Utah Football: Wynn primed for first start

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WYOMING at UTAH Utah QB Jordan Wynn calls signals at the line of scrimmage during fourth quarter play. Utah woke up in the second half and beat Wyoming 22-10 Saturday, 10/31/09 after trailing 10-3 at the half.

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Quarterback Jordan Wynn ran around the field acting like the freshman he is after leading Utah to a 22-10 win over Wyoming. He waved to the crowd, flashed the "U" sign and jumped on his teammates in celebration.

But in the huddle he was a different guy, showing the kind of poise the Utes need in their starting quarterback.

"The thing that surprised me and got me motivated was his confidence," center Zane Taylor said. "I was really impressed by that. I thought he might come out there a little nervous but he knew what to do and did a great job."

Whether or not Wynn did well enough to earn his first start against New Mexico won't officially be known publicly until kickoff because the Utes don't want to give the Lobos any assistance in their defensive plans.

However, the prevailing thought is now that Wynn has been given a chance to lead the Utes, he won't lose the opportunity to do so a second time. As for Wynn, he said nothing changes from his perspective.

"I'm going to do what I've been doing, get in the film room and prepare as if I am playing Saturday," he said. "I'm not going to change anything."

Wynn, the 6-foot-1, 195-pound freshman from California, ate his way into the starting role in the fall camp only to lose the job to JC transfer Terrance Cain.

But instead of sulking, throwing a temper tantrum or transferring like fellow backup Corbin Louks did, Wynn continued to impress the coaches and his teammates

Remember, this is the guy the Utes originally planned to redshirt until he wowed them in spring practice with his arm and quarterback smarts.

"He was great, mature beyond his years," said Whittingham of the way Wynn handled the situation. "He doesn't operate like a true freshman. I've had conversations with him every week, 'Are you ready to go? This might be the week. Are you still on board?' He has been chomping at the bit."

Cain supplanted Wynn as the starter because he was more consistent in practice after the depth chart was released.

"I wasn't performing up to par and Terrance had a good week," Wynn said.

Wynn continued to improve his passing and showed Saturday he is capable of doing as well, if not better, with his reads than Cain was doing. He also brings something the Utes were desperately in need of -- a little fire.

Cain's quiet mannerisms may have served him in some instances because his emotions didn't change much. But the Utes needed a little bit of attitude, too, something Wynn brought immediately into the huddle.

"He was vocal and said, 'Let's get this done, we are going to have fun and win this game.' He didn't say all those things but you could see his confidence, his excitement so that kind of was contagious in the huddle," Taylor said.

Wynn finished the game 9-for-14 for 82 yards and a 22-yard touchdown pass to Jereme Brooks.

While the Utes don't criticize Cain for his demeanor, they do say Wynn's demonstrative ways have benefits.

"It helps, especially when it has been a slow game," Taylor said. "Nothing against Terrance, he has been a great player and I have absolute confidence in him and he has been a huge leader by example, but I think when they put Jordan in he did a great job with that factor for sure."

The drawback, of course, is the more excitable a guy can become the more he can become rattled too.

Cain ultimately won the job because he was considered a safer pick, a quarterback who wouldn't hurt the team with mistakes. Wynn said he can be the outgoing player and the calm leader at the same time.

"As a quarterback, you have to stay level but I try to bring a little excitement and that is what makes it fun," he said. "Especially at the quarterback position, you have to have a little swagger that kind of leads the offense, and I think I bring that."

lwodraska@sltrib.com