Just in case you weren't following Ty Willingham's career at the University of Washington since Notre Dame got rid of him in late 2004, here's a rough timeline of the major events that took place on the field for the molder of men's Huskies.

2005

September 3, 2005: In his first game as Huskies head coach, Willingham takes a 17-6 lead into the final ten minutes of the game against Air Force.  Isaiah Stanback and Louis Rankin's solid days go to waste as Washington gives up two touchdowns late, falling to the Falcons 20-17 and giving everyone in Seattle a clear omen of what was to come for the next three-plus seasons.

September 24, 2005: Coming off his inaugural win against Idaho, Willingham faces off against Charlie Weis in the Racist Revenge Bowl.  The Irish start slow but eventually stretch out to a 30-3 lead before winning 37-17.  Brady Quinn throws for 327, Darius Walker carries for 128 and Jeff Samardjiza catches eight balls for 164.  In one of the odder things you'll ever see in a box score, D-Walk, Travis Thomas and Rashon Powers-Neal all cash in rushing touchdowns.

October 1, 2005: The Huskies bounce back by taking a 17-7 lead into the fourth quarter at the Rose Bowl.  The cardiac Bruins of 2005 score two touchdowns in the final frame and defeat Washington 21-17, dropping Willingham to 1-4.

November 12, 2005: Tied at the half, Washington explodes after the break to pick up their lone PAC-10 win of the season, knocking off Arizona 38-14 and putting Mike Stoops on the hot seat for the first time. 

November 19, 2005: Despite being outgained 507-327 and 27 first downs to 12, the Huskies somehow hold a 22-19 lead going into the final minutes of Ty's first Apple Cup.  A Cougar touchdown with 1:20 left caps off a nine play, eighty yard drive to give Washington State a 26-22 win.  The Huskies end the rebuilding season at 2-9.

2006

September 30, 2006: A dominating 21-10 win over Arizona caps off a 4-1 opening month for the Huskies, their sole loss coming in a relatively competitive game against the Sooners in Norman.  Washington fans rejoice that the corner has been turned and all is well in Seattle.

October 2006: A nightmare month for Washington fans, as the Huskies lose a close 26-20 game against the Trojans in the Coliseum, then go scoreless in the second half after leading Oregon State 17-10 at the break.  Things don't improve when they rally to force overtime in back-to-back games against California and Arizona State, but lose both in the extra time.  Washington is 0-for-October, dropping to 4-5.

November 11, 2006: After falling to ranked Oregon the week prior, the losing streak hits an even half dozen with a 20-3 loss to Stanford.  Losing to Stanford isn't particularly remarkable in most seasons, but in 2006 it was, considering nobody else did.  Not any PAC-10 team, not San Jose State, not Navy, not Notre Dame.  Against a Cardinal team that finished 1-11, Willingham's Huskies gained 161 yards and 12 first downs, giving up twenty straight points after going up 3-0.  This is probably the low point of Ty's tenure.

November 18, 2006: Washington knocks off in-state rival Washington State 35-32 in an exciting Apple Cup game to end the season.  The Huskies finish 5-7, the loss to otherwise winless Stanford leaving them one game shy of bowl eligibility. 

2007 and Beyond

September 8, 2007: The Jake Locker Era begins as well as anyone could hope, following a blowout road victory against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome with the termination of Boise State's 14-game winning streak.  The next week, the Huskies are competitive against visiting Ohio State, opening the season at a very respectable 2-1.

October 20, 2007: Improbably tied with Dennis Dixon's high-flying Oregon 31-31 after three quarters, the Huskies can't compete up in the final frame, falling 55-34.  The Huskies open their conference slate 0-4, their losing streak reaching five after the 2-0 start.

October 27, 2007: The Huskies appear to have stopped the bleeding, holding a 41-26 lead over 2-6 Arizona in the fourth quarter.  Washington falls apart, giving up twenty-two consecutive points to Willy Tuitama and company, losing 48-41 and achieving their second six game losing streak in as many seasons.

November 24, 2007: Washington wins two out of the next three going into Willingham's third Apple Cup.   Giving the fans even more hope, the team took a 35-28 fourth quarter lead against the visiting Cougars.  If you're paying attention to how these blurbs usually end, Washington State scores the final fourteen points in the game, knocking the Huskies to 4-8.

December 1, 2007: In one of the worst coached games anyone has ever seen, Washington takes a 28-7 lead on undefeated Hawaii by doing nothing but blitzing and running the football.  Improbably, they stop doing both, then give up four straight touchdowns to Colt Brennan, ending the 4-9 season with a 35-28 loss.  Mark Richt would use the same game plan for an entire game and murder the Rainbow Warriors a month later in New Orleans.    

2008: The Huskies get their annual six game losing streak out of the way early, going winless into the month of October.  Everyone associated with the Washington football team realizes that Ty isn't recruiting anymore, the team isn't really improving and their head coach considered playing their star quarterback at safety, so they start looking for new coaches before the casket has even been buried.  Everyone knows that when Washington finally fires Ty, race will have nothing to do with it.