As the UCLA Bruins stare down an 0-12 season, let’s look back at some other notable winless college football teams from this century, starting with the 2008 Washington Huskies. Washington went a pathetic 0-12 in Jake Locker’s sophomore season with the Huskies, but how quickly were they able to turn things around?
The year before Washington went winless, the Huskies went 4-9 in the 2007 season with a 2-7 record in the Pac-12, picking up wins over Cal and a Jim Harbaugh-led Stanford team. Even with Washington going winless in 2008, they certainly came close to some victories, losing 28-27 to No. 15 BYU and lost 16-13 to a 2-11 Washington State team.
Locker missed most of the season with an injury, which certainly helped create an anemic Washington offense that averaged only 13.2 points per game on the season. The UCLA Bruins gave Washington one of their 12 losses, overcoming a dreadful performance from quarterback Kevin Craft to pick up a 27-7 win. Washington will have a chance to return the favor this year, with UCLA set to host Washington in November.
Following the 0-12 season, Washington went 5-7 in 2009 in Steve Sarkisian’s first season with the Huskies. Washington was back above .500 in 2010 with a 7-6 season, which was the first of three consecutive 7-6 seasons for the Huskies.
It shows how quickly college football programs can turn things around, which is what UCLA must do. There’s a chance UCLA doesn’t finish the 2025 season without a win but things aren’t looking promising as we move farther into Big Ten Conference play.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: How quickly did 2008 Washington Huskies rebound from their winless season?
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
