Can Utah Recover from Crushing Defeat?

“Defeat, snatched from the jaws of victory!” I heard this muttered by more than one Utah fan Saturday night after my boys and I, and about 44,000 other fans sat through that rain soaked disaster up on the hill. It was a great scene for the first quarter and a half. The stadium was absolutely rocking as the Utes were surging to a 21-0 lead. Then the the Utes just forgot to play offense and slowly gave the game away, 28-27, after being up 21-0 in the first quarter. Their defense wore down from being on the field too long. You could see Washington State quarterback Connor Halliday heating up more and more as the game wore on.

A few observations on the colossal collapse:

• The most valuable player for Utah remains Kaelin Clay, the return specialist. Why isn’t he being mentioned as a Heisman Candidate? Four games now – four returns for TD’s, and he was oh so close to breaking a second one in the game Saturday night. He may be the most dangerous player in all of college football. I realize the Alabama wide receiver and Todd Gurley from Georgia may have something to say about that.

 

• The Utah offense seemed to have the ground game going. Devontae Booker had a ton of yards. It seemed like Utah was in a hurry though to keep chucking the ball all over the field. Why didn’t Travis Wilson maybe run a bit more himself. It just seemed odd that Utah kept going 3 and out after failed pass attempts. Could they not have done something to manufacture a sustained offensive drive in the 4th quarter? Everyone seems to be blaming Travis Wilson – I put it on the coaching staff and the play calling.

 

• As I watched the game unfold, it appeared the Utah secondary was just getting worn out. The front 7 of the defense was not getting enough pressure on the quarterback. However, I realized that a lot of that was due to the fact that Washington State utilized a lot of quick screens and passes and got their guys the ball in space. No one can get to the QB if he is getting rid of the ball in less than 2 seconds. Utah should have done more of that. Those are high percentage throws and it keeps the chains moving. And it wears out the linebackers and secondary because they have to come up and make the tackles. Then when the offense decides to attack down field and take a shot, your coverage guys have been worn down and they are more prone to give up a big play.

 

• Does Utah’s win over Michigan the previous week now look less impressive? I say yes. Michigan is terrible. They lost at home to Minnesota on Saturday. The comparison game aside – Utah has gone two games in a row against Power 5 teams where they have only scored one offensive touchdown. All the big offense came against Idaho State and Fresno State.

 

• Is the sky falling for Utah????? I don’t think so. However, they absolutely have to get 3 Pac-12 wins this year to finish 6-6. Washington State (at home) was supposed to be one of those 3. Now that you’ve choked away a sure win against one of the more beatable teams – where are the wins gonna come from? Utah goes on the road this weekend to the Rose Bowl to face top 10 ranked UCLA. It’s kind of hard to feel good about that one. You start playing that game and it’s hard to see where they get the 3 wins. Colordo, Arizona State and who else?

 

• The loss was an absolute dagger but the fact remains – Utah is still loaded with play-makers. They still have a good defense. (giving up 28 to Washington is actually pretty respectable) The offense needs to finish more drives with touchdowns and keep the defense off the field so much.

 

• Finally, the game day scene was great at the stadium. The place was nearly full despite the rain. Curious though why they can’t figure out a way to install a few more bathrooms. Lines were 25-30 minutes long. Not to mention – why are they selling ice cream on a freezing night and the coffee/hot chocolate line is about 75 deep. I’ve always been perplexed why stadium food vendors don’t anticipate better.