The No. 14 Utah Utes, who rank fourth in the conference in scoring defense (21), don't want to see that streak come to an end against them today.
"No, we definitely don't want that," said cornerback Sean Smith.
Smith said the most important thing is to get a win today. But thoughts of a possible shutout made him smile.
"Shutouts are the greatest accomplishment defenses can have besides winning," he said. "It means everybody is kicking on all cylinders. The secondary is making plays and the defensive line is getting to the quarterback. It's hard to produce a shutout on anybody, no matter who the opponent is."
Utah's chance of a shutout seems to be best against the Cowboys, who have been the subjects of three of Utah's last six. Of course, the 2007 shutout drew the most attention because Wyoming coach Joe Glenn guaranteed a win and Utah used an onside kick while leading 43-0.
But even without that final piece of mischief, the Utes had made their statement by keeping the Cowboys out of the end zone. Forget a guaranteed win - the Utes were so dominant the Cowboys couldn't even get a field goal on the Utes.
"When you get a shutout, you just know you played your best 'D' you can," safety Terrell Cole said. "A shutout means it was a good game all the way around, not just defense. If the offense is moving the ball with good ball control, that is going to help the defense stay fresh and that's key."
Mindful of the controversy from a year ago, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham emphasized he wasn't concerned with shutting out the Cowboys. However, the former defensive coordinator admits there is something special about one. He equates it with scoring 50 points in a game or a 300-yard passing day by a quarterback.
"I won't lie, it's a nice feeling to have your players shut out an opponent," he said. "They're special because you don't see them that often and it's something that gets the players excited for sure."
So far, there have been 22 shutouts involving Football Bowl Subdivision teams this season. The Cowboys have the distinction of being the only FBS team shut out twice, while BYU, which shut out Wyoming (44-0) and UCLA (59-0), is the only team to have earned more than one.
"It's really not that hard to score a touchdown," Cole said. "All it takes is one mistake and there is a touchdown or field goal."
New Mexico beat Wyoming 24-0 a week ago, prompting Glenn to lament that his team has a lot of problems, revealed by the fact the Cowboys didn't score a touchdown.
"That is what hurts," he said.
The Utes would like to keep that hurt going a little longer for the Cowboys, who rank last out of 119 FBS teams, averaging just 9.3 points.
"I'm not ashamed if someone scores on us," linebacker Stevenson Sylvester said. "Anything can happen. I wouldn't like it, but if it happens and we still win, it's all right."
lwodraska@sltrib.com
Game day
Kickoff: Today, noon
TV: the mtn.
Radio: 700 AM
Series history: Utah leads 48-31-1
Last meeting: Utah 50, Wyoming 0 (Nov. 10, 2007)
About the Utes: The Utes lead 19-18 in Laramie but lost the last meeting there, 31-14 in 2006. . . . The Utes have had a few extra days to prepare for the Cowboys because their last game, a 31-28 win over Oregon State, was on a Thursday. . . . Utah is outscoring its opponents 55-9 in the third quarter. . . . Brian Johnson has the second-most wins for a Utah starting quarterback, going 19-7. Alex Smith was 21-1 during the 2003-04 seasons to set the mark.
About the Cowboys: Karsten Sween will get his second start of the season at quarterback. The returning starter lost his job earlier in the season to sophomore transfer Dax Crum. . . . Receiver Greg Bolling injured his shoulder against New Mexico and won't play today. Bolling is the team's second-leading receiver with 13 catches for 112 yards this season. . . . Devin Moore leads the conference averaging 149.3 all-purpose yards.
