Washington made a statement last week during its 39-28 win over Michigan State.

The Spartans entered the contest ranked 11th in the country; UW was outside the national rankings. What we saw in the first half was a dismantling. The Washington offense, led by quarterback Michael Penix Jr., dissected the Michigan State secondary and put the Huskies up 29-8 before halftime.

It was as encouraging a performance as we’ve seen from Washington in some time, and given the stature of the opponent, the country took notice.

During ESPN’s College GameDay on Saturday morning, the gameday crew did a segment on the Pac-12, discussing how much stronger the top of the conference looks this year compared to last. The Huskies obviously made their way into that conversation, with former Michigan man and current ESPN analyst Desmond Howard offering a bold prediction for the Huskies.

“If they can go and handle their business (against Stanford) the same way they did a week ago, Washington might be a team that can get to the College Football Playoff,” Howard said.

Quite the statement from Howard. Washington fans will remember fondly that UW ended Howard’s Michigan career with a 34-14 win in the 1992 Rose Bowl. But game recognizes game.

UW is actually the last Pac-12 team to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff. After so much consternation about the prolonged absence from the CFP, and all the change teams like USC and Oregon have endured in the name of getting over that hump, what a story it would be if the Huskies provided the Pac-12 with its first return trip.

Of course, that’s a long way off.

Washington beat Kent State and Portland State in its first two weeks. The game against the Spartans was, in a number of ways, the first real test of coach Kalen DeBoer and his squad.

UW passed with flying colors. It’ll look to keep things rolling when it opens Pac-12 play Saturday against Stanford. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. PT on FS1.