Utah Football Not Taking The Easy Way Out, Will Be Ready For Oregon State
Despite wanting to win every game and capture that ever-elusive Pac-12 title, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham understood that this season was going to be a learning experience — a BIG one.
Entering the 2020 college football season, Utah was tasked with replacing nine starters — all of whom are now in the NFL — from last season's defense, which ranked as one of the best in the nation. On top of that, the Utes had to replace quarterback Tyler Huntley and running back Zack Moss, two of the best to ever play their respective positions in a Utah uniform.
December 6, 2019; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Utah Utes quarterback Tyler Huntley (1) hands the football off to running back Zack Moss (2) against the Oregon Ducks during the first quarter at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
"We lost a heck of a defensive unit. ... Nine guys off that defense, they're all in the National Football League and that tells you how good that crew was," Whittingham said. "And we're starting over, with the exception of a few guys."
Adding to the troubles was the COVID-19 pandemic, and everything that comes with that. With the Pac-12 getting a super late start this season, it left the Utes with very little time to prepare and get game-ready.
And finally, the cherry on top was the team getting hit with an outbreak of COVID-19, causing them to shutdown practices and trainings, as well as cancelling their first two games of the season.
So despite all of those obstructions and issues, Whittingham and Utah will not be throwing in the towel for the season. While their primary objective will be to get better, as it always win, Whittingham said the team will continue to push the limits to try and emerge victorious.
"This is not a season where we're just working on trying to get guys better for the future — we want to win now," Whittingham said after Utah's 33-17 season-opening loss to USC. "We're competing now, and we want to win now. Realistically, it's probably going to take some time to get these guys all up to speed. We knew that going into the season — it was no surprise."
Nov 2, 2019; Seattle, WA, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham claps during the second quarter against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports
The amount of progress made between the season-opener against the Trojans and one week later against Washington in their 24-21 loss, the Utes have proven that they are not a team that is just going to roll over.
Yes, the game against the Huskies was particularly crushing as four turnovers spoiled Utah's 21-0 halftime lead. But as Whittingham said afterwards, there was a lot to like in that game as the Utes played near flawless football in the opening 30 minutes.
“So we’re still a work in progress,” stated Whittingham. “Proud of a lot of guys that had their first chance tonight with extensive play. Got some good players in the program. We just got to put it all together. We got to come back to work on Monday and be ready to show resolve and be able to bounce back, not feel sorry for ourselves, not hang our heads, but just continue to move forward. I really believe this can be a good football team at some point. We just got to keep coaching them as best we can.”
That young and inexperienced defense that everyone was so worried about, well they're ahead of schedule and well on their way to being great — and all of this despite starting anywhere from 4-6 freshmen on the year.
The run defense is the best in the conference and No. 7 in the nation, surrendering just 90.5 yards per game. They've also forced five turnovers and have a touchdown in two games, showcasing the sort of physicality and explosiveness that's made Utah so dominant in the past.
Offensively is where the Utes need to make the most progress.
After a pretty disastrous showing by the offensive line in the opener against USC — which wasn't completely out of the blue as the unit had been ravaged by COVID-19 and had a day or two tops to work together — that unit shined brightest against the Huskies in the first half. While the second half saw some of their pass protection issues come to light, the Utes still dominated in the run game by rushing for over 200 yards on 5.1 yards per carry.
Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
The next step is fixing the turnover issues that have plagued the team. They have nine turnovers in two games, seven of which have come through the air. Once those issues are addressed, the sky is the limit for this program.
“I am disgusted with it not surprised, disgusted,” offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig stated. “Didn’t didn’t see it coming. We have been a very good ball security football team and it is a constant point of emphasis with every player on the offensive unit. But obviously we have to do a much better job of taking care of the football. It’s all about the ball. So you got to do a much better job especially starting with the quarterback position.”
While Utah easily could've used this season strictly as a learning curve, especially considering this will not count against an athletes eligibility, Whittingham and his staff chose not to take the easy way out.
"Young, old — doesn't matter," he added. "Nobody cares if you're young or old or inexperienced or experienced; you've got to perform. And so we've got to fix some issues that we got."
Utah will have an opportunity take another step forward and notch their first win of the season when they host Oregon State (2-2) on Saturday night. While the outcome is undecided, the effort and hard work is guaranteed to be there.
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