No. 7 Oregon will face unranked Washington on Saturday night in Seattle in a game that, before the season, looked like it could be one of the biggest games of the Pac-12 season. After all, the Huskies technically won the Pac-12 north last year but were unable to play in the conference championship game due to COVID-19. The Ducks took their place and went on to top USC. The rivalry is big on the field and, since both programs are located in the Pacific Northwest, typically bleeds over into recruiting.
Don't tell Washington coach Jimmy Lake that, though. The second-year head coach of the Huskies was asked about the battle on the recruiting trail on Monday and didn't hold back.
"That is way more pumped up than it is," he said. "Our battles are really the schools we go against, that have academic prowess like the University of Washington -- Notre Dame, Stanford, USC. We go with a lot of battles, toe to toe, all the way to the end, with those schools. So I think that's made up and pumped up in [the media's] world. In our world, we battle more academically prowess teams."
That didn't sit well with Oregon president Michael Schill, who responded to the quote in an article in The Oregonian.
"UW is a wonderful school with a great football history," he said. "I have great respect and affection for its president, its academic and football program and its former exceptional football coach, coach [Chris] Petersen. I look forward to our team meeting theirs on the gridiron this Saturday."
Well, hello. The high road from an academic standpoint combined with a passive aggressive shot at Lake's ability to coach is quite a zinger. Oregon currently ranks No. 8 in the nation in the 247Sports 2022 team recruiting rankings, while the Washington is No. 54. The Ducks are No. 9 in the 247Sports team talent rankings and the Huskies are No. 17.
What's more, both schools are part of the American Association of Universities (AAU) -- an organization of 66 prestigious research universities that "transform lives through education, research, and innovation," according to its website.
Maybe Lake should have researched that prior to making his comments. The Ducks and Huskies will tee it up at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Husky Stadium.
