Washington’s loss to USC left the Huskies at 3-2 overall and 0-2 in Big Ten play, but one of the clearer bright spots came from a cornerback who answered a direct challenge from his coaches.
Dylan Robinson, a second-year corner for Washington, turned in what head coach Jedd Fisch called the best game of his career in the 25-21 defeat against the No. 19 Trojans on Oct.
- The 6-foot-3, 210-pound defender finished with five total tackles, four of them solo, and a pass defended.
He also gave up a touchdown on a 50/50 ball that the USC receiver wrestled away after it slipped through Robinson’s hands, and he was flagged for pass interference in the third quarter on a play Washington believed should have gone the other way.
Even with those rough spots, Fisch said Robinson showed a level of confidence the staff had been waiting to see.
"It was definitely his best game," Huskies head coach Jedd Fisch said in a weekly news conference Monday. "As he's, each week gotten better, we're now looking at - first year as a starter.
It was his fifth game starting, other than a couple games where there were some injuries a year ago, and he, by far, played the most confident. ... Certainly looked like he got better playing football."
That performance came after Fisch and defensive coordinator Ryan Walters pushed Robinson to be more aggressive in the lead-up to the USC game. Walters said Tuesday that Robinson responded the way they wanted.
"(Robinson) was a lot more aggressive than he's shown in the past," Washington defensive coordinator Ryan Walters said in a weekly news conference Tuesday. " ... (We challenged him to) just to have the confidence to go out there and play the game he's capable of playing and I thought he did that."
Robinson said the message from the staff was clear, and he pointed to the play of Emmanuel Karnley as part of what helps set the tone on the back end. Karnley, a fourth-year corner and Virginia Cavaliers transfer, returned to the starting lineup Saturday after missing the previous two games with a soft tissue injury. He is listed at 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, and in three games has recorded nine total tackles, seven solo, and four passes defended.
"Every play is gonna be aggressive," Robinson said in a weekly news conference Tuesday. "I've got to match that on the other side of the field.
My coaches always emphasize that (with) my size and stuff like that. So, when I see (Karnley), at his size, doing what he does, I got to go out there and make a play."
For Washington, Robinson’s growth figures to matter even more as the Big Ten schedule rolls on and the Huskies keep running into more talented passing attacks. Against USC, he took a meaningful step in the direction his coaches wanted.
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