What a rollercoaster ride it has been for Kenneth Scott in his time with the Utah program.
After a promising sophomore campaign, hopes were high for the receiver going into his junior year when an injury in the season opener derailed the rest of his season. The injury was severe enough that it forced Scott to sit out the rest of the way in 2013.
However, with that injury came opportunity for Scott to come back even greater in 2014. The hype surrounding the dynamic duo of Scott and fellow receiver Dres Anderson was enormous, and a lot of people saw great things coming for Scott this season.
Well, the season has not exactly played out the way they probably hoped. Anderson went down with a season-ending injury, and Scott, even in the absence of his partner-in-crime, has not been as big of a factor as most thought he would be. Up until Saturday, Scott had only recorded a stat line of 280 yards and three touchdowns through nine games — not exactly noteworthy.
Through those first nine games, the receiving corp received a lot of grief for not getting open and dropping easy catches. Some of that had to do with the play calling and the quarterback debacle, but it’s safe to say the receivers, Scott included, were not performing up to coaches’ and fans’ standards.
While he can’t go back and change his production throughout the season, Scott’s game against Stanford definitely helped Utah fans forget he has been unimpressive to this point. The California native finished the game with four catches for 71 yards and a touchdown.
And oh, how big that touchdown was.
With the Utes on the verge of victory in double overtime, Utah ran a quick slant route for Scott in the endzone. Quarterback Travis Wilson saw him nearly immediately and fired a bullet on the numbers to Scott for the game-winning score.
As he came up with the ball, realizing he had just won the game for his squad, Scott flicked the football towards the referee in a basketball-like motion and soaked in the moment. While his season to this point was mediocre, none of that mattered Saturday when the Utes left Palo Alto with a victory, and Scott was a big reason why.
Pointing out the obvious (game-winning touchdown), it’s easy to say that without Scott, Utah may not have walked out of Stanford Stadium with seven wins. However, without Scott, the Utes probably wouldn’t have even been in overtime in the first place.
In what was a very hard-fought, defensive battle between both teams, neither Stanford nor Utah put up a lot of points. It was 7-7 heading into the overtime period, and the Cardinal hadn’t scored since their first drive of the game.
Down 7-0 in the second quarter, the Utes were looking to even up the score. But moving the ball on this Stanford defense was no easy task, so Scott had to bail his team out.
Scott did not score on this drive, and Wilson deserves a lot of credit as well, but on third down in its own territory, Utah needed someone to step up and make a play. Wilson threw a ball in Scott’s direction, but it was well-defended. However, Scott used his strength and his size to elevate to the football and come down with a 32-yard gain and better field position for his team.
The Utes would eventually score on this drive to tie the game up, but without Scott’s catch, they may have never finished off that drive.
Scott’s season will not go down in the record books, nor will it be remembered by fans in 20 years. However, when Utah needed help on Saturday night, Scott was there to answer his long-awaited call.
 
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