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Something has to change for the Utes — and it's not special teams, and it's not defense.
Utah's defense held Washington State's record-chasing passing attack to just 14 points until eight minutes remained in Saturday's Pac-12 debut. Eric Rowe, on a pick-six, and Kaelin Clay, on a punt return, chipped in 14 of their own.
"But when you score one offensive touchdown, you don't have much of a chance to win."
So said the head coach after losing his fourth straight conference opener even more gut-wrenchingly than he lost his first (23-14 at USC) and his third (51-48 against Oregon State in overtime).
If Kyle Whittingham's team scores only one offensive touchdown at No. 8 UCLA, which most recently walloped Arizona State 62-27 in Tempe? Yikes.
Whittingham's seventh offensive coordinator in seven years made a great first impression in totaling 115 points against Idaho State and Fresno State.
There were signs, though, in a 26-10 win over Michigan that Dave Christensen's up-tempo spread might not approach that level of success against Power 5 opponents.
Not with this group, at least.
The Utes managed to scrape by with 286 yards in Ann Arbor. Against the Cougars, though, they never reached the red zone after Devontae Booker's jaunt through it on a 76-yard first-quarter rush.
And that's against the Cougars. Whittingham said it's the best defense Mike Leach has had in his WSU tenure, but conference observers will know that's faint praise.
At times Saturday, Utah looked like coverage or no, playing catch would've been a tough proposition.
Senior quarterback Travis Wilson went just 18-for-38, and many of those completions were sideline outs and dumps to the flats. On his rare forays across the middle, Wilson's fastballs were tipped and nearly — as such passes often were in 2013 — caught by defenders.
And when Wilson twice went deep with fair accuracy, senior captain Dres Anderson was unable to hang on to what might have been the game-winning receptions.
A fast tempo does such an offense no favors.
Utah possessed the ball under 26 minutes despite having an early lead and rushing 40 times. By the fourth quarter, Utah's corners were visibly tired from Connor Halliday's bombardment on the edges, and Washington State — despite rushing only 21 times — seemed to be gaining a physical advantage as the minutes and seconds ticked off.
Granted, it was wet and windy, but as Whittingham said after the game, that didn't bother the Cougars.
It's not enough now for Utah to improve. They will have to improve vastly, because, best Leach defense or not, UCLA's is not likely to be any picnic by comparison.
So it's back to the drawing board for Christensen.
How does he get his playmakers in space? How does he use the middle of the field? How does he take pressure off Booker, who has emerged as Utah's most consistent offensive performer?
Whittingham told ESPN 700 after the game that Kendal Thompson should have played more — is the backup the answer?
Maybe not. But they need an answer, and they have six days to get it right.
Twitter: @matthew_piper —
Extra points
• True freshman safety Marcus Williams made his first start in place of Tevin Carter, who missed the game for undisclosed reasons. Whittingham said after the game that he hopes to have Carter back against UCLA.
• Andy Phillips made two field goals from 43-plus in the wind and rain, and is 14-of-18 in his career from more than 40 yards. Phillips also made one of the night's hardest hits, slamming a Cougar returner to the ground about 40 yards downfield on a kickoff.
• Eric Rowe's first interception since 2012 was Utah's fourth on the season, giving them more than they had all last season (3). —
Utah at UCLA
P Saturday, 8:30 p.m. MDT
TV • ESPN