A cold wind from the Pacific Northwest is blowing into South Florida this weekend and the Washington Huskies would like nothing better than to cool off the Miami Hurricanes. Every Miami backer east of Chicago is pounding their chest in anticipation of blowing the Huskies to the Bahamas, avenging the team's season-damaging 34-29 loss last year at Seattle.

But woe to those who think this will be a route. West Coast fans are snickering in disbelief at the line on this game. Some sports books are making Miami 30-point favorites. Getouttahere! This is going to be easy money. Have they forgotten how bad the Huskies made Ken Dorsey look last year? Sure the game was at Washington but Dorsey's mobility/or lack of hasn't improved and the Huskies are a quick and fast battle-tested team that has played a tough Pac-10 schedule.

The Watcher isn't saying Miami doesn't deserve its No. 1 ranking but 30 points, give us a break. This game was originally scheduled for Sept. 15 but was postponed because of the attacks in New York and Washington. It's doubtful the line would have been so one-sided 10 weeks ago.

There's a chill in the air, so let's put on the parkas and see if Washington can make Florida its winter wonderland.

WASHINGTON (8-2) at MIAMI (FLA.) (9-0) | It sounds like the Huskies have already gotten inside Dorsey's head. The Hurricanes' Heisman candidate says the Huskies took cheap shots at him last year and he expects the same from them on Saturday. "Whenever they see a run play, they're going to come and hit me." Which is strange because Washington does not have that reputation in the Pac-10. Washington Coach Rick Neuheisel said that the Hurricanes "have no weaknesses." Here are some meaningless statistics: Miami has allowed just 10 points in five games this season at the Orange Bowl. Neuheisel has a law degree while seven of his current assistants have Masters degrees. This is the first time since 1948 that Washington has a regular season game after playing Washington State, which it beat in the Apple Cup last week, 26-14. The key to the game may be freshman wide receiver Reggie Williams, who at 6-7, provides a big target for Huskies quarterback Cody Pickett. Williams was named Pac-10 player of the week after catching a season-high 11 passes for 203 yards against WSU. Pickett threw for 371 yards. Thirty points, no way. It'll be closer than that and if Washington IS close in the fourth quarter, the Huskies can win.

NOTRE DAME (4-5) at STANFORD (7-2) | A Cardinal victory Saturday night over the Irish will put it in better standing with several bowl committees, specifically the Holiday, Sun and Seattle bowls. Notre Dame needs to win this game and next week's contest against Purdue to become bowl eligible. But Notre Dame's record lately in night games is horrible, 0-8 since a victory in 1997 at Hawaii. Stanford struggled last week in it's Bay Area rivalry with winless California, winning 35-28, but should have few problems with Bob Davie's disappointing team. Brian Allen needs 178 yards to become the Cardinal's fifth 1,000-yard rusher. Stanford wins by 10.

GOING COASTAL | The Pacific 10's two forgettable teams, Arizona and Arizona State, play Friday in their interstate rivalry...Arizona State has a makeup game with UCLA next week. The Bruins are reeling from four-straight losses after starting the season 6-0. The thunderous capper came last Saturday when USC dominated UCLA, 27-0, the first shutout for the Trojans in the cross-town rivalry since 1947... USC will probably play in the Las Vegas Bowl on Christmas Day although a date in the Seattle Bowl is a possibility...Washington accepted an invitation to the Holiday Bowl, but if the Huskies beat Miami, they could qualify for a much-higher BCS bowl matchup...Last week's Washington win over Washington State put Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl as Pac-10 champion, but the Ducks, who still have to play Oregon State, have an outside chance of reaching the Rose Bowl on Jan. 3...It's been determined that WAC team's have the toughest travel schedules in the country, logging more than 150,000 miles over four time zones in a three-month stretch. In contrast, ACC teams travel about 36,000 miles during the season and Big 10 schools fly just under 60,000...BYU has reached 11 regular-season wins for the 12th time in school history...Cal State Northridge, after 40 years of play, has discontinued its Division 1-AA football program.