Petersen not sure if making playoff did anything for Washington

Most teams work all season to be one of college football's final four teams, but Chris Petersen has moved on from celebrating the accomplishment.

The Washington head coach saw his team lose handily in the semifinals to Alabama, and isn't sure if making it there did anything for the Huskies.

"I don’t know," Petersen told Stewart Mandel of FOX Sports. "I have no idea - that's how often we revisit it. We're on to the next thing. The game is over, we analyze it like any game, and then we're on to the next thing."

Petersen also noted that in order for it to help Washington in recruiting, the program will have to consistently play at that level.

"That stuff takes a while," he said. "Everybody always says, 'Oh, you did this' - you've got to sustain things for a long period of time to change things. So, it was a good step, good momentum. But let's not kid ourselves - the recruiting around here has been really, really good. We're not going to the (CFP) semifinals without really good players. They can rank us however they want to rank us, they always have, and we always do the same thing. ... It's business how it's always been."

Even though the season didn't end the way Petersen wanted, the Huskies made tremendous strides in 2016. Washington recorded double-digit wins for the first time since 2000 and its best record since 1991.

He'll undoubtedly have higher aspirations in mind, though, including making it one step further to the national title game. Washington's journey starts with a Week 1 matchup against Rutgers.