A new nickname might be needed for the Utah football team.
Last year, a stingy Utah defensive unit led all of FBS college football with 55 sacks, inspiring the nickname, “Salt Lake City,” a title that was emblazoned on this year’s MUSS T-shirts. But perhaps because of the departure of Nate Orchard to the NFL draft and an injury to junior defensive end Hunter Dimick, the Utes find themselves well off of last year’s pace, with just eight sacks in four games. A quarter of the way into the 2015 Utah football season, it appears that “Sack Lake City” will soon be a distant memory.
It is notable to mention that the opposing teams haven’t been having much luck bringing down the quarterback either. After four games, the Utah offensive line has only allowed one sack.
Simply put, this season, sacks are scarce in Utah football games.
And the Utes are just fine with that.
Despite the current disassociation of sorts with the nickname, this year’s edition of the Utah defensive unit doesn’t have an identity crisis. In fact, they aren’t struggling at all. Just ask Oregon quarterback Vernon Adams. The much-hyped transfer quarterback for the Ducks was held to just two completions — one of which was a touchdown — on seven attempts for 26 yards before being benched midway through the second quarter.
His replacement, Jeff Lockie didn’t fare much better, throwing a pair of third quarter interceptions, as the Utes racked up 35 points in that quarter alone, en route to a massive 62-20 victory.
To be fair to the MUSS t-shirts, the Utes did register five sacks in front of a shocked capacity crowd at Autzen Stadium. So while the “Sack Lake City” moniker may not be completely obsolete yet, this year’s defensive unit is much more multidimensional compared to last year’s brutal pass rushing attack.
The difference, according to linebacker Gionni Paul, has been attitude.
“I believe that we got more players who bought in, in the offseason,” Paul said. “Each position group took it upon themselves to really work on their craft, and I believe that has carried over into the season.”
The Ducks, known as much for their high-octane offense as their flashy Nike uniforms, were held to just 20 points as opposed to 51 last year in their win over the Utes in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The contrast “feels good” said Paul, who finished the game with 5 tackles and a fumble recovery.
“We just came out and played hard. It feels good to redeem ourselves, especially in Eugene,” he said.
While the most impressive takeaway from the game may be Travis Wilson and Devontae Booker out-Oregoning Oregon with 62 points, the defense holding the Ducks to 20 points is no small feat and should not be ignored.
Yet, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham feels that there is still room for improvement, commenting that the run defense “wasn’t as good as it has been in the past” despite holding an Oregon team that entered the contest averaging 306 yards on the ground and more than two rushing touchdowns per game, to just 222 yards and one rushing touchdown.
This season, when it comes to sacking the quarterback, the Utes will fail to match the statistical standard from last year. While that may be tough news for those who were fond of the “Sack Lake City” mania that captured national attention last year, the win over Oregon and an undefeated 4-0 record makes something very clear: While not the same as last year’s, this year’s defense may actually be better.
The question is: What should they be called?
Think we need to replace “Sack Lake City” with something more fitting? Tweet your ideas for a new Utah nickname to @ChronySports.