What I'm Looking Foward to at Washington

I have reasonably low expectations for the teams I root for, probably as a result of being a lifelong fan of both the Cubs and the Saints. I really know how to pick a winner, don't I? I don't demand championships, though winning the SEC West now and then doesn't seem like an unreasonable request. I don't think that not dominating every possession of every game means the head coach should be fired. So instead of a list of expectations and demands, here's what I'm looking forward to seeing Saturday night in Seattle (in person, no less):

1) Russell Shepard. The season's success on offense this season rests on the shoulders of Jordan Jefferson, but the true joy (I hope) on that side of the ball is going to come from watching Shepard run the ball. Or catch the ball. Or take a handoff, or throw the ball, or hand it off, or stand on his head and gargle peanut butter. Ciron Black has been raving about him in practice, pretty much saying everybody needs to watch out and say their prayers. I hope to high heaven he's right.

2) A fast defense that can handle a mobile quarterback. Jake Locker is a legit dual threat, and if the linemen and linebackers aren't disciplined, he can do some serious damage with his legs. I think this will be a good test to see how far the front seven has come in terms of recognition and consistent tackling.

3) Execution. It's the first game of the season, so this part may be a little iffy, but the one thing I always, always, always want to see out of my team is that they look like they know what the heck they're doing. Sloppy play drives me up the wall, and can easily inject bad sentiment into your gut even if you win.

4) Something not referred to as the "Wild Tiger." Come on, people. Arkansas called it the Wildcat, then changed it to the Wild Hog, now Nutt runs the Wild Rebel, and tons of other schools are running the Wild [INSERT TEAM MASCOT HERE]. Can't LSU come up with something a little more original that's LSU-related but doesn't follow the exact same format as everybody else? If the collegefanatics rallying cry for the offense is "Unleash the Wantango!", could we call it the "Wild Wantango"?

5) Pressure from the front four. Fans love blitzing, and I'm sure players do too, but if you have to blitz to get pressure on the quarterback, a good team will find a way to exploit open spaces in coverage. I prefer to see my team blitz out of convenience, not out of desperation. Dropping seven into coverage does not hurt my feelings at all.

6) LSU fans putting up a good showing at Husky Stadium. A friend of mine was in Tucson in 2003 when LSU played Arizona, and she said she'd never seen so much purple in all her life. I'm hoping that Tiger fans will leave a similarly impressive mark on Seattle.