David toppled Goliath... Again.
And again David was wearing a big, red U on his helmet.
Back in January Utah dropped highly favored Alabama 31-17 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, capping their best season in history — an undefeated 13-0 campaign that earned them 16 first place votes in the final Associated Press poll and a No. 2 final ranking – and reminding America again why we should never count out the underdog, if it is Utah.
But the Utes lost 11 starters from last season’s magical squad, including quarterback Brian Johnson (who threw for nearly 3,000 yards) and his favorite target Freddie Brown (900 yards receiving and 7 touchdowns), so to expect another undefeated, BCS-winning, shock-the-world season from Utah would be a bit much.
Expecting even another conference championship, in a heavily stacked Mountain West, which again features prerennial BCS busting candidates TCU and BYU, might be too much to ask Kyle Whittingham and his Utes.
Expect a bowl win to cap the season — now that it’s nothing for Utah — who capture wins in their last eight bowl games, six in consecutive seasons including two BCS bowl wins.
Consider the season after the last time Utah went undefeated and won a BCS bowl. In 2006, the season following their first underdog run to a BCS bowl win under Urban Meyer and Alex Smith, the Utes went 8-5, dropping games to Boise State, Wyoming, New Mexico and BYU.
And in yet another year of a top-heavy Mountain West, where BYU and TCU are ready to ride the BCS-busting bandwagon trail blazed by the Utes, the road doesn’t get any easier for Utah.
The Utes first test will come in their third game of the season, when they head into extremely hostile Autzen Stadium to take on the Oregon Ducks — who have terrible uniforms, strong rushing attack and a feared home field advantage.
Oh, and it gets better (or worse, depending on if you are a Ute fan) for Utah. The Oregon road test is the first of a triumvirate of nasty road trips, the final two coming in a gauntlet of a three-week stretch with trips to face TCU in Fort Worth (Nov. 14) and in-state rival BYU (Nov. 28) to close out and most likely decide the Mountain West champion.
And it wasn’t like Utah was destroying its opponents last season. Four of the Utes wins were by three points or less, including two 13-10 wins over New Mexico and TCU. Utah dropped another conference rival, Air Force, by a single touchdown. Last season’s close calls might become this season’s losses with a bushel of key players gone, and a tough schedule ahead of them, things will no doubt be challenging for Utah.
Offensively, Utah must find a replacement for Johnson. Not to say that Utah doesn’t have other spots to fill on offense, where they only return four starters from last year’s superb squad, but the Utes must discover a reliable signal caller to take control of this year’s team.
Junior Corbin Louks was the front-runner heading into spring camp, but an influx of talent — the benefit of winning six straight bowl games including two BCS wins and a top-2 finish last season — has made Whittingham’s decision a tad-bit less sure.
“Corbin Louks came in as the clear-cut guy,” Whittingham told ESPN the Magazine. “We leave and they’re neck and neck — and Corbin played well.”
Louks is being challenged by junior college transfer Terrance Cain and freshman Jordan Wynn.
Whoever emerges at quarterback — expect Louks to start the season — will have the benefit of senior offensive tackle Zane Beadles anchoring the line. Beadles’ offensive line is a Zane-y bunch, with fellow Zane, Zane Taylor a junior, starting at guard.
If the Zanes can establish protection for the new quarterback, and open holes for senior running back Matt Asiata — the Utes leading rusher last season and scored 13 touchdowns — Utah will have a better chance of navigating their treacherous schedule.
The biggest thing Utah has going, other than Whittingham who is quickly rising the ranks as one of the nation’s best coaches, is their stingy defense that America will last remember continually frustrating John Parker Wilson while shutting down the Crimson Tide.
Last season, Utah gave up less than 100 yards per game, adding up to a measly 3.1 per rush. Senior linebacker Stevenson Sylvester — a key component of the Alabama destruction with seven tackles, three sacks and a fumble recovery — and defensive end Koa Misi, who had 68 tackles to lead the line and 8.5 tackles for loss last year for Utah.
“Our defense, bottom line, played really well up front last year,” Whittingham told ESPN the Magazine. “The thing is, I see a team and a program that’s as deep as we’ve ever been.”
Whittingham will need his depth to materialize into stars to steady his team and survive their incredibly tough schedule.
Team name: Utah Utes
Head coach: Kyle Whittingham
Conference: Mountain West
2008 record: 13-0
Players to watch:
- Stevenson Sylvester — Senior — LB
Sylvester wrecked the Crimson Tide in the Sugar Bowl, including three sacks, and will look to carry over his star performance into the anchor of the Utes strong defense — which only allowed 99.2 yards per game on the ground last season. - Matt Asiata — Senior — RB
The Utes leading rusher last season, with more than 700 yards on the ground, this year Asiata will need to carry more of the offensive load for Utah, who is finding a replacement to quarterback Brian Johnson. If Asiata thrives with a bigger role, so will the Utes’ offense.
Game to watch: Sept. 19 vs. Oregon
We will know quickly if Utah has a chance at being BCS busters again. If the Utes can survive the early trip to Autzen Stadium, they’ll be back on the national map.
The word on Utah:
Whittingham’s Ute are finally reaping the talent benefits of their recent success, but will the prospects turn into star players and keep Utah in the Mountain West and BCS hunt? A triumvirate of tough road games (Oregon, TCU and BYU) will decide how good Utah really is.
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