The game was circled on calendars in Seattle and South Bend, Ind., from the moment last December when Tyrone Willingham was hired to coach at the University of Washington shortly after being fired at Notre Dame.
The hype hasn't eased in the ensuing months, and today's visit to Husky Stadium by the No. 16-ranked, but no longer unbeaten Fighting Irish has certainly attracted its share of media and fan interest.
Both Willingham and his successor, Charlie Weis, are trying not to get caught up in the buzz. But Willingham, typically a master of understatement, can appreciate the story line between his new team and his former team.
"I don't think I've ever downplayed my emotions regarding any football game," Willingham said during a teleconference call Monday. "This football game is important, just as the last one was important. The fact that you have players that I recruited, that I spent time in their homes, that does make it just a little bit different."
Weis wants no part in building the game up to be, say, a Super Bowl. That much is guaranteed since the Huskies have started off a disappointing 1-2, picking up their first win Saturday over I-AA Idaho, while Notre Dame's momentum was stopped at home by Michigan State after road wins at Pittsburgh and Michigan.
"This week will not be a week of distractions," Weis said Sunday. "They [the players] won't be talking about it, and neither will I."
Washington quarterback Isaiah Stanback said that there was a feeling of "big relief" when the Huskies broke an eight-game losing streak that stretched back to last season.
"We needed that for ourselves, and we needed to really jumpstart a new era," said Stanback, who has big shoes to fill himself in succeeding three-year starter Cody Pickett. "We now remember how it feels [to win]."
Willingham said that he's just trying to do what most in his profession are regardless of the circumstances.
"I apologize if I'm too simplistic in my approach," he said. "What we're trying to accomplish is getting wins on Saturday and have our young men be good people, good students and play great football."
It's only been five years since Washington previously played in the Rose Bowl, but it seems like a lifetime ago. The program was in disarray when Willingham arrived after the Huskies finished 1-10 last season under Keith Gilbertson.
