Things to watch: Ethan Garbers makes return to Seattle when Washington hosts UCLA

SEATTLE – Here are three things to watch for when Washington (5-5, 3-4 Big Ten) hosts UCLA (4-5, 3-4) on Friday night at Husky Stadium.

Surging Bruins

Just a month ago, the Bruins looked rudderless. UCLA, under first-year coach DeShaun Foster, was 1-5. Its offense looked nonexistent, failing to score 20 points during its first six games. UCLA’s lone victory was a 16-13 win against Hawaii.

Instead, the Bruins have roared back into bowl contention. UCLA enters Friday riding a three-game winning streak, having beaten Rutgers, Nebraska and Iowa – the team that thumped UW 40-16 a month ago.

The Bruins need two wins from their remaining three games to reach the postseason, a potentially remarkable turnaround for Foster. UCLA also has USC and Fresno State remaining on its schedule.

The Bruins have averaged 27.3 points per game during the past three weeks. All three wins have been by one possession.

Garbers’ UW return

The odds were stacked against Ethan Garbers when he arrived at Washington. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound quarterback from Newport Beach, California, signed with the Huskies before the 2020 season, joining a group that included Dylan Morris, Jacob Sirmon and Kevin Thompson.

It wasn’t necessarily the quarterbacks on campus who shrouded Garbers’ future on Montlake. On Nov. 23, 2018 – before Garbers committed – Washington received a pledge from 2021 five-star quarterback Sam Huard, the Husky legacy who was breaking high school passing records at Kennedy Catholic High School in Burien, Washington.

Garbers redshirted his only season at UW, winning scout team MVP. He departed as Huard arrived and Morris, the incumbent starter, prepared for his second season under center. Garbers landed at UCLA, where he has played 37 games and passed for 3,641 yards and 27 touchdowns.

Garbers hasn’t faced his former team. He was the backup quarterback when Dorian Thompson-Robinson led the Bruins to a 40-32 win against the Huskies on Sept. 30, 2022, ending Washington’s unbeaten start to the season.

After a slow start to the 2024 season, Garbers has been key to UCLA’s resurgence. He’s completed 70 of 97 passes for 805 yards in his past three games, and he’s thrown eight of his 12 touchdowns during that span. Garbers also passed for a career-high 383 yards in UCLA’s 35-32 win against Rutgers and had a career-long 49-yard rush.

Coleman bounce back?

Jonah Coleman is coming off the least-productive game of his short UW career. The 5-9, 229-pound junior running back was held to just 24 yards on 11 carries against No. 4 Penn State.

UCLA’s front seven isn’t on Penn State’s level, but it is coming off an impressive performance against Iowa. The Hawkeyes rushed for only 80 yards on 31 carries, and Kaleb Johnson, the Big Ten’s leading rusher, was held to a season-low 49 yards on 18 carries. Johnson, for reference, had 166 yards on 21 carries against Washington on Oct. 12.

Bruins senior edge rusher Oluwafemi Oladejo’s 10 tackles for loss ranks fourth among all Big Ten players, and UW coach Jedd Fisch called UCLA senior defensive lineman Jay Toia “the best nose tackle in college football” on Monday.

Junior linebacker Carson Schwesinger may be the biggest standout in UCLA’s defense. Recently announced as a Butkus Award (best linebacker) and a Burlsworth Award (best former walk-on) semifinalist, Schwesinger’s 10.2 tackles per game leads the Big Ten and ranks seventh nationally.

Coleman and Washington’s ability to rush against Schwesinger and UCLA’s formidable front seven will be crucial to the UW offense and any potential win.