Kyle Whittingham and the Utes know a thing or two about the Rose Bowl.
But as they head to Pasadena to take on former Pac-12 foe UCLA this weekend, Whittingham isn’t expecting a lot of familiar faces.
“I’d venture to say probably 90% of the players are different from what we played them two years ago, the last time,” the Utes coach said Monday. “And so even though we’re very familiar with the venue and the program, it’ll be very new as far as personnel and the guys we’re going to face.”
Here’s what Whittingham said about facing the Bruins during his Monday news conference:
“We know they got a new offensive coordinator from Indiana. So [we did] a lot of film study on the Indiana scheme last year. Defense coordinator’s back, new special teams coordinator. [They have a] big, strong, athletic quarterback, transfer from Tennessee. So … like any opener, there’s a lot of unknowns. Even when you’re playing a team that has had very little turnover, there’s still a lot of unknowns and things that you gotta you’re gonna have to adjust for in game — and not at halftime; well before that. So there may be some adjustments we have to make very likely in the first quarter, and typically in an opener, teams who do the best job of that have the best chance of winning. So hopefully we’ll be on our game as far as that goes.”
What is the identity of this year’s Utah team?
“Well, there’s a lot of new faces, I can tell you that. So 50% of the guys we got weren’t a part of what went on last year. But we’re excited about the things we’re doing on offense. It’s a new scheme and new quarterback and and I think there’ll be some hopefully some good stuff. … But you never know what you’re going to get until you line up and play somebody else. You can only learn so much playing against yourselves. But I know our guys that were here last year and went through that debacle, I guess, for lack of a better word, are excited to get back on the field and get going and try to make a better showing.”
On Utah wide receiver Tobias Merriweather:
“What we’ve seen in practice gives us confidence. He’s got a big catch radius. He’s 6-foot-5 or close to it, 200 pounds, very smooth, athletic. Runs real well, and just, you know, has a real knack for playing the contested ball, as you would expect with a guy with that frame. So what we’ve seen in practice has been very encouraging, but again, you’ve to do it on the field.”
On the talent of UCLA’s defensive front:
“They’re good up front. No. 58, I believe is the number, is their best guy, an interior guy. He’s a really good d[efensive] tackle and UCLA, you know they’re going to have big, strong, athletic guys. They always do. They always have, ever since we joined the Pac-12. They never have a shortage of athletes or physicality, so it’ll be a big challenge for our guys, but again, I stand by that, on paper, this is the best offensive line we’ve had. We’ve got to go out and prove it, but you have two guys that are hopefully high draft choices and three seniors inside. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be very solid up front and that’s really the starting point for the offense this year is leaning on that offensive line.”
How important is it to get Utah’s wideouts going?
“Well, it’s very important. And the way that Devin [Dampier] runs the football with the quarterback run game, we think that’s going to force teams to really load the box in order to be able to combat that, which, in turn, opens up the throw game. And so they work off of each other. But it’s important to be balanced on offense. I don’t think it’s critical to be really good at one. Then, you know, just both subpar at the other. I think balance is the key to all great offenses, and being able to make teams respect both the run game and the throw game, I think, is what you’re looking for.”
How has practicing against Devon Dampier helped Utah’s defense prepare for UCLA’s dual-threat quarterback, Nico Iamaleava?
“Well, they’ve seen him all, all spring and all fall and so, you know, and that’s obviously a plus for us. We’re still, you know, in a best-guess scenario with the coordinator: Is he going to bring everything he did in Indiana? Is there going to be different influences? There’s a lot of unknowns going into an opener, but it’s certainly helped us, because, you know, the quarterback run game is part of what we do, and so that was obviously something that would be a good preparation aspect for this game.”
What percentage of Dampier’s runs will be designed?
“He’s very elusive breaking the pocket, I can tell you right now. So it might be close to 50-50 in that regard. As far as design, pure QB runs and him just getting out of jams, I’ll say 50-50. That’s a safe starting point.”
On the importance of chemistry in the defensive secondary:
“That’s always important, and the secondary is the first place that can get you beat. I mean, if … you give up big plays and you blow a gap in a run game, it might be a 15-yard gain instead of a 5-yard gain. But you blow something on the secondary, it’s usually a touchdown. So that’s, that’s obviously a critical component of your defense. … We feel like we’ve got an experienced secondary coming back. The scheme has remained the same for years and years, so the sort of learning curve for those guys was virtually nothing.”