NEW ORLEANS8212;Utah running back Junior Fonua hasn’t quite felt like himself in New Orleans this week. As part of Utah’s scout team, he says Utah has been preparing for No. 4 Alabama like any other team in any other week.
Well, maybe with one big exception.
Fonua, who usually wears No. 48, has been wearing No. 38 this week in practice and his jersey has been an unusual shade of red. At 5-foot-8, 223 pounds, the Texas Southern transfer is doing his best to imitate what one of Alabama’s best weapons, tailback Glen Coffee, does in order to prepare Utah’s first-team defense.
“There are specific cards that we go off of and we just try to do it to the best of our ability,” Fonua said.
Because the Utes have been in New Orleans since Saturday, a significantly larger portion of the team traveled to the Big Easy so the Utes could still practice like they were in Utah, despite being several hundred miles away from Salt Lake City.
To better help mimic what the Utes will see tonight when they take on Alabama in the 75th Sugar Bowl, Under Armor issued dozens of jerseys in Alabama’s shade of crimson and gave each scout team member, the same jersey as the person they are understudying. Understandably, wearing a different shade of red is a little uncomfortable for the players.
“It’s hard putting that jersey on everyday,” Fonua said. “Coach has us wearing that to give them a good look. So we play that role.”
It’s been like that for 13 straight games now. The scout team hasn’t always had jerseys that so closely matched those of their opponents, but as the only team representing Under Armor in a BCS bowl, and only one of two not represented by Nike (Cincinnati’s uniforms are provided by Adidas) everything from Utah’s practice jersey’s to their shoes is new for what is possibly the most anticipated football game in Utah history.
Fonua, who also sees playing time on Utah’s special teams, is certainly not Glen Coffee. Nor has he run behind a line that has the size and athleticism that Alabama features. Still, the defense Fonua has faced as Alabama’s No. 38 for the past month has him thinking that they will hold their own against the Crimson Tide.
“Watching film, they’re pretty fast, but we’ve played against fast defenses,” Fonua said of Alabama. “The talk about SEC football, how fast they are, but I think our defense can take them. Our defense is probably top 10 in the nation, they do a great job and match their speed and strength. I think they’ll matchup pretty good.”
For all those still stuck on size, it’s not like Utah hasn’t seen an offensive line the size of Alabama’s before.
Oregon State’s average starting offensive lineman is 6-foot-3, 297 pounds and TCU, who will likely finish in the top 10 in the country, averages 6-5 294 pounds. BYU’s offensive line averages 6-foot-5, 322 pounds, which is larger than 301 pounds Alabama averages without 330 pound left tackle Andre Smith.
Tyler Cobb
Tyler Cobb
Tyler Cobb