Washington poses threat to Ohio St.

The Huskies are coming off wins over Syracuse and No. 22 Boise State

SEATTLE (AP) — They just ended Boise State’s 14-game winning streak. They have allowed just two touchdowns in eight quarters this season. They are waking up a fan base that is starting to return from apathy following consecutive seasons in the Pac-10 finishing 10th, ninth and ninth.

Now, after more than 70,000 shook Husky Stadium during Saturday’s 24-10 upset of the then-No. 22 Boise State Broncos like it was the heyday of coach Don James leading them to Rose Bowls again, the Washington Huskies (2-0) have a question to the nation about their budding resurgence.

Are you watching?

“I hope we crack the Top 25 after this, but who can tell? We did this against Syracuse last week and we came out against Boise and took it to them,” linebacker E.J. Savannah said after his game-high 13 tackles and one fumble recovery gave Washington its first win over a ranked team since the 2003 Apple Cup.

Ranked No. 29

The Huskies got 95 votes in The Associated Press poll released Sunday, good for 29th — ahead of TCU and behind Alabama.

They feel like they are proving things that people should be noticing by now.

“We showed we can be very physical in a big game against a big opponent,” linebacker Dan Howell said.

But the opponents get bigger now. No. 10 Ohio State (2-0) comes to Seattle this week. It’s the second of a four-week gauntlet that will send Washington to 11th-ranked UCLA after that, and then brings No. 1 Southern California to Husky Stadium.

“It’s a great place to be, but we know we are going to play one of the great teams in the country,” coach Tyrone Willingham said of Ohio State.

OSU may be vulnerable

The Buckeyes seem to be ripe for an upset that would really revive Washington’s program.

Ohio State’s offense, with quarterback Todd Boeckman replacing Heisman Trophy-winner Troy Smith, turned the ball over five times in an ugly, 20-2 victory over Akron Saturday. And running back Chris “Beanie” Wells had just 46 yards on 16 carries — 20 on one play — against Youngstown State the previous week.

“It seems like we’re either flatlining or getting worse,” Ohio State lineman Kirk Barton said after Saturday’s struggles.

But Wells did rebound for 143 yards on 20 carries Saturday. And Ohio State’s defense has yet to allow a touchdown this season.

“The stakes are much higher as we get on the plane to head to Washington,” coach Jim Tressel said.