This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

The Utes had to win six games. They needed to go to a bowl game, and to do that, they needed, seemingly, magic.

You could sooner pull a rabbit out of your hat than find six wins in Utah's 2014 schedule.

But find them, they had to.

Or else.

That was the conventional wisdom last spring: Kyle Whittingham's job was on the line after two 5-7 seasons, and Dave Christensen's high-octane offense would need to be the catalyst if Utah was to reverse its slide into mediocrity.

Who would have believed, back then, that Christensen's offense would be the statistical twin of the one led by Brian Johnson and Dennis Erickson in 2013, that Utah would drop a so-called "must-win" to Washington State, and that the Utes would nonetheless finish 9-4?

Conventional wisdom was miles off.

Utah's rout of Colorado State in the Las Vegas Bowl validated what Whittingham had said the previous three years: Results be damned, this was an improving team.

So in spring 2015, it was no longer about what the Utes need to be.

It became about what they might be.

The past 14 practices have shown further cause for optimism (even if Saturday's 12-0 spring game didn't do much to whet fans' palates).

For starters, well, the Utes lost just seven.

Spring practices also included varying degrees of participation from five 2014 starters who were on the shelf by the end of the season: safety Tevin Carter, linebacker Gionni Paul, cornerback Reginald Porter, wide receiver Tim Patrick and quarterback Kendal Thompson.

There were no early enrollees this spring, but grayshirt wideout Tyrone Smith, transfer defensive end Kylie Fitts and transfer linebacker Sunia Tauteoli appear to have fortified three positions of apparent need.

And while a tumultuous offseason led to a handful of coaching moves, the early returns have been — publicly, at least — universally positive.

Co-offensive coordinators Aaron Roderick and Jim Harding decided to not drastically change Christensen's scheme and said they're excited for "Game 14" in the same system.

Theirs may be eighth offensive coordinatorship in eight years, but they insist: It's not a new offense.

Meanwhile, 71-year-old defensive coordinator John Pease doubled as both the oldest and often most energetic man on the field, jogging alongside his players as they moved to new stations and making onlookers smile with his vast colloquial vocabulary.

When Pease was asked by 1280 AM last week what questions he needs answered, he said "None. We're pretty damn good."

Still, there's fodder for the pessimists.

Senior rusher Devontae Booker opted to return, but the loss of dynamic sophomore running back/slot receiver Troy McCormick to a severe knee injury creates a void that, Roderick said, no other Utah player can fill.

Senior South Carolina transfer cornerback Ahmad Christian tore his Achilles during winter conditioning and may not be cleared until halfway through his final season of eligibility.

And some of those seven starters lost aren't easily replaced. If Utah has another Nate Orchard, Dres Anderson, Kaelin Clay or Jeremiah Poutasi, they are likely not on campus yet. We'll have to meet them in fall.

Lastly, while the offense may not have looked as disorganized as it did last spring (when practice sometimes halted as an exasperated Christensen dressed down an out-of-position Ute), it had a similarly tough time finding the end zone.

Sixth-year senior wideout Kenneth Scott is the only proven receiver. There's a host of other candidates — Patrick, Smith, former running back convert Bubba Poole, redshirt freshman Raelon Singleton, sophomore Kenric Young and junior college transfers Deniko Carter and Kyle Fulks, among them. But fall camp leaves coaches little time to discover the right mix.

And fall again figures to be interesting at quarterback, where Whittingham said Thompson, Travis Wilson and Chase Hansen will share the reps — and "natural attrition" will pare the corps from six scholarship signal callers to four or five.

Whittingham said Wilson is playing the best football of his Utah career, and Roderick praised Thompson for improved throwing during his limited work. Hansen leapfrogged sophomores Conner Manning and Brandon Cox within the first two weeks of camp.

That all sounds great, but what doesn't is that Utah again enters fall not knowing who will lead them against the likes of Oregon and USC, destined to be among preseason playoff favorites.

Summer conditioning begins June 1. Fall camp opens Aug. 6. Utah hosts Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines on Sept. 3.

Conventional wisdom, prepare yourself.

Reality is coming.

mpiper@sltrib.com Twitter: @matthew_piper —

Spring standouts

Quarterback • Back from an LDS mission, redshirt freshman Chase Hansen was leading the No. 2 offense within the first two weeks of spring ball. The former Lone Peak star is an excellent scrambler, but coaches want to see him improve his pocket passing.

Running back • With an injury to Troy McCormick and Utah's sparing use of expected Heisman candidate Devontae Booker, walk-on redshirt freshman Tani Leha'uli made the most of his opportunity with the No. 1 offense. He isn't a threat to break one, but the onetime Granger standout can get tough yards.

Offensive line • At least in spring, junior Sam Tevi won his battle against redshirt freshman Jackson Barton at right tackle. Tevi once preferred to play defensive tackle and was a reluctant offensive lineman, but he's fully on board now, and co-offensive coordinator Jim Harding believes he's a natural.

Wide receiver • Freshman Tyrone Smith and redshirt freshman Raelon Singleton were repeatedly mentioned by coach Kyle Whittingham as standouts. Both are lanky receivers with soft hands who may be pressed into action this fall, especially if junior college wideout Deniko Carter is unable to qualify.

Tight end • Senior Evan Moeai and junior Siale Fakailoatonga seemed to fight to a draw here, with the smaller Moeai owning the edge as a receiver and Fakailoatonga earning praise for his physical blocking. They may split time come fall.

Defensive line • Junior end Kylie Fitts and sophomore tackle Filipo Mokofisi give defensive coordinator John Pease a variety of options with their ability to play inside and out. Pease said Fitts was one of spring's biggest surprises and was very impressed with Mokofisi.

Linebackers • Sophomore Sunia Tauteoli might have been a greater revelation — since his abilities were unknown coming out of Snow College — but sophomore Uaea Masina was among Utah's most consistent performers in live work.

Cornerbacks • Whittingham said Saturday that Reginald Porter had won the job opposite Dominique Hatfield. Porter walks a little gingerly on the knee he injured last fall camp, but his coverage skills are still first-rate, and he delivered a few of spring's hardest hits.

Safeties • Whittingham said earlier in spring that sophomore Marcus Williams was too light to be a Pac-12 safety, but that may have been a motivational ploy. A bulked-up Williams was generally solid and occasionally spectacular, as he was on a 99-yard interception return in the spring game.

Special teams • As usual, junior kicker Andy Phillips and senior punter Tom Hackett were outstanding. Utah might need to find Kaelin Clay's replacement among three or four burners expected to arrive in the fall.