The Utes are 5-0, ranked No. 4 in the nation and already own wins over Michigan, Oregon and Cal. We turned to our sister site Block U, and we talked about Saturday’s matchup with managing editor Shane Roberts.
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Check out Ryan’s work over at House of Sparky. That hasn’t been easy the last two years against the Sun Devils. Where the Sun Devils have gotten beat this year has been when teams get them one-on-one in the secondary and their playmakers make moves in space.
Although the Sun Devils have 11 straight wins over the Utes dating back to 1976, the last two were tight. Not to mention, the fact that we have an offensive coordinator that actually likes the QB is a big difference. Utah counters with a protection that has allowed just two sacks on the season – drawing obvious raise from quarterback Travis Wilson. His completion percentage is up and his QBR is way up from last season.
Good news came from “Happy Valley” earlier this week when BYU quarterback Tanner Mangum said he expects to play on Friday after hurting his hamstring late in the third quarter against East Carolina.
“It might be not allowing him to throw on timing”. “You’ve got to be really on your A game in film study and flipping protections and stuff like that….”
Utah: RB Devontae Booker.
SR: There are a couple, especially against ASU. It hasn’t helped that Utah’s wide receivers have been underwhelming. The kid is very fast, elusive and very hard to tackle.
Utah has never had a Heisman Trophy victor, and this year could be the one that they get the famed statue in the trophy room.
Secondly, watch out for another receiver/corner back, Cory Butler-Byrd.
“There are two teams that we haven’t been able to beat since we joined the conference, and Arizona State is one of them”, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said.
HoS: What has made Utah’s defense so dominant?
The fifth-year ASU coach has brought in 28 transfers from junior college, including star receiver Jaelen Strong, first-round safety Damarious Randall, defensive lineman Marcus Hardison, running back Marion Grice, linebacker Chris Young and center Nick Kelly. Natural progression indicates Utah snaps this four-game slide Saturday night. “He’s a guy that I love getting him the ball quickly where he can have time to do things with it”. Utah called a timeout when he was lining up to kick.
This is probably, in my opinion, is shaping up to be one of the best Utah defenses we’ve ever seen.
Utah is a legitimate quality team, but can the Utes’ magical season be sustained.
It would be unwise to write them off just yet. Who’s the favorite to win the Pac-12 South? That means getting the ball out quickly and trying to get to the second level. An important aspect of the game will be if the Sun Devils can fend off Utah’s ability to take the ball away. Without Booker, the Utes aren’t No. 4 in the nation and the only undefeated team in the Pac-12.
Utah 6-0-1 SU in its last 7 games.
Booker may lead the nation in yards after contact, and his power running ability is comparable to Fournette’s, but the Tiger’s knack for making big plays will likely appeal more to Heisman voters in December. I think at the base of it, the Sun Devils played two really good teams (USC at the time) and they were overmatched. Additionally, “The Beast” is rushing for an average of 133 yards, while scoring an average of a touchdown per game.
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“That’s such a game-changer”, he said. While holding a 15-3 record in games played in Tempe, ASU is just 5-3 in Salt Lake City. “We feel this is going to be a week that defines us as a program and as a brotherhood”.
