SEATTLE — As the University of Washington players left the field at halftime on Saturday, they heard the boos from a disgruntled Husky Stadium crowd.
There would be more noise in the locker room.
With the Huskies trailing visiting Georgia State 14-0, “the (UW) coaches knew we were not playing our game,” said Washington nose tackle Danny Shelton. “And they definitely told us that in a loud manner.”
“There was some yelling,” agreed quarterback Cyler Miles.
Some players also vented their emotions, Miles added, “but it was all positive. There wasn’t any kind of negative yelling. … We had to get back to playing Husky football. We had to get back to playing the way we know how to play.
“We were down 14 (points), we had to respond, and that’s what the coaches told us,” Miles said.
To Washington head coach Chris Petersen, the first half was an exhibition of “very uninspired football. … And the approach (of the coaching staff) was that everybody just needs to do their jobs. That’s the bottom line.
“Stop looking around at what’s going on, take care of your area of responsibility, get the energy level up and let’s go play (the second half).”
Petersen said he was not angry at halftime. “We were just trying to get them going,” he said.
But after he has the chance to review film of Saturday’s first half, any anger “will come later,” Petersen said.
The Huskies responded in the second half by burying Georgia State with 45 unanswered points. A UW offense that managed just 73 yards, four first downs and no points in the first half came out in the second half and scored six touchdowns and a field goal, often making it look easy.
Washington’s defense, meanwhile, shut down the Panthers after halftime, holding them scoreless with just 42 yards and three first downs.
“At halftime the coaches did a great job of rallying us,” Shelton said. “They reminded us to focus on who we have right now in front of us, and to do our jobs to the best of our abilities. … Every team needs that, a wakeup call.
“And then in the second half,” he said, “we showed what we can do.”
Indeed, as bad as the first half was for Washington, the second half was conversely impressive.
“To their credit, they did adjust,” Petersen said of his players. “Sometimes there’s a tendency to panic a little bit (when facing a halftime deficit), but I think they honed in, focused, and got a few things done.”
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