The Seattle football scene has not been this bright and optimistic since... well probably ever. At CenutryLink Field the Seattle Seahawks open up their year next weekend and are a popular Super Bowl pick, although they have been for several years now, and thus a simple prediction is not the excitement starter it used to be. 

Up north over on Montlake at Husky Stadium, 2016 is without a doubt the most highly anticipated season in the Chris Peterson era, as they start the season ranked no. 14 in the country. All offseason college football analysts from various media outlets were even tabbing them as a Rose Bowl dark horse, and they certainly looked the part against Rutgers Saturday.

Utilizing the power of the big play, the Dawgs routed the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 48-13 at Husky Stadium. Quarterback Jake Browning welcomed new Scarlet Knights head coach Chris Ash by throwing a 43-yard bomb to Chico McClatcher on his second pass of the season, before throwing for two more.

Browning threw for 287 yards in the air (277 coming in the first half), completing 18 of his 27 passes. Washington raced out to a 24-0 lead after the first quarter and never looked back.

Speaking of not looking back, junior wide receiver John Ross came back in a big way from an injury that wiped out his 2015 season. Ross caught Browning's other two touchdown passes and ran back a kickoff 92 yards for another score. Ross finished the game with five receptions and 90 receiving yards and three total touchdowns.

Saturday's game marks the third straight game the Huskies have scored 40 points or more and was key. Their win against Rutgers, while not the strongest foe, is key in gaining some early momentum before running a gauntlet of a Pac-12 schedule. Week 5 is when the Huskies play the Stanford Cardinal, kicking off what should be a labor some Pac-12 North division. 

Never minding the strength or lack there of Saturday's opponent, a key takeaway from the game is how sharp the Huskies looked in all three facets of the game. Of course, the offense will get all the publicity the rest of the week, but Ross highlighted an extremely effective special teams unit that also included Dante Pettis taking a punt back 68 yards for a touchdown. And not to mention, the defense was superb.

Next up for UW are the Idaho Vandals, who come to Husky Stadium sporting a 1-0 record of their own.