SEATTLE — Suddenly, the Washington bandwagon has become crowded with the likes of Illinois and even conference foe Arizona State jumping on board as Husky supporters.

Why all this interest for a 4-8 team coming off a stunning 42-35 loss to rival Washington State in last Saturday's Apple Cup?

Simple. Money and prestige.

Washington is potentially the final hope for the Fighting Illini, Sun Devils and other teams on the periphery of the BCS race trying to find a route into the big-money bowls.

The Huskies will get the last chance at ruining the perfect season and BCS dreams of No. 12 Hawai'i when the schools face off Saturday night in Honolulu.

When the game ends, most of the country will be asleep. At least those who don't have a rooting interest in seeing Hawai'i falter and would love to see the Huskies serve as spoiler.

"It doesn't matter what title, what role you carry into this ball game. We're facing a very good football team and I think everyone knows that. I think our players know that," Washington coach Tyrone Willingham said. "But if that helps get us to the end result that we desire, we'll try to use it and make good use of it."

Hawai'i has put itself in position to land an automatic bid to one of the BCS bowls. The Warriors' 39-27 win over Boise State on Friday night wrapped up the school's first outright Western Athletic Conference title. It also propelled the Warriors three spots higher in the latest BCS standings.

Hawai'i needs to finish in the top 12 of the final BCS standings — to be released Sunday — to earn an automatic bid, the same as Boise State a year ago.

Most pundits expect a trip to the Sugar Bowl for the Warriors, should they get past Washington.

"It's sky high with what's kind of in front of us right now," Hawai'i quarterback Colt Brennan said about the atmosphere in Honolulu. "There's a lot of excitement going on."

While the Warriors are flush with excitement and anticipation, the Huskies are trying to regroup.

The Huskies had won two of their last three games and a positive conclusion to Willingham's third season at Washington seemed in the offing. But all the positives crumbled in the final 8 minutes against Washington State.

The Cougars erased a 35-28 deficit with two late touchdowns, the final one a 35-yard TD catch by Brandon Gibson with 31 seconds left on a communications breakdown between the coaching staff and the Huskies' defense that left Gibson alone with no defender in sight.

It was Washington's fourth loss by seven points or fewer.

"There is still a sense of challenge for us, because I think our guys feel we left a little bit on the table Saturday and we've got a ranked team that is seeking something special and we have an opportunity to be a part of that," Willingham said.

When Washington added Hawai'i to its schedule, Willingham took a risk. Already facing a daunting schedule that many considered the toughest in the country, adding the Warriors might have ended up being the deciding factor in whether the Huskies would be bowl-eligible.

Of course, that's a moot point now, and aside from trying to slow down Brennan, the task for Washington is avoiding the always present distractions that come with playing in Hawai'i.

Only once since 1948 has Washington played a regular-season game after facing rival Washington State. That was in 2001 in a game at Miami that had been postponed because of the Sept. 11 attacks.

The Huskies lost 65-7 — not necessarily a great omen.

"All of us are pretty well trained. Every trip is a business trip," Washington linebacker Dan Howell said. "We really expect no fun, to be honest with you, except for the game."