After using the bye week to get “some bumps and bruises healed up,” Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said Monday that the Utes are ready to tackle the rest of the season.
Utah players and coaches said they had their best week of practice leading up to the rivalry win over BYU on Sept. 21. Whittingham was proud to announce that the trend continued into this week.
“Their work ethic at practice has been excellent, their focus, their concentration,” he said. “There’s an air of confidence about the team and we gotta get things rollin’ in the Pac-12, and right now we feel like we’ve made big steps as to who we are, our identity, what we’re good at and what we’re not so good at.”
Improvement in the secondary
Utah has been struggling with the defensive secondary, but that might be changing.
In their last contest, the Utes’ defensive backfield shut down BYU’s Taysom Hill, forcing him to fling 30 incompletions and an interception.
It could be argued that Hill’s poor performance was based on a lack of throwing ability, as Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion scorched the Utah secondary for 443 passing yards a week earlier. Regardless, Whittingham said the defensive backfield is better established now.
“We’ve got four or five guys we feel comfortable with now,” Whittingham said. “The group has really separated itself and [it has] become apparent as to who the guys are that are ready to play and who’s not quite ready.”
Seizing Pac-12 South opportunity
The Utes are in a position to solidify a top spot in the Pac-12 South standings this week. Every team in the division, with the exception of UCLA who hasn’t played a conference game yet, already has one loss. With a win over the Bruins on Thursday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium, Utah would be sitting among the top two or three teams.
Ute players and coaches are looking at the opportunity with ambition.
“This team has been quiet for some time now. We just wanna come out and show, you know, we’ve practiced, we’ve worked hard,” said offensive lineman Junior Salt. “Every team has, but we’re so much better … we’ve improved on a lot of things and so we’re ready to come out.”
For Utah, being in the South division is a good thing, as the other half of the Pac-12 has four teams without a conference loss.
“So far the North seems to have a distinct advantage … What that does for us is, it actually helps us,” Whittingham said. “But we just gotta worry about our own selves and if we do get fortunate enough to get a win [against UCLA], then we’re right in the thick of things.”
Calling all fans
Despite a lack of home wins since joining the Conference of Champions, Utah still has a distinct advantage at Rice-Eccles Stadium. With upper-echelon teams constantly rolling through Salt Lake City, coaches and players say that continued fan support goes a long way.
“The teams that have come in here [since joining the Pac-12], there’s a dramatic difference in the talent levels of the teams here,” Whittingham said. “Our fans have been outstanding. They fill the stadium up every week. They’re loud. It’s a great environment.”
This week’s game is the annual blackout and players are expecting a raucous crowd.
“I think it’s going to be a good environment,” said linebacker Nate Orchard. “I think the fans are gonna come out ready and amped up and I’m just looking forward to it.”