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Seattle • Utah's winning formula on Saturday night was appropriate for a rainy, ugly dogfight: ground and pound.
When it counted most, Utah football won with the run. A nine-play, 60-yard touchdown drive in the fourth quarter was all rushing plays, including seven handoffs to Devontae Booker, who was all grins after Utah's 34-23 win over Washington.
Said Booker: "I believe it was working all night."
It worked especially well in the fourth quarter.
The senior running back finished with 150 yards on 34 carries, and he churned out 104 of those yards in the second half. On Utah's final three drives in the final quarter, he got the call 15 times, helping carry Utah to victory.
Not that Booker was alone in that effort: Quarterback Travis Wilson finished off the touchdown drive himself with a 2-yard dive, one of two scores he used shifty moves to squeeze by Washington's goal-line defense.
"I definitely feel like it's another add-on to our offense," Wilson said. "I was definitely able to get some yard on my feet. But it's all credit to how Booker was running, and that was able to help my running as well."
The touchdown drive turned out to be insurance points, but it was a dramatic turnaround for an offense that struggled in the second half. The Utes had four straight drives stall with either punts or turnovers after halftime.
The slick conditions probably didn't help the passing game, which finished with 155 yards on only 12 Wilson completions. Afterward, coach Kyle Whittingham seemed to lament that Utah hadn't been more productive throwing the ball, saying the team usually shoots for 225 yards through the air.
The throw game wasn't happening. But the run game was.
With his performance, Booker became the third Utah running back (with Eddie Johnson and John White) to have two 1,000 yard seasons — passing the thousand-yard mark on his 4-yard touchdown run. It was the 13th 100-yard game of his career, second-most in Utah history. Wilson also ran for his fifth and sixth rushing touchdowns of the year, accounting for 20 over the course of his career.
For a Utah offense that has seen ups and downs this season, Whittingham said it's nice to know there's something he can lean on.
"The thing that puts the game on ice is the fourth quarter pass rush and the fourth quarter ability to cram it down their throat," he said. "That's what we did: crammed the run game down their throat."
Twitter: @kylegoon —
Run game pulls through
R Devontae Booker has 34 carries for a TD and 150 yards, 104 in the second half.
• Travis Wilson addes42 yards and two rushing touchdowns.
• Booker gets 15 carries on Utah's final three drives.