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Keith Price got hit, hammered, drilled, dumped and decked. And in the long run, it might have been the best thing to ever happen to the Washington quarterback.

With every sack Price took -- 26 of them for those keeping track at home -- a knee would strain a little more and an ankle would twist a little further. As those injuries compounded, he had to subdue his first instinct to run the football. In essence, those nagging injuries transformed him into a pure pocket quarterback.

"This year, I didn't have my legs underneath me and I had to make those throws while standing in the pocket and getting hit," Price said. "I had to stand in there and just take them. If I had my legs, I could have avoided them."

An athlete by nature who was more prone to the tuck-and-run, Price had to completely overhaul his style of play. And in the process he set the school's single-season passing touchdown record with 33 scores.

"This year was about learning a new style of play," he said. "I could never imagine playing without my legs. I depend on them so much. Now, it doesn't really matter."

Price was the Pac-12's nice little surprise. Expectations were cautiously tempered as he replaced top-10 draft pick Jake Locker. But the secret is out. This guy can play -- as evidenced by his 66.9 completion percentage. While the rest of the conference might have been in shock to see the sophomore carve up defenses with his arm -- not his legs -- it came as no surprise to him.

"I prepared for this, it's not like it just happened," Price said. "I put in the time and I sacrificed stuff I like for the game that I love. The coaches had faith in me and they helped shape who I am. It's been a blast."

And on Dec. 29, the rest of the country saw what the Pac-12 had learned as Price led the Huskies in a 56-point losing effort against Baylor in the Valero Alamo Bowl. Price accounted for seven touchdowns -- four in the air and three on the ground, his only rushing touchdowns of the year, mind you.

"I thought we had that one," Price said, leaving it at that.

Like its young quarterback, Washington is a team on the rise. The Huskies started the year by winning six of their first eight before hitting the meat-grinder portion of their schedule -- a four-game stretch that included Stanford, Oregon and USC. As the underdog, Washington dropped all three. Then it compounded when the Huskies lost at Oregon State. Injuries kept Price out of the game until he relieved Nick Montana in the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough.

"I think it was an OK season," Price said. "We have a lot of things we have to improve on. But it was a decent season. Next year we need to have a great season."

Ah, next year. Price won't surprise anyone. And the centerpiece of the offense, running back Chris Polk, will be playing on Sundays. But Price doesn't seem concerned. He happily accepts the target on his back. But first things first, he wants to put some weight on his 6-foot-1, 195-pound frame.

"That's my biggest thing is staying healthy," he said. "Have a good offseason and a good spring ball and just go into camp feeling good about my body. I'm going to be taking a lot of hits and I don't need to be taking any unnecessary hits."

He even sounds like a pocket passer.

Taking a look back at some of the best and worst moments from the Pac-12's bowl season.

Best overall performance (team): We're a field goal away from flipping a coin between Stanford and Oregon. But the Ducks won, and to the victor go the spoils. Say what you want about Wisconsin being overrated; Oregon beat a very good team with one of the most productive college running backs in history, and the Ducks did it on a major stage.

Best offensive performance (individual): Keith Price outdueled Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III, passing for 438 yards and four touchdowns and rushing for three more scores. And the Huskies lost! Someone on the Washington defense better be carrying his books around campus until the start of next season.

Best offensive performance (team): As good as Washington's offensive show was against Baylor, Oregon did it against a tougher opponent and under a brighter spotlight. LaMichael James and De'Anthony Thomas both went for more than 100 yards, Lavasier Tuinei turned in season highs in catches (eight) and yards (158) to go with two touchdowns and the offensive line had its way with Wisconsin.

Best defensive performance (individual): In the conference's five losses, teams gave up an average of 41 points. Still, Cal first-team all-conference linebacker Mychal Kendricks did all he could to limit Texas to 21, notching nine solo tackles (10 total) and 1.5 tackles for a loss.

Best defensive performance (team): Pass.

Best offensive performance in a losing effort: Andrew Luck's one interception was the lone stain on an otherwise fantastic performance, in which he completed 27 of 31 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns. He was 15-of-15 on all of Stanford's scoring drives and 4-for-4 on the final drive that set up the almost-game-winning field goal.

Worst offensive performance: Both Cal and UCLA faced fairly tough defenses in Texas and Illinois, respectively, and their 24 points combined reflected that. (For the record, Washington had 35 by halftime and Oregon had 28 at the half.) But the nod goes to Cal for 7 rushing yards on 36 attempts. That's 0.2 yards per carry. ASU was actually worse with minus-11 rushing yards, but at least it put up 24 points (well, 17 if you take away Rashad Ross' 98-yard kick return).

Worst defensive performance: As a conference, Pac-12 teams gave up an average of 455 yards in their bowl games. Washington was the worst offender with 777 yards yielded.

Best bang for buck: Oregon's De'Anthony Thomas. Two carries, two touchdowns, 155 yards and a 77.5 yards-per-carry average.

Best supporting cast: While Price was fantastic, lest we forget that Chris Polk ran for 147 yards, Jermaine Kearse caught five balls for 198 yards and a score and Devin Aguilar added two receiving touchdowns.

Best holiday spirit: Cal certainly got into the season, giving the ball away five times to Texas.

Best "Oh jeez" moment: Stanford running back Jeremy Stewart taking out teammate Ty Montgomery after he tried to run a kickoff out of the end zone. Stewart, a fifth-year senior, stopped the true freshman right at the line and dropped him, much to the chagrin of 69,927 at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Worst "Oh jeez" moment: Watching Dennis Erickson try to call a timeout when ASU had fourth-and-goal at the Boise 1-yard line. Then watching his face as Jamar Taylor picked off Brock Osweiler and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown.

The Valero Alamo Bowl was a highly entertaining offensive explosion. If you want to read about offensive bowl records, go here. And Washington's 67-56 loss to Baylor certainly showed that the Huskies could score some points.

Further, Baylor was ranked 12th, was favored by 9.5 points and finished 10-3. So the Bears were supposed to win.

Still, what does this game mean for the Huskies, for their season, which ends with a 7-6 mark that is identical to a year ago, and for their big-picture status after Year 3 under Steve Sarkisian ended with a thud?

Here's a guess that most Huskies fans feel worse than they did a year ago. For one, it's shameful to surrender 67 points and 777 yards, no matter how good the opposing offense is. It's hard to walk away from a season with those numbers on the ledger, particularly for Huskies fans who recall the glory days under Don James, when defense was the program's cornerstone.

But the bigger issue is losing five of the final seven games in 2011 after a season-ending four-game winning streak in 2010 hinted at the program advancing back into conference and national relevance. That advance seemed confirmed when Washington started this season 5-1 and earned a national ranking. But when the schedule toughened up, the Huskies failed to meet the challenge. That is the ultimate take-away from the season.

Toss in a bad week with in-state recruiting, and it's hard to shake the notion that Sarkisian's reclamation project has hit a slippery spot.

The Huskies have a nice crew returning next year, most notably quarterback Keith Price. But it became clear over the second half of the season that there's still a significant divide between the Huskies and the top third of the conference. While getting better on both lines is near the top of the to-do list, the primary issue is obvious to all observers: The defense. It stinks.

Sarkisian would be justified if he called coordinator Nick Holt into his office and said, "I love you, buddy, but this isn't acceptable. We've got to go in another direction." But it appears that's not going to happen.

So, simply put, Holt will be coaching for his job in 2012. He's one of the nation's highest-paid coordinators. He needs to produce at least a top-50 defense in his fourth year.

There are still plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Huskies' future under Sarkisian. It's still reasonable to recall the mess he inherited in 2009: A team that couldn't win a single game.

But 7-6 won't be good enough next year. And a defense that is no more stout than a petunia garden is unacceptable.

That was what we thought it would be, at least in the sense of an offensive explosion.

As Robert Griffin III said after the game, this had to be one of the most-watched games ever. Tons of entertainment, and Baylor gets a 67-56 win in a crazy night in San Antonio for the Valero Alamo Bowl.

How the game was won: Just when you thought defensive stops were an endangered species, Baylor dug one out of the depths of the Alamodome. Facing a 4th-and-8 at the Baylor 39 with just more than three minutes to play, the Bears rushed Washington quarterback Keith Price and forced an incompletion to get the ball back and ice the game.

Turning point: Chris Polk's fumble at the Baylor 11-yard line with 8:40 to play in the third quarter. Washington led 42-31 and forced a three-and-out, returning the punt 46 yards to Baylor's 17-yard line. On the next play, though, Polk coughed it up and Baylor recovered. On the next play, Baylor running back Terrance Ganaway ran 89 yards for a touchdown to get the Bears back in it. RG3 capped the score with a two-point conversion on a ... wait for it ... jump pass. What could have been an 18-point lead became a three-point lead in a flash, and Baylor turned a possible blowout into a win.

Stat of the game: This was easily the highest scoring Alamo Bowl ever, and broke the FBS record for total offense in a bowl game, with almost 1,400 yards. A whole lot of fun to watch, too. Baylor topped 400 yards rushing and Washington topped 400 yards passing. It surpassed the 2005 Insight Bowl between Arizona State vs. Rutgers. It was two points short of the bowl record for points. Marshall beat East Carolina 64-61 in the 2001 GMAC Bowl.

Player of the game: Keith Price, QB, Washington. Baylor's safety play was poor, but you still have to make the throws. Price made all of them, and then some. And then ran some more. He accounted for seven touchdowns, and didn't have a turnover. He threw for 438 yards and ran for 39 more. Did we just see the beginning stages of a 2012 Heisman campaign? Don't rule it out. A huge game for the impressive first-year starter. Not a bad replacement for Jake Locker, eh?

Unsung hero of the game: Baylor's offensive line. The big uglies up front cleared the way for a huge night on the ground that powered Baylor's offense. Bears quarterback and Heisman winner Robert Griffin III was good, but the running game paced the offense on this night in a lot of different ways. The Bears had three 100-yard rushers and RG3 wasn't one of them. Ganaway had 200 yards and five touchdowns. Jarred Salubi and Tevin Reese both had 101 yards and Salubi scored twice. Not a bad night on the ground.

Jeers to: Both defenses. These were two very good offenses. Let's be clear about that. But the defenses tonight? Good grief. The effort wasn't there. Receivers ran wide open all night. Holes for running backs were enormous. The tackling for both sides was atrocious and undisciplined. This wasn't necessarily more of one than the other, but there was a ton of great offense in this game and an equal amount of awful defense. One bright side: Washington had one penalty all night for 15 yards. Hard to get penalized when nobody hits anyone.

What it means: No defense is a whole lot of fun to watch. This was the most entertaining bowl game of the season so far, even if the defense was at times laughable.

Baylor also earned the program's first bowl win since 1992. Will RG3 return in 2012 for another run? He says he's undecided, but he'll have until Jan. 15 to decide whether or not he'll return for his senior season. Whether he stays or goes, he's done amazing things. He gave Baylor the school's first Heisman winner, and won 10 games in a loaded Big 12, giving the Bears their second 10-win season in school history, and first since 1980.

Three keys for Washington in the Valero Alamo Bowl against Baylor.

1. Chris Polk, Chris Polk, Chris Polk: Baylor ranks 102nd in the nation in run defense, giving up nearly 200 yards per game. Huskies running back Chris Polk is 16th in the nation in rushing with 112 yards per game. Polk is a tough, physical runner who could wear down a defense. His goal should be to hit the Bears season average all by himself. And while Polk is carrying the ball, Baylor QB Robert Griffin III is not.

2. Bend, don't break: Baylor averages 571 yards per game. That number isn't a concern. The Bears average 43.5 points per game. That one is. The Huskies can give up yards, but they need to try to squeeze the Bears when it comes to points. Here's a surprising factoid: Baylor isn't great in the red zone, ranking 91st in the nation. The Bears have 36 TDs on 58 red zone trips. By way of comparison, the Huskies have 36 TDs on 45 trips. If those TDs to red zone trips ratios hold true, Washington wins.

3. Hit Griffin: Washington wasn't particularly good rushing the passer this year, ranking eighth in the Pac-12 with 24 sacks. But it had some extra time to get creative with blitzes in advance of facing Griffin, and it needs to come after him. Though Griffin is a dangerous runner, he was sacked 25 times. The Huskies defense will need to take some chances because Griffin sitting back, comfortable in the pocket, is just not what you want. The nation's most efficient passer, he threw 36 TD passes with just six interceptions and completed 72.4 percent of his throws. Yeah, that's scary good. The Huskies have to pressure him and then deliver hard blows if he opts to run. Anything to get Griffin out of sorts.

Washington faces a matchup with Baylor and its Heisman Trophy-winning QB, Robert Griffin III, in the Valero Alamo Bowl on Thursday night.

WHO TO WATCH: Baylor QB Griffin and Washington RB Chris Polk. Griffin's numbers are mind-blowing. He made it impossible not to vote for him for Heisman. Polk is the Huskies' star, but his biggest job will be keeping Griffin and the Baylor offense off the field. That means making first downs and moving the chains with tough runs.

WHAT TO WATCH: Both defenses put up bad numbers, but the Bears' defense was horrible and the Huskies' only bad. Baylor's run defense will be the key to this game. The Bears surrender 200 yards rushing per game, and the Huskies are a solid running team with Polk. If the Huskies get into an early groove running the ball, the Bears will have to load up the box to stop Polk. And then QB Keith Price has the weapons to beat the Bears over the top. If the Huskies can grind it out, they will keep Griffin off the field and wear out the Bears' defense. That would bode well for them in the fourth quarter.

WHY TO WATCH: For one, it's likely the last college game for Griffin and Polk. And if you haven't watched Griffin, well, he's something special. If Andrew Luck and LaMichael James had a baby, it might end up like Griffin. As for Washington, if it wins, that would send a message to college football observers that it might give Oregon a robust challenge in the Pac-12 North in 2012.

PREDICTION: Baylor 44, Washington 38: The Washington defense might surprise some folks early, and the Huskies should be able to score. But Griffin will take this game over in the fourth quarter.

Pac-12 blogger Ted Miller takes a closer look at the Alamo Bowl between Washington and Baylor.