UW Football Notebook | Emmert voices support for team

Washington president Mark Emmert returned from the weekend to find the inbox on his e-mail account flooded with missives including questions and concerns about the direction of the Huskies' football program.

So Emmert took a step he's not sure he ever has before in roughly 13 years as a university president or chancellor, sending out a form reply to everyone who e-mailed.

Emmert wrote in his two-paragraph response that "as a native of Washington and a UW alumnus, I know very well the competitive traditions of our university. Like many of you, I grew up with Husky Football. I share your frustration and disappointment with the team's current position. The same is true of everyone involved with the program.

"I also know that the young men on our team are giving the UW everything they have. They are working hard and hanging together during this challenging time. As they do so, I intend to give them my full support and encouragement each and every game. They deserve no less. They are our Huskies, and they should be treated as such. There are five games to be played this season, and our team needs our support."

Washington is 2-6 after a 48-41 home loss to Arizona on Saturday.

Emmert said later that "this is a way for me to let everyone know I'm paying attention to them. I read each and everyone one of them."

A few who got the replys noted there was no direct mention of support for third-year UW coach Tyrone Willingham and his staff.

Emmert said not to read anything into that, explaining that he considers the coaches as "the team. It's the players, the coaches, the support staff."

Emmert earned a reputation as being particularly aggressive in building a winning football program during his five years at Louisiana State when he essentially went over the head of then-athletic director Joe Dean to fire losing football coach Gerry DiNardo and spend $1.2 million to hire Nick Saban away from Michigan State in 1999. Saban led LSU to a share of the national title in 2003.

Emmert said the program would be evaluated after the season, as usual, and that "you surely don't do that in the middle of a season."

Having helped spearhead the hiring of Willingham before the 2005 season, Emmert said he thought the football program would be further along than it is.

"I think everybody did, including Tyrone," he said. "Nobody takes these losses harder than coach Willingham, and he is doing everything you can ask of a coach to try and right the ship. Would he like to be more successful and would I like him to be? Of course."

Notes

• Walk-on WR Charles Hawkins, LB Joshua Gage and OT Erik Berglund have been put on scholarship for this year, Willingham said. Berglund is a senior and Gage and Hawkins juniors. Willingham said the scholarships were rewards for hard work and commitment to the program. UW now has 79 scholarship players on its roster.

• Of the return of J.R. Hasty, Willingham said: "It simply was a young man and his family just needing a little time to reflect. I'm kind of patient about certain things. ... He was able to ... visit with his family and make a decision to come back and I thought it was the right decision."

• DT Wilson Afoa has an undisclosed injury.