Bob Rondeau on UW Facing Michigan in the National Championship

Legendary University of Washington Broadcaster Bob Rondeau joins Dave Softy Mahler and Dick Fain to talk about the Huskies playing in the National Championship next week against Michigan, what he has seen from the ‘23 Dawgs, and heading down to Houston.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
The National Championship. Your exclusive homefor the Huskies Run for the National Championship
Monday night at four thirty is SportsRadio ninety three point three KJR FM.
Now back to Suffie, India.Yours takes a shotgun, snap, he's
back to pass pressure coming, goesto fade. We're going to the n

(00:24):
Elysha Jackson nuts the ball light.The Huskies are headed to Houston. First
down Washington at the Arizona fifteen yardline. They trailed twenty one to twenty
a minute and a half to gointo the third quarter. From the shotgun
to Yasa sopob Let's coming at him. Throws over the middle, ball up
and down. That's down. Watchingcome the Cats, made by Chris Jurgens,

(00:48):
the freshman with the score over themiddle. All right, we are
back here for the Central Board Restaurantin Valvue. Two generations of Husky play
by play voices right there, BabyTony castor code Bob Rondo. We'll get
to Bob and just a split second, but our winners and our delta,
we fly. You buy contest,we get the air. You're responsible for
everything else. You're ready. TravisClark and blythe Wassick are going to Houston

(01:15):
maybe courtesy of our friends at DeltaAirlines and Delta dot Com. Jackson's got
your information. He'll be contacting you. Nobody predicted twenty nine, twenty six.
Nobody, but they were the closestto the pin and they came in
yesterday. There was one more thatwas the point off that came in today.
So it always pays to text early. So Travis Clark and blythe Wassack

(01:38):
are going to Houston courtesy of ourfriends at Delta. They got NonStop tickets
right now on the website, goingto Houston, leaving Sunday, coming back
Tuesday at Delta dot Com. Oneguy, I love it. One guy
that I know is going to Houstonbecause he told me he was skipping the
Sugar Bowl and he's saving his moneyfor the National Championship game. Bob Rondo
with us on the show. Bobby, how are you? I'm doing great,

(02:01):
Softy, Thanks for having me on. It's great to hear your voice.
My friend. What do you makeof this? Dude? Can you
freaking believe what's going on in Montlake? Pal Absolutely crazy. It's been that
way all season long. There isa certain charmed nature to this football team.
I think we would all agree,and let's hope that charm lasts for
one more game. It's gonna beawesome. Well, you called a lot

(02:23):
of great quarterback performances for this teamover the years. Was that the greatest
you've ever seen on Monday? Absolutely? You know, I know Coach new
Hazel was mentioning Marcus Dujasispo the threehundred two hundred game, which probably was
a standard. Certainly Cody Pigott hadsome huge games throwing the football, but

(02:46):
this situation, a game of thatmagnitude and a game of that kind of
excellence, I think on parallel atleast in my experience of Washington. Yeah,
well, what do you make ofhow Klin de Borr pulled this off?
You know, Dick and I havebeen talking about Peterson's last recruiting class,
guys like Zion, guys like TroyFatan, who Braylen Trice. How
did Kayla to Board go from fourto eight with Jadeen de Laura plant in

(03:09):
that stupid flag on our fifty yardline to two years later playing in the
National Championship on Monday. Well,you bring a style and a culture and
all of those kind of coach speakthings, and you get some guys that
believe in what you're doing. Yeah, we went and saw Boys in the

(03:29):
Boat on Christmas morning, the dayhad opened, and that was a true
theme event of that time, ofthat film, of that accomplishment. You
gotta believe we can do this,and these guys have bought into the notion,
Hey, we can do this.There is no situation that we are
going to be uncomfortable in. Whenit gets bad will be good, and

(03:53):
when it gets worse will be better. It's been really impressive to watch.
Obviously, you know time and placeand the nature of college football these days.
I think it's maybe a little biteasier in this time of free agency
to stock your team the transfer portaland so on and so forth. But
make no mistake, this is aculture that has been just so welcome at

(04:17):
Washington. Guys buy an end toit, and it's a system that is,
again I think, pretty unique incollege football today. The way this
team runs its offense. Bob,did anything surprise you about what you saw
on Monday night? How the gameplayed out, any element of the game,
You're like, wow, I justI didn't see that coming. As
also well, The first thing Ithink that surprised me, and probably it

(04:40):
shouldn't have, Dick, was justhow CRISP Washington was, particularly on the
offensive side of the ball. Theywere sharp as TX and I was thinking
to myself, you know, compareand contrast this team to the one that
we saw playing the Apple Cup.Unrecognizable compared to that team and the progress

(05:01):
they made going from the Apple Cupto the Pac twelve championship game, that
was a different looking team. AndI think that continued into the Sugar Bowl
the other night, and God saveMichigan if that continues into the National Championship
game, because these guys have beenjust spot on in their play on the
offensive side of the ball. Pennixwas absolutely ridiculous throwing the football in that

(05:24):
game. As we all know,Malamala Kennedy rongin Neville Cunningham. Is this
the greatest offensive line of all time, the one we're seeing right now in
Washington. I'm not sure I'm readyto make that call, Saffie, and
I'm going to be a whole parthere, and I've got a huge place
in my heart for that ninety onefootball team and all that they brought to

(05:46):
the table. But you know,you're talking about a whole bunch of pros,
Lincoln Kennedy and all Pro Supy MalaMala and all Pro Ed Cunningham,
a great pro just littered with proson both sides of the ball. So
I'm not quite ready to go there. While these guys have been absolutely spectacular

(06:08):
in protecting Mike Pennix, and Ithink that's a great reflection on Scott Hoff.
There's a reason they kept him onthe coaching staff when the change was
made, and that reason is beingborn out game in and game out.
These guys are just so cohesive andplaying so well together. I don't know
if physically are they the most dominantoffensive line in the country. Somebody beyond

(06:31):
my pay grade would have to makethat decision, but they may well be
the most cohesive offensive line in thecountry. They're playing really smart football.
Bob, take us back to thatninety two Rose Ball and what you remember
about that week leading up to thegame. What were the talking points,
what were the matchups that you werereally focused on and that the nation was

(06:53):
really focused on going into that game. Well, you'll recall it, Michigan
Dick was very highly rated doing itthat they were three in the country.
I believe going into the game maybefour at at worst. Their defense was
said to be much as this oneis almost impenetrable, and their offense Elvis
Grback playing quarterback. You know,they had great weapons on the offensive side,

(07:17):
obviously, including a Heisman Trophy winner, and oh here they come.
But if I'm being honest, mythoughts going into that game, where how
bad are we going to beat theseguys? Really? And that's just that's
just true. You know. Doyou try to convince yourself that this is
a great matchup, build some respectfor the opponent, and that's healthy and
all. But that ninety one teamhad just shown itself time and time again

(07:41):
to be that dominant a football team. And I don't care who were they
they were going to put on theother side of the field that day.
I thought Washington would win it andwin it handling well, I thought.
I also thought that might happen lastMonday in New Orleans, and they came
close to they came very close.What is your gut on Monday? Tell
you now, Bob, Well,it's much the same thing again. And

(08:05):
you know, I build a lotof respect for Texas softie. You know
how much I respect Steve Sarkeesian,although I thought his play calling at times
was a little curious. Getting awayfrom the run game against Washington, Michigan
not going to do that. Thatthat's a scary part of the game for
me, and all your guests thisafternoon have been kind of saying the same

(08:26):
thing. You know, the theWashington middle on defense concerns me a little
bit. Uh, you know,the interior line into the linebacking corps and
into the safeties. That that scaresme some. In this game. I'm
not gonna lie, but you know, I think the Huskies are going to
go in just do what you do. You know, if you've got to

(08:48):
throw it all over the yard,throw it all over the yard. And
Michigan will be expecting that, theywill be trying to prepare for that.
And it's going to be interesting tosee what kind of defensive gimmicks, if
you will, or trends and soforth they're going to show against Washington and
this Husky passing game. But itis one thing to look at it on

(09:09):
film. It's one thing to watchit, you know, in a game
such as we have the other night, it's another thing to play against it
entirely. I think anybody who's playedthe game will tell you that the real
deal is sometimes different than what youthink it's going to be. And again,
if the Hoskies can execute offensively asthey did the other night, I

(09:30):
think they're going to be in greatshape in this game on Monday. Well,
it's interesting you brought up how youfelt about that. Looking to you
and I had forgotten that Don Jamespulled his defensive starters which allowed a touchdown,
and he also sat on the balllike the five yard line to end
the game, which prevented a touchdown. So instead of thirty four to fourteen,
that could have very easily been aforty one to seven win. And

(09:52):
I'm thinking, does forty one sevenresonate enough not to share a national champion?
Well, and that's that's the sadnessthat I still have about that game,
the sort of incompleteness that we're notgoing to see on Monday. We're
gonna have an answer on Friday.We did not have an answer in that

(10:13):
game. The Hoskies had done absolutelyeverything they could do, and it's just
my great regret, my great lamentgoing back that they didn't get a chance
to play one more against Miami.How good would that have been? And
I think they'd kicked the tar outof them as well and been an undisputed

(10:33):
national champion. In my mind,they are an undisputed national champion, best
football team that I've seen before andsince, and hopefully these these guys this
year will take their place right nextdoor to them. Biggest game in Husky
football history, pal on Monday night. End the story. That's it?
I mean, this is it'll getbigger than this, you know. Me

(10:54):
and Mario going back and forth,kind of busting his chops about if the
Hoski's win this, the ninety oneteam gets bumped, they may not be
the best team, but this wouldbe the greatest accomplishment. Is that fair
to say in Husky history? Ithink it is. And again with the
circumstance, had that ninety one teamhad the chance that this team has to
play one more to play for allof it to play for an undisputed championship,

(11:18):
then we might be talking a littlebit differently. But I agree with
you, Softy, there is noquestion this is, at least in my
experience, and certainly I think inall of ours as we go back aways.
There has never been one bigger thanthis. You can go back to
any number of regular season games,a lot of USC games back through the
years, Apple Cups when both wereranked, and you know you're playing for

(11:41):
the Rose Bowl, all those kindsof things, some of the Oregon games.
But a game that has as muchon the line as this one does.
Before God and Country on Monday Night, I would agree with you,
there's been none bigger. Where willyou be Sunday night? And how much
room is on your credit card?Yeah? Well, I'm gonna give Travis

(12:01):
Clark and Bryce Locke at a callhere because we're still looking for some su
plainting. Now. Oh, comeon, I'm gonna be hanging out with
with my man Dick Baird and andhis plan. We're gonna be having a
lot of fun and hopefully celebrating wellinto the night on Monday night with I
love it. It's gonna be gonnabe great fun. Yeah, Gene is
gonna be with you, by theway, so take care of her all

(12:22):
right, love it all right?Man, Great for yourself, you bet
great stuff. We'll see you downthere, buddy, go dogs. Thanks
Bob, okay, thanks fellas allright man, Bob Rondo with us on
the air. Great to hear hisvoice. Uh, it's just getting bigger
and bigger. It's getting more real. But how fun is this? Dave?
We just talked to freaking Warren Moon, Bob ron don't mark us two

(12:45):
younds or sopen Mike Holmgren about theHusky What did I tell you two guys
last week or two weeks ago?We were sitting right here and I told
both you guys, if the Seahawksare playing for a playoff spot on Sunday
and the Huskies are in the nationalchampionship game, remember I think we may
have brought that up before the Oregongame. Dude, this is exactly what
we should be doing. It's theonly thing that matters in this city right
now, only thing. It's thebiggest college football game of all time in

(13:09):
the city of Seattle, in thestate of Washington. We're gonna come back.
We got a lot to go over. Congrats by the way to our
two winners from Delta Airlines, TravisClark and blythe Wasshsack are head to Houston
currency off Delta dot Com. We'regonna break come back with more from a
Central Bar and restaurant in Bellevue,right here on ninety three three KJRFF