Bears need a win this week at Arizona with trips to USC and OSU coming up.

3. OREGON STATE: The Beavers can’t afford any sort of letdown in Seattle. The road has not been kind this season.

4. STANFORD: With the win over Arizona, Stanford is sitting pretty in second place in the conference standings. The Cardinal can stay there with a win at UCLA.

5. OREGON: The Ducks managed to get past UCLA, but they still need to prove themselves against a worthy opponent. They’ll have to wait.

6. ARIZONA: The Wildcats still need to learn how to win to take the step up to the top half of the Pac-10. They’re close, but 24-23 losses to Stanford don’t help.

7. ARIZONA STATE: The Sun Devils better figure out who they are, and fast, with four straight losses and counting. They get a week off before Oregon comes to Tempe.

8. UCLA: Every week is going to be a struggle for the Bruins, win or lose.

9. WASHINGTON: Will the Huskies get first win this week? They could look to last year’s hit on Jake Locker for inspiration. On the other hand, Locker’s out with an injury.

10. WASHINGTON STATE: Cougars regain bottom spot for complaining about Oregon State running up the score. Whining and winning never go together.