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The trainer's table was a busy place again on Saturday.

Several Utes cycled through: Dominique Hatfield, Joe Williams, Lowell Lotulelei and Kenneth Scott among them. Williams and Lotulelei came back, and others didn't.

"It's not a good feeling, especially when wide receivers are going down," quarterback Travis Wilson said. "To see Scotty go down definitely hurts me. But the next guy just has gotta step up and take over."

At some positions, the Utes had to scan far down for the next guy.

At receiver, in particular, injuries decimated a corps already missing Tim Patrick and Britain Covey. When Scott went out in the second half, Utah's passing game slowed down even more from its already ugly pace. Wilson completed only three passes in the second half. Only Scott, Tyrone Smith, Bubba Poole and Harrison Handley caught passes, though Utah cycled in several other receivers.

The depth also affected cornerback, where Hatfield went out on a first-quarter series, which helped Nelson Spruce abuse the secondary on a 111-yard day.

Utah did welcome some faces back on the defensive line: Filipo Mokofisi and Hunter Dimick made their first appearances in several games, though neither was a tremendous factor in the outcome. Safety Tevin Carter looked as healthy as he has this year, especially on a third-down tackle when he beat a CU running back to the sideline.

Utah's unlucky streak with injuries has been well-documented: Before the game, Devontae Booker and Covey were declared out for the game, taking out a lot of the punch in Utah's offense. But while coach Kyle Whittingham lamented the absences, he also didn't complain, either.

"You just keep moving forward," he said. "You can never whine about injuries because nobody cares outside your program. You feel bad for those guys who got hurt, and a lot of good players standing on the sidelines, but that's the nature of the game."

Scott, who went down tangled up on a passing play, later returned from the locker room off crutches and ran a bit on the sidelines. After the game, he limped his way back to the locker room, ready for some time off before Utah's bowl.

"I feel great, to be honest with you," he said. "I can't wait to finally get some treatment."

Fumble-itis strikes

If Utah was unlucky on injuries, it can count itself lucky that Colorado wasn't able to get its hands on more fumbles.

The Utes had seven.

"Too many times the ball was on the ground," Whittingham said. "We had two in the punt return game, lost one, got one of them back. Ball security is job one. As I've said forever, it's the most important thing."

While there's temptation to blame the snowfall making the field slick for at least three quarters of the contest, Colorado had only two fumbles.

The Utes lost two of them. Williams lost a ball on the second drive of the game, which didn't cost Utah any points. But Boobie Hobbs' first muffed punt of the day did cost, as Colorado drove 33 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.

kgoon@sltrib.com Twitter: @kylegoon