Late in the third quarter of their Week 3 matchup at Michigan State on Saturday, Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze had more yards (180) than the entire Spartans squad (164). That pretty much sums up the day.

Behind a 473-yard, 4-touchdown performance from quarterback Michael Penix Jr., Washington rained all over a Spartans team in disarray in a 41-7 win.

The Huskies’ offense was on from the start, scoring touchdowns on five of seven first-half drives, with three drives going for more than 50 yards.

But forget the brilliant offensive performance. That wasn’t the biggest story of the day for the Huskies.

Here are three takeaways from UDub’s big win…

Pass defense rises to the occasion

A unit that was a hindrance to the Huskies’ playoff pursuit last year has now become a strength, as evidenced by the job UDub’s DBs did on Michigan State quarterback Noah Kim. Kim completed just 12 of his 31 passes for 136 yards with one interception, the Huskies’ third straight dominant defensive performance.

Washington has allowed just 36 points on the year and opposing starting quarterbacks have completed just 37 of 83 passes.

If the Huskies keep this up against the Pac-12’s aerial acrobatics, watch out.

Pass-happy Penix takes it to another level

Penix was pulled with Washington up 41-0 and 2:57 left in the third quarter. By then, he’d done plenty of damage.

The Heisman contender completed 27 of his 35 passes in topping 400 yards for the third straight game to open the season. Last year’s national leader in passing yardage per game, Penix might just repeat.

And he’s moving the ball around, as usual. The Huskies’ Big 3 — Odunze, Jalen McMillan, and Ja’Lynn Polk — all had big days. Odunze caught 8 passes for the aforementioned 180 yards, McMillan had 4 grabs for 96 yards and Polk had 5 catches for 118 yards and a score.

Even tight end Jack Westover got in the act with three first-half touchdowns.

Huskies punish an MSU team in disarray

Good teams kick other teams when they’re down, and the Spartans are certainly down with their head coach, Mel Tucker, on indefinite suspension because of sexual harassment allegations.

The Huskies jumped all over Michigan State and rarely let up. Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb was doing extensive pre-snap motions late in an almost 40-point win, with backup backups in. For good measure, Washington finished with an over 450-yard advantage in total offense after putting up 713 yards.

Good. Never take your foot off the gas pedal.