It has been almost one week since Boise State overpowered Utah in the Maaco Las Vegas Bowl, 23-3. Boise State finished with only one loss, and if they had had a reliable kicker they might have had a top three finish and Rose Bowl victory awaiting them. Alas, such was not the case. Fortunately for brainiac Boise coach Chris Peterson, his brilliant but undersized quarterback, Kellen Moore, should be returning for his senior season next year. Those two will lead BSU's entrance into the Mountain West Conference, where they will no doubt pitch battle with TCU (in its last MWC year) and upstart San Diego State for the 2011 title.
Now to the unpleasant news, and what this post is really about. Utah. Utah's offense, or the lack thereof. Utah's offensive coaching, or the lack thereof. Utah's quarterbacking, or the lack thereof. Please note that I'm leaving Coach Kyle Whittingham out of the blame train. At least for now.
Boise State had four turnovers. As a result, Utah had great field position in the first half. What was the problem? Failure in the red zone. Dropped passes. Inaccurate throws. Predictable plays. Poor execution on the offensive side when it counted most. To their credit, the Utah defense played tough throughout, although the defense wore down in the second half as the Utah offense had too many three-and-outs. Okay, the D did give up a couple HUGE plays in the first half.
By the second half, Boise State was cruising and Utah was reeling in offensive ineptitude. Was it all quarterback Terrence Cain's fault? Of course not. The o-line grew weak, keeping Cain spinning to elude Boise headhunters. The receivers were unreliable at best, including that speedy Smithson character. The solid running backs were rarely gaining big chunks. Would it have made any difference if Coach Whittingham had benched starter Jordan Wynn when he was misfiring against TCU and Notre Dame in preceding weeks, giving Cain more reps and time under center? Not likely, although it would have been a wise decision. Against BSU, Wynn was not available due to injury. Cain started well, but quickly fell into bad habits: happy feet, telegraphed passes, poor ballhandling. Too bad the Utes' quarterback coach, Brian Johnson (star of the undefeated 2008 season), was not available for duty.
The quarterback problem brings up another issue: recruiting. Yes, the Meyer-Whittingham era has produced better athletes than prior decades in Salt Lake City. Last year, six Utes were drafted by the NFL. That's a good sign. But the second half of the season and games against tougher opponents exposed the biggest weaknesses of Utah: poor depth, poor quarterbacking, and poor halftime adjustments. Two of those three are attributable to recruiting. All three fall within the province of the coaching staff. The Las Vegas Bowl was no different.
Why start a true freshman at quarterback, as Coach Whit did late last season? Because Utah had no solid redshirt sophomore, true junior, or senior to replace Brian Johnson. Cain, a JC recruit, was a quick fix with speed, but an inadequate arm. Hence, Wynn started the last few games, and played well a few times. This year, Wynn' s record was spotty. He looked all-world against early pathetic opponents, even against Iowa State. The team started 7-0. Then, the house of cards collapsed against a tough TCU team seeking vengeance for its 2008 loss at Utah. The result? A shellacking worse than the Democrats suffered in this fall's elections. Wynn and Utah were exposed.
Sure, the defense, especially against TCU and San Diego State, was far from perfect. But inconsistent or enfeebled offensive playcalling resulting in turnovers or three-and-outs simply fatigued the defense's thin ranks quicker.
The future for Boise State still looks rosy, even if Mountain West powers are fleeing the conference. As for Utah? Coach Whit better find a new offensive coordinator, a new quarterback, and a lot of quick-fix JC transfers for the trenches fast, or else Utah will be lucky to survive their first year in the Pac-12 with a ,500 record. A game at USC in September? Don't expect the Utes to start 7-0 next year.
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