Thoughts on Utah's football opener

I attended the Utah-Northern Colorado game last Thursday evening.  The Utes (1-0) won 41-0. Northern Colorado (0-1) isn't a very good team at all.  Not only are they an FCS (formerly I-AA) team, they went 0-11 last year.  So, there isn't too much that can be gleaned from the game.

That being said, there were a few things that I noticed.  Junior Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn didn't look all that impressive.  Most of the pass patterns looked pretty basic and I'm sure that was largely due to the opponent and not wanting to put too many complex plays on film for future opponents to study.  Wynn made most of those throws, but again they were pretty basic plays.  Wynn's interception on a deep ball was pretty concerning; I'm sure I'm not alone in wondering about his ability to throw it deep. 

For now, though, I think the Utes need to give Wynn the shot to prove he can make the plays necessary to win.  If he can't after a few games, then I think the coaches can re-evaluate.

Senior John White looked solid again at running back and the defense looked stifling.  It's tough to read too much into one game against a very poor opponent.  However, I think White and the defense will again each be very good.  Those will be keys to the season.

The kicker position looks anything but certain at this point.  Senior Coleman Petersen is the returning starter after a shaky finish to last season.  Petersen missed three field goals (including one that would have tied the game with mere seconds to play) in an embarrassing 17-14 home loss to Colorado to end the regular season.  He also barely snuck in the tying extra point late in the 4th quarter against Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl -- a play that nearly gave me a heart attack (thankfully he made it and the Utes went on to win in overtime).

Petersen did not look extremely impressive on Thursday.  He missed an extra point and a chip shot 27 yard field goal.  Right now he simply can't be relied on late in a close game.  I hope he looks better as the season goes on, but at this point I hope the game doesn't come down to his foot.

The competition gets a lot tougher for the Utah this week.  The Utes travel north to Logan to face in-state rival Utah State (1-0) this Friday night.  The start time for that one is 6 p.m. MT.  The game can be seen on ESPN2.  The Utes have won 12 straight over the Aggies, but this appears to be a different Utah State program than in past years.  I expect it will be a competitive game, but the pick here is that the Utes win this one by 7 in what will likely be their last trip to Logan for the foreseeable future.

Runnin' Utes drop exhibition to DII Adams State

The Utah Runnin' Utes (0-0) basketball team lost an exhibition game to Division II school Adams State (0-0) 61-60 last night at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City. Freshman Kareem Story called a time-out that the Runnin' Utes didn't have with about 11 seconds left in a tie game and Adams State cashed in on one of the two resulting technical free throws. It leaves me with a sickening feeling to lose to a Division II school. On the bright side of things, the game was just an exhibition and therefore does not count against the team's record.

It makes me feel a little better that Butler, West Virginia and Arizona also lost exhibition games at home to similar type schools this preseason. However, it just isn't good form to lose to a DII school, even in a game that doesn't count. But, I'm going to try not to read too much into it for now. Coach Larry Krystkowiak said after the game that the phantom time-out was on the coaches; it sounded like it hadn't been discussed by the team. That shouldn't happen, the coaches should make sure the team knows there are no more time-outs, though the players should know this, too.

Utah opens up the regular season on Monday, November 14th against San Diego Christian College (0-0), an NAIA school. Adams State actually takes on Utah State (0-0) in Logan at 4 p.m. MT today in another exhibition game.

More college football predictions

Don't worry, I'll have an update on the World Champion San Francisco Giants (73-65) and their big series this weekend against the Arizona Diamondbacks (78-60) either tomorrow or Monday. But now, I'm going to break down the other Utah I-A schools. Let's start with that school down south, BYU:

-- Sat. 9/3: at Ole Miss -- Loss. I think BYU probably has more talent, but I think traveling all the way across the country to play in heat and humidity in front of a hostile SEC crowd will take its toll. I think Ole Miss pulls it out at home by 4.
-- Sat. 9/10: at Texas: -- Loss. Not an easy place to play at all and the Longhorns are typically pretty tough. Texas by 10 or 14.
-- Sat. 9/17: vs. Utah: -- Win. Not easy for me to type, but being objective, that's my pick. BYU appears to have a distinct edge at quarterback, plus will be at home and attempting to avenge last year's last-second defeat. I think the Cougars win it, but it will be close, as it usually seems to be.
-- Fri. 9/23: vs. UCF: -- Win. BYU should win this one by I'll say 14. UCF might be a little tougher than people think, but BYU should be able to handle them in Provo.
-- Fri. 9/30: vs. Utah State -- Win. The Cougars should be motivated to avenge the embarrassing loss last year in Logan and I think will win by a couple of scores.
-- Sat. 10/8: vs. San Jose State -- Win. BYU should win this one by at least 28 points, San Jose State's program has been awful for some time now.
-- Sat. 10/15: at Oregon State -- Win. I think Jake Heaps will be the difference in this one as the Cougars pull out a squeaker on the road.
-- Sat. 10/22: vs. Idaho State -- Win. Just a mere walk-over. Shouldn't be remotely close.
-- Fri. 10/28: at TCU -- Loss. Game played at Cowboys Stadium. The Horned Frogs will be playing in front of largely a home crowd and always seem to get up for BYU. Plus, TCU is pretty good. I think the Frogs win by 7.
-- Sat. 11/12: vs. Idaho -- Win. This should be a win by at least three scores, particularly at home.
-- Sat. 11/19: vs. New Mexico State -- Win. Should be a very lopsided victory as NMSU has been really bad for quite a while.
-- Sat. 12/3: at Hawaii -- Win. I think Hawaii will be up for this game and the Warriors always seem to play BYU tough on the islands, but I don't think Hawaii has enough talent to pull the upset, although it will be a close game. BYU by a field goal.

There you have it, 9-3 and a bowl game in their first season as an Independent. I'll be interested to see how it plays out.

Now I know Utah State is already underway, but to be fair I had already chalked up today as a loss for them. Here's the breakdown for the Aggies:

-- Sat. 9/3: at Auburn -- Loss. I'm surprised USU is up at halftime as I had them pegged to lose this game big, but I still don't think they pull off the upset.
-- Sat. 9/10: vs. Weber State -- Win. Should be relatively easy against an in-state I-AA school.
-- Sat. 9/24: vs. Colorado State -- Win. I'm a little iffy on this one, but I think the Aggies can pull out a close one at home.
-- Fri. 9/30: at BYU -- Loss. BYU has to be really upset about last year's stunning loss in Logan and I think the Cougars win this one by a couple of touchdowns.
-- Sat. 10/8: vs. Wyoming -- Win. The Pokes just aren't that good and I think Utah State wins by 10 or 14 at home.
-- Sat. 10/15: at Fresno State -- Loss. Fresno State is a solid program and although I think Utah State will be better this year, I don't think they will be good enough to win this one on the road.
-- Sat. 10/22: vs. Louisiana Tech -- Win. Utah State should handle a mediocre Louisana Tech squad at home.
-- Sat. 11/5: at Hawaii -- Loss. Hawaii is traditionally quite tough at home and I just don't see the Aggies flying all the way out to the islands and coming back with a win.
-- Sat. 11/12: vs. San Jose State -- Win. The Spartans have been one of the worst teams in I-A in recent years, Utah State should win this one easily.
-- Sat. 11/19: at Idaho -- Loss. I think the Vandals win this one close at home; Idaho has shown signs of improvement in recent years.
-- Sat. 11/26: vs. Nevada -- Loss. The Wolfpack just have more talent than the Aggies and will win in Logan by about 10.
-- Sat. 12/3: at New Mexico State -- Win. Same story as SJSU, New Mexico State has been terrible in recent years. Utah State wins by a couple of touchdowns.

That comes out as 6-6, 3-4 in the WAC and possibly a bowl bid in the first time in what feels like forever for USU. I think they would take that at this point.

Utah basketball may not play Utah State

Utah is all set to join the Pac-12 in just another day or two. There are plans for a Pac-12 Day celebration. However, I find it unfortunate that Athletic Director Chris Hill has apparently decided to put plans on hold to play Utah State regularly in basketball. The two teams have met annually for over a half-century and to me, it's a great rivalry. I know Utah has usually lost up in Logan, but it sure has been a fun atmosphere to play in. I hate to lose that. The home team has usually won and I think Utah could still use the Aggies as a great game on an annual basis. It means a lot to people here and I don't think it would really hurt the Runnin' Utes in the RPI department too much if they lost. I'll still always cheer for Utah. I just hate to see a rivalry like that diminish.

Utah tops Bradley, hosts Pepperdine Tuesday

The Utah Runnin' Utes (5-2) won their first road game of the season on Saturday night, beating Bradley (4-4) by a score of 68-60 in Peoria, Illinois. I'm frustrated with bradleybraves.com which said it would have all games it streamed live available on demand as well. This game was scheduled to be streamed live and yet it is curiously unavailable on demand. I was counting on the on demand feature as I was unable to watch live and the website has let me down. In fact, it seems that the only games available on demand are the games that Bradley has won this season.

Anyway, Josh Watkins scored 23 points for the Runnin' Utes and Will Clyburn had 19 as the Utes led throughout. One concerning facet of the game was that Utah went 24-44 from the free throw line. That has to change and I'm pretty confident it will as the Utes normally seem to me to be a pretty good free throw shooting team. I don't have the stats on that on me, but it seems to be the case.

Bradley is one of those teams you should beat, even in their building, so I'm pleased that Utah was able to take care of business. It's the fourth year in a row Utah has played a team from the competitive Missouri Valley Conference and the Utes have compiled a 3-1 record in that span. The Valley always seems to be a fun league, but I don't think Bradley is the class of it this year.

Utah returns home to face Pepperdine (3-6) Tuesday night at the Huntsman Center. Pepperdine is another one of those teams you should beat, but I would have said that last year when the Utes went to Malibu, California and lost to the Waves. Hopefully Utah won't overlook them and will be able to put them away rather early on. I feel confident in predicting a rather comfortable win for the Runnin' Utes. The game won't be televised but will have live audio available on kall700sports.com and on AM 700 here in the Salt Lake City area. As usual, I will be at the game and will be tweeting as well. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/dpaysports.

Utah's 5-2 record looks nice, but it hasn't come against the greatest of schedules. The toughest game of the year to date was definitely at Utah State (5-2), a loss. I don't consider that a bad loss, it being a road game against a good team. USU's 5-2 record looks better than Utah's as its only two losses were to ranked opponents (although the Aggies don't have any of what I would consider big wins to this point either). What is a bad loss for the Utes, though, is losing at home to Oral Roberts (4-4). I wouldn't necessarily consider Oral Roberts a bad team, but I think they are probably a mediocre team at best and definitely not someone you should lose to at home. However, it looks like the Utes may have put that behind them with wins against Fresno State and the aforementioned Bradley. If they keep up the winning the bad loss may end up looking like a mere blip on the radar. We should know a little more after Friday's game at Michigan (6-2).

Runnin' Utes visit Bradley on Saturday night

The Utah Runnin' Utes (4-2) visit Bradley (4-3) on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MT. The game will not be televised in Utah, but there is a live video stream of the game available on bradleybraves.com. Unfortunately the stream costs money, but hey it's worth watching the game to me. The Utes beat Fresno State (1-4) on Tuesday in Salt Lake City, but I thought it was a rather underwhelming victory against a horrible team.

Now I don't consider Bradley to be a great team, but they are definitely better than Fresno State and the game will be more of a challenge as it is on the road. My hope is that the Utes will win and give me some encouragement as to the potential of this team, but in all honesty I consider the game a toss up. I'll be back on here with my thoughts and analysis at some point following the game.

In other news this week, junior guard and captain Jace Tavita has left the program. Tavita didn't play at all Tuesday night against Fresno State despite being healthy and has seen his playing time diminished of late. The word is that Tavita is looking to transfer to a program in which he can get more playing time. Tavita was a good team guy and a good defender, but he was a serious liability on the offensive end of the floor. I won't miss him on the offensive end of the court and I don't think his absence will hurt the team too much. However, he was a likable guy that I always rooted for and I hope he lands on his feet and is successful somewhere.

For sports fans in the state of Utah it is also worth noting that Utah State (5-1) is at #16 Georgetown (7-0) at 10 a.m. MT on ESPNU. I think it's a game well worth checking out. I've thought the Aggies' basketball schedule has been far too weak in recent years and that scheduling a game like this is a step in the right direction regardless of the outcome.

Runnin' Utes lose to Utah State; host Oral Roberts tonight

The Utah Runnin' Utes (3-1) lost at Utah State (3-1) by a score of 79-62 on Wednesday night. Don't be too deceived by the score as that was the Aggies' biggest lead of the night and came when Tai Wesley made a 3-pointer with under 10 seconds to go in the game. The Utes trailed throughout, but stayed within striking distance for most of the game. I was particularly impressed with an early second half run that cut the Aggies' lead to one. This run, however, was short-lived and Utah State was able to push the lead back up. The Utes looked competitive, but I wasn't really surprised that they dropped this game on the road to a good Utah State team. I was encouraged that Utah showed some heart and managed to stay in the game, however.

It was fun to be at The Spectrum in person to see an in-state rivalry like this, even though my team lost. I think it would be a shame if this rivalry were to be discontinued, as is the rumor. I know Utah is moving to the Pac-10, but this rivalry goes way back and I think they should find a way to keep it going. The Spectrum is a very hostile environment to play in, but I had fun being there even so and would love to be at a game there someday when the Utes beat the Aggies. Who knows when I might have that chance again. I think rivalries are good for college basketball and hope the two schools find a way to continue this one.

Utah hosts Oral Roberts (1-3) tonight at 7 p.m. MT at the Huntsman Center. The game will not be televised, but can heard via the internet at kall700sports.com and in Utah on AM 700. The Golden Eagles don't appear to be a very good team and the Utes should handle them. I'd like to see them bounce back from the loss Wednesday with a comfortable win.

Runnin' Utes top Montana 80-71

Pictured: Will Clyburn goes in for a dunk in the Runnin' Utes' 80-71 win over Montana Wednesday night.

The Utah Runnin' Utes (2-0) defeated the Montana Grizzlies (0-2) tonight in Salt Lake City by a score of 80-71. Will Clyburn led the Utes with 21 points, Josh Watkins had 20 and Jay Watkins had 18. Will Cherry led Montana with 21 points.

The Utes led most of the way and appeared to bust it open early in the second half when they stretched an 11-point halftime lead to 20, largely behind the play of Jay Watkins and Clyburn. However, the Grizzlies were able to cut into the lead by cashing in on some open 3s, being more aggressive, and grabbing more offensive rebounds. The lead got whittled down to as low as six before the Utes put the clamps on. I think Utah might have just lost some focus with such a big lead, but give Montana credit for not quitting either. The thing that stood out most to me was how quickly the Grizzlies were able to get back in the game; Utah needs to maintain focus even with a big lead.

The most important thing is that the Utes are now 2-0 which hasn't been the case the last couple of years at this time. Clyburn looks like he could be a star as he's looked really solid in the first two games. Another JC transfer, Josh Watkins, has also looked good so far at point guard. Sophomore starter Shawn Glover just didn't have it tonight, I don't know what the problem was exactly, but he just made a number of mental mistakes out there and didn't appear to be hustling as much as he should have been. Coach Jim Boylen adjusted accordingly and didn't have him out there much. We'll see if Glover can straighten it out. The Utes next play at home on Saturday against in-state rival Weber State (1-1) at 4 p.m. MT.

A word about some of the fans, in the student section in particular: At least one person at the Utah game tonight was chanting "Jimmer." I think it is stupid to degrade your rival when you aren't even playing them. Utah wasn't playing BYU tonight, there was no reason for that kind of chanting. In fact, the Utes aren't playing BYU for a couple of months. Tonight the focus should have been more on Montana. The "Jimmer" chant just seemed oddly out of place. Also out of place was a large cardboard cut-out of former BYU player Jonathan Tavernari making a funny face. Again Utah wasn't playing BYU and furthermore Tavernari has exhausted his eligibility and is no longer on the BYU team. Again, just very out of place. Utah fans would do well just to focus on the game at hand. To be fair most Utah fans are at least fairly knowledgeable about the team and what to cheer about, etc. and I enjoy associating with most of them at games. There were just a couple of things that irked me tonight, although not enough to ruin the overall experience of watching my team win.

Down the road a ways tonight, the #23 BYU Cougars (2-0) knocked off the Utah State Aggies (1-1) in Provo by a score of 78-72. I didn't watch the game but my understanding is that Jimmer Fredette was a big reason that BYU was able to come out on top, as well as a flagrant foul call late against the Aggies' Tai Wesley. This game sounds like it was tight the entire way; I thought BYU would win by 7-10 points but I didn't expect it to be a one possession game in the waning minutes. To me that shows that Utah State is a very capable team as they nearly pulled the upset in a hostile environment.