Three years ago, quarterback Johnny DuRocher transferred to Washington after spending a year at Oregon as the Ducks’ third string quarterback.
DuRocher returned to Autzen last year and performed cleanup duties to jeers from the crowd in the Huskies’ 45-21 loss.
Since then, the Graham, Wash., native hasn’t seen much playing time. A wrist injury sidelined DuRocher toward the end of last season.
Until three weeks ago, DuRocher had slipped to fourth on the Huskies’ depth chart – behind Stanback, the starter, backup Carl Bonnell and true freshman Jake Locker.
Then the Huskies started losing quarterbacks. Stanback went down with a severely sprained right foot in Washington’s 27-17 loss to Oregon State on Oct. 14 and Bonnell inherited the starting job.
Bonnell sprained his left shoulder in a loss against California on Oct. 21. He started against Arizona State on Oct. 28, but sustained a concussion in the fourth quarter after a hit by defensive end Dexter Dravis.
DuRocher replaced Bonnell and completed a drive that culminated in the touchdown that tied the game. Washington ended up losing 26-23 in overtime.
Despite DuRocher’s heroics, Bonnell will start this weekend. But DuRocher – now officially listed as the backup – is likely to see action if Bonnell can’t shake off the lingering effects of his injuries from Washington’s last two games. Bonnell also struggled in the first half against the Sun Devils completing just 9 of 23 passes for 67 yards and two interceptions.
“Bonnell is beat up pretty good right now,” Washington’s offensive coordinator Tim Lappano said this week.
If DuRocher takes the field on Saturday, he’ll probably do so to a barrage of heckling from Duck fans who have yet to forgive his defection to the Huskies. But there’s not bad blood between DuRocher and his former teammates.
“Johnny DuRocher, he’s a good guy, you know,” Oregon defensive tackle Matt Toeaina said. “But then again, he’s on the opposite side that I am. So we’re going to treat him like any other quarterback. We’re just going to prepare for whatever he brings to the table.”
Sure Hands
Behind the many standout receivers in the Pac-10, there’s Washington’s steady standout, Sonny Shackelford. The 6-foot-2-inch, 180-pound Los Angeles-native has 38 receptions for 554 yards – a 14.6 yards per game average – and six touchdowns. He’s also completed one pass this season, which went for 41 yards and a touchdown to fellow wide receiver Anthony Russo in the Huskies’ loss to Arizona State. Shackelford also caught his sixth touchdown in that game.
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