On a miserably cold and rainy evening at Rice-Eccles Stadium, the Utes (in more ways than one) dropped a heartbreaker to the Washington State Cougars 28-27 in their 2014 Pac-12 opener.
Utah now falls to 0-4 in Pac-12 openers after giving up an early 21-0 lead in the first quarter that saw touchdowns from offense, defense and special teams play.
The evening started with a bang as senior cornerback Eric Rowe snagged his first interception of the season and returned it 11 yards into the end zone on Wazzu’s second offensive possession. A minute later, senior receiver Kaelin Clay took a Cougar punt back 58 yards for his third punt return of the season, which ties the school’s all-time record.
The Utes’ explosive play continued in the first quarter when junior running back Devontae Booker took a handoff up the middle and exploded down the field for a 76-yard touchdown, which gave Utah a commanding 21-0 lead with 5:52 remaining in the first quarter.
From that point on, it was all downhill as the Utah offense only managed a measly six points (via two Andy Phillips field goals) for the rest of the night.
The Cougars put their first points on the board with 6:54 remaining in the second quarter as quarterback Connor Halliday found Dom Williams in the back of the end zone for the 35-yard touchdown strike.
After the halftime break, Halliday found Vince Mayle for an 11-yard touchdown strike on fourth down to bring the score to 24-14 in favor of the Utes.
The Wazzu offense continued to stay hot in the fourth quarter as Halliday threw for two more touchdowns, a 20-yard toss to Williams (also on fourth down) as well as a 81-yard pitch and catch to Mayle that gave the Cougars the 28-27 lead.
The stagnant Utah offense failed to make plays down the stretch, and with 30 seconds remaining, junior quarterback Travis Wilson’s fourth down pass attempt intended for senior receiver Dres Anderson fell harmlessly to the turf, sealing the victory for the visiting Cougars.
After the loss, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham was quick to point out the positives in the game, but he couldn’t explain how the Utes’ offense failed to make plays in the second half.
“We definitely let that one get away from us, had a 21-point lead but didn’t do much after that,” Whittingham said. “There were a lot of positives for the defense … the kicking game was solid … but when you score one offensive touchdown, you don’t have much of a chance to win.”
While the Utes were able to gain 192 rushing yards on the night, Wilson was only able to complete 47 percent of his passes, going 18-for-38 for only 165 yards on the night. Those are numbers Whittingham said are simply not good enough.
“[Wilson] had an off night,” Whittingham said. “He didn’t make throws he usually makes. The ball was sailing on him a little bit, and we had a lot of drops. His numbers look a lot better if we make the catches we usually make … We’re all involved, but I know we have to be more productive on offense.”
Other offensive stalwarts who had sub-par nights included junior running back Bubba Poole, who only netted nine yards on five carries, senior tight end Westlee Tonga, who caught two balls for 11 yards, and senior receiver Dres Anderson, who did not record a reception on the night. Despite being the Utes’ leading receiver, Anderson was only targeted four times on the night and recorded more drops (1) than receptions (0).
On the night, the most productive facet of the offense was the running game. With 178 yards on 24 carries, Booker earned his first 100-yard rushing performance of his career. However, he said he would much rather trade those yards for the opportunity to be 4-0.
“It was a tough loss,” Booker said. “We played a good Washington State team. Everyone in this conference is great. We had a 21-point lead, and everything went south from there. We had a lot of chances to win but just didn’t come through tonight.”
The Utes will attempt to regroup this week before they travel to Pasadena, Calif. to take on the 11th-ranked UCLA Bruins in the Rose Bowl on October 4.
 
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