The Brigham Young Cougars (2-0) have been waiting a year for
this game. The 2011 loss to rival Utah
(1-1) still causes pain. BYU’s 11-1 record since then is nice, but does not
console. Only a win on Saturday will suffice.
The 44-point loss to Utah
was the largest deficit of defeat for BYU against the Utes since a 49-point
loss in 1922--the first game of the series. It was the fifth time since 1988 that BYU had lost by 17 points
or more to the Utes. The year following the first four occasions, BYU has come
back strong the next year and won three of those four games. The only time BYU
didn’t win was 2005.
The 2005 game presented BYU the challenge of preparing for a
quarterback they had never before seen play. Brian Johnson was injured the week
before and Brett Ratliff started for Utah .
His distinctly different style of play took awhile to adapt to. BYU made a
valiant effort to comeback and forced overtime, but the Utes still prevailed.
BYU will have a little deja-vu in 2012. Utah
quarterback Jordan Wynn left Utah ’s
last game with injury, and has subsequently retired. The Utah
quarterback situation has long been a wild card in this rivalry. Whether it has
been the starter getting injured shortly before the
game or switching quarterbacks in the middle of the game, the Utah
quarterback usually has an impactful role in an unusual way.
Replacing Wynn will be John Hays. He is hardly a novice like
Ratliff was in 2005. Hays (120-214, 1459 yards, 12 TD, 8 Int.) started nine
games last year for an injured Wynn. The real wild card this year could be
Travis Wilson. He is a true freshman and completed his only pass against Utah
State Wilson
may be asked to do the same for Utah .
The key cog, however, in Utah ’s
offense is running back John White IV. He rushed for over 1,500 yards in 2011,
but may not be 100 percent healthy against BYU. He missed some time in the last
game, as well as a day of practice this week.
As encouraging as it is to hear of Utah ’s
offensive woes, and the possibility that they will be compounded with offensive
coordinator Brian Johnson being a rookie, the Utes still rely on their defense.
The Utah defense has taken some
blows as well. Foremost among them being the suspension of defensive back Brian Blechen.
However, the Utah d-line is as
impressive as ever. If the Utah
d-line is winning the battle in the trenches, then little else may matter.
This puts the pressure on the BYU offensive line. The
slimmed down Cougar o-line will need to play much better than they have the
first two games. While BYU has been able to pass the ball pretty well,
quarterback Riley Nelson has been pressured and hit more than desired. The run
stats are pretty good, but they don’t tell the whole story. Better holes need
to be opened and more consistent rushing will be very helpful.
BYU may be able to get away with not running the ball well,
but it will require the offense to play clean, meaning NO TURNOVERS. The
turnovers in 2010 and 2011 had much more to do with BYU losing these games to Utah
than the inability to run the ball.
Cody Hoffman had 8 receptions for 138 yards against Utah
last year, and he has only gotten better. Should Utah
choose to double team him, Nelson has several other options to choose from,
especially if Ross Apo (5 receptions, 54 yards, 1 TD vs. Utah in 2011) is back after sitting out last week to nurse a sore
hamstring.
Expect a few new wrinkles to the BYU offense this week.
Listening closely to BYU coaches and players the last two weeks it is evident
they have been working on a lot more plays and schemes than they have used in
the first two weeks.
The BYU defense has been very good against the run under
Bronco Mendenhall. Nevertheless, there is one or two games every year that the
run defense breaks down and gives up close to 300 yards rushing. Needless to
say, BYU can’t afford to have that happen this week.
Just like the offense, expect the BYU defense to be more
complex. Blitzes and pass coverages will be disguised. The philosophy probably
will be to make Utah beat BYU
throwing the ball under a lot of pressure. The BYU defense needs to capitalize
on the fact that the Utah offense
is in a little disarray with a first year offensive coordinator. BYU needs to
be aggressive and control the tempo of the game when Utah
has the ball.
The key to the game for BYU will be defensive dominance and
turnover free play. The defense needs to dominate and keep pressure off the
offense to produce a lot of points to win. The offense can’t set up Utah
for any cheap scores that will erode the defense’s motivation.
This should be another tough, close, hard fought game that
will come down to a few plays in the fourth quarter.
All-time series record: Utah
leads 51-31-4
Last: Utah won
54-10 (2011)
Streak: Utah
won 2
TIME: 8:00 PM
(Mountain Time)
TV: ESPN2
RADIO: KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM, Sirius XM 143TV: ESPN2
The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootball@gmail.com
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