Look back: Victory over No. 1 Washington 'a turning point' for Arizona football in '92

Conference realignment and the endangerment of the Pac-12 means Saturday's showdown between the seventh-ranked Washington Huskies and the Arizona Wildcats in Tucson will be the last contest between the two schools as conference foes. 

Over the last three decades or so, the Arizona-Washington series has seemingly delivered one memorable moment after another.

The series has given fans the "Leap by the Lake" in 1998, when quarterback Ortege Jenkins flipped in the end zone for a game-winning touchdown late in Seattle. It's a play that's one of the most memorable in UA football history.

It also included what's been referred to as the "immaculate interception"; up five with 2:49 to play in 2009, a pass from UA quarterback Nick Foles ricocheted off the bottom of his receiver's foot, only to bounce up into the hands of a waiting Washington defender who returned it for the UW game-winning pick-six (Arizona led 33-21 inside three minutes to play; the final was 36-33 Washington).

The series also provided an overtime thriller against the College Football Playoff-bound Huskies in 2016 and a Casey Skowron game-winning field goal in 2014 in Tucson, which was the last win for the UA in the series; UW has won six straight.

But one of the most memorable games in the storied series is Arizona's victory over top-ranked Washington in 1992, when the Wildcats snapped the Huskies' 22-game winning streak and won 16-3. That is Arizona's last win over a No. 1 team; the Wildcats are 2-6 all-time against top-ranked teams.

Led by College Football Hall of Famers Rob Waldrop and Tedy Bruschi, safety Tony Bouie and linebacker Sean Harris, among others, the Wildcats' celebrated "Desert Swarm" defense took shape that season.

"That's one of those games and one of those moments that you never forget, because it was a special moment. To have the No. 1-ranked team come into our stadium, and we all felt like we were going to beat them," said former Arizona running back Lamont Lovett. "The whole week, it was a build-up. The nation didn't feel that way, but we knew internally that we were going to kill them. It was one of those things where it just built the entire week."

Lovett, an analyst for UA football radio broadcasts, and Desert Swarm safety Brandon Sanders reflected on Arizona's most historic win over Washington on ESPN Tucson's "Spears and Ali" this week. Here's what they had to say:

What do you remember most about the win over Washington?

Lovett: "Coach Tomey used to walk into the locker room, and there was a meeting room we had and he walked into the meeting room before the game and he  would always have some words of wisdom and then we would walk out to the field. But he (UA coach Dick Tomey) knew what button to push that week. He waited until the last second before we're getting ready to go out and walks into the (locker) room and his face is beet-red and he's pacing back and forth — and he's got this scowl on his face. Then he said, 'Let's go out there and kick their blucking blass.' (sic) The room exploded. Everyone was almost on top of the desks and it was like a powder keg. We knew that it was going down. We were so hyped for that game.

"It ended up being a raucous crowd, it was packed out and it was a sold-out crowd. We knocked them off and it was something I'll never forget. It was an amazing game." 

Back to homepage

Subscriber Login

Keep reading with a digital access subscription.

Subscribe now

Sanders: "I was telling our staff and Coach (Jedd) Fisch in our Sunday meeting: we had a quiet confidence about ourselves. We had run a string of wins together against some top programs, but I just remember our laser-focus. I can still remember what our checks were when they went empty, I can remember their personnel, and my memory is a little shaky as it is — I've run through a bunch of brick walls. Especially on defense, we were laser-focused on our checks, we were laser-focused on what they wanted to do and how they were going to try and attack us. We knew them inside and out, and I think was a big part of our confidence. When you studied and have done the preparation and the hard work, now it's just going out there and displaying it in front of the whole nation. We all felt that way, especially on defense." 

Earlier in the season, Arizona lost to No. 1 Miami 8-7 at the Orange Bowl; how much did that loss prepare you for the Washington game?

Sanders: "We believed we should've won. But the one thing I could tell from that day ... is that we had come together. We had set a standard of our beliefs and set a standard of how we were going to play, and now it was up to our coaches to hold us to that bargain. We had finally found who we wanted to be as far as a defense and as a team. You could see it. You could see the belief, and even though we fell short, something like that." 

Lovett: "That was the year we knew had something special. We actually knew before we played Miami, because that defense was so brutal. ... And they were just fierce and it was a no-name defense because no one knew who they were. They were just dominant. We knew from that point on that the defense was different. ...

"They were just brutalizing quarterbacks, and it was almost like a joke, 'Which quarterback is getting knocked out of the game?' because they were knocking quarterbacks out of the game.

"Bruschi was going crazy, and it was a fun time. We went on a (five)-game winning streak, and it all started after that loss to Miami. I remember in that locker room after the game, the whole team was crying, and Brandon Sanders said, 'We're not losing any more games. We're not losing anymore.' That's when we went on the six-game win streak." 

Sanders: "Everyone always says that part, but I remember saying, 'I feel sorry for UCLA next week,' because I knew they thought they were getting the team that was 1-1-1, not this team that just lost this game and is about to go on this whirlwind of what it ended up being. That's how I felt. We stood toe-to-toe in the lion's den."

How much did the Washington win change the path of your season?

Lovett: "I know we didn't finish the season undefeated, but it was just one of things where it was a great moment. It was definitely a great moment for the team and it was kind of a turning point. We recognized that we were a national-level team and we can play with the best of them; we recognized that. It was different.

"You walked around a little bit differently and understood that we were kind of getting to the big-time a little bit. It was a great time to be associated with the program and something I'll never forget."