This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Tempe, Ariz. • Behold. The Utes can pass.
Riding career days from quarterback Troy Williams and receiver Raelon Singleton on offense and getting 11 sacks from the defense, the Utes dominated the second half of a 49-26 win against Arizona State in Sun Devil Stadium — the program's first win in nine meetings in Tempe since 1976.
Utah took advantage of one of the worst secondaries in the nation as Williams threw a career-best four touchdown passes of 64, 27, 17 and 24 yards — three of them to his favorite target, Singleton.
With the Thursday night win, Utah moved into a tie with USC for second place in the Pac-12 South. The Utes still could win the division by beating its final two regular season opponents, Oregon and Colorado. With a 23-point blowout of another South foe, one who traditionally has been trouble for the Utes, they not only stayed on track, but sent a message.
"We're on a mission: You can see it in everybody's face, you can see it in everybody's play," Williams said. "We had a slow start today, but we have a mission, and we have to take it one game at a time."
Coming off a difficult, personal loss against Washington a week and a half ago, Williams unlocked Utah's offense against ASU. While he wasn't always on target (21 for 37), his big throwing plays shredded a defense predicated on bringing pressure. He didn't seem to feel the heat, getting only sacked once.
The win was the result of a steadily tweaked game plan against Arizona State over the past few years; before winning the past two meetings, the blitz-heavy Sun Devils had been a fork in Utah's side. A mixture of passing weapons worked for the Utes: Cory Butler-Byrd in the perimeter, Tim Patrick and Utah's tight ends over the middle and Singleton, who managed to outmuscle ASU's corners for 116 yards and three receiving touchdowns.
"I think I showed I got some speed," Singleton said with a laugh.
The robust passing attack didn't throw off the continuing surge of senior running back Joe Williams, either: He had his fourth straight game of over 170 yards. His second-half scoring runs of 82 and 40 yards (the second in the final five minutes) put ASU to bed for good.
"That's what we need," Whittingham said of Utah's throwing prowess. "It gives us balance. If you want to be a real good football team, you gotta have that. And that was good to see."
While Utah's defense struggled giving up big plays itself, it also pressured ASU quarterback Manny Wilkins to the tune a whopping 22 tackles for a loss that set back the Sun Devils 104 yards. Five sacks came from senior defensive end Hunter Dimick, who set the program's single-game record and tied Utah's career record with 27 total.
Even in a shootout, it was a defensive play that sealed it: Sophomore safety Chase Hansen picked off Wilkins on the sideline and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown. Hansen's fourth takeaway in as many games gave Utah a 16-point lead and sent black-clad Sun Devils fans streaming for the exits.
The defense was in agreement that coverage was key to the pressure: Even three- and four-man rushes were getting to Wilkins. While the slippery ASU quarterback still managed to improvise his way to 309 passing yards, much of the time, he found no open options.
"We probably missed him as much as we got him tonight — that dude is a freak athlete," Dimick said. "But toward the end, fortunately we were able to get him bottled up."
Utah's offense could've hardly gotten off to a worse start, but it was bailed out by the defense.
The Utes lost two fumbles in their own territory on the first two drives — one on an early snap that bounced off of Troy Williams' helmet, and one on an option toss that bounced off Joe Williams hands. The first time, Arizona State were stopped by safety Marcus Williams who returned from injury and picked off a Wilkins pass in the end zone. The next time, they were held to a field goal by Zane Gonzalez.
"Those situations just suck, plain and simply put," Dimick said. "But you can't complain about it. Gotta go out and fortunately we were able to do fairly well in those situations."
But soon after, the defense started breaking down: A receiver pass brought ASU down to the Utah 15, before Kalen Ballage bulldozed his way for a touchdown. Another Utah three-and-out led to a scoring drive for ASU, powered by another Ballage run of 71 yards and capped by a Gonzalez field goal.
Arizona State took the 13-0 lead with 40 seconds left in the first quarter. But as they have so often this year, the Utes woke up down by double digits.
It started abruptly, as Troy Williams found Singleton deep for a 64-yard touchdown. After a ASU three-and-out, the Utes struck again in only 1:13 of clock on four plays, the last of which was a diving catch to Saiosi Wilson in the corner of the end zone.
"That was phenomenal — it really gave us a spark," Whittingham said. "That was a big momentum changing play right there."
Utah whiffed on Arizona's next scoring drive, allowing freshman receiver N'Keal Harry to scramble 31 yards on a broken play for a touchdown. But Utah came back with a brisk two-minute drill before Williams threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Singleton.
The final three quarters were kind to Utah. After being outgained 150 yards to 25 in the first, the Utes finished the game with 497 yards of total offense.
"We've fought well through adversity all year," Whittingham said. "When we went down 13-0, our guys were like, 'OK, let's go play.'"
Twitter: @kylegoon —
Storylines
R Troy Williams throws for 296 yards and four touchdowns, both career-highs.
• Hunter Dimick leads Utah with five sacks as the Utes record 11 total sacks overall.
• Joe Williams adds two second-half touchdowns and runs for 181 yards overall, his fourth straight game of at least 170.