Utah’s loss to Texas Tech was ‘reminiscent’ of 2024. Here’s what went wrong.

Kyle Whittingham was having visions of 2024 while sitting behind the podium, staring at the throng of reporters on Saturday afternoon.

“Kind of reminiscent of last year,” Whittingham said. “We had chances to put people away in the fourth quarter, win a game with one stop and couldn’t do it, just couldn’t do it.”

No. 16 Utah’s once-high-powered offense looked like it forgot to fill up with gas in its 34-10 loss to No. 17 Texas Tech on Saturday.

The Utes had four turnovers. Junior quarterback Devon Dampier accounted for two of those, throwing a pair of interceptions to the Red Raiders. Utah was also dominated at the line of scrimmage, being held to 3.3 yards per carry and 101 rushing yards.

Redshirt senior Ryan Davis was the only Ute wide receiver to catch a pass, finishing the contest with 10 receptions and 70 yards. As Whittingham put it, the Utes’ offense “never got into a rhythm.

The Utes revamped their offense after finishing second-to-last in the Big 12 a season ago, but it didn’t matter in Saturday’s top-25 showdown.

“We just didn’t execute too well today,” Dampier said following Utah’s loss.

“We put ourselves in some tough situations. You try to minimize the ‘self mistakes.’ We consider those more ‘self mistakes’ than them making plays. It’s something we want to control a lot better going into these next following weeks.”

Whittingham — without looking at the tape — was able to pinpoint multiple issues with Utah’s offense on Saturday. Playcalling and turnovers certainly didn’t help, he said.

“I think it’s a combination thing,” Utah’s coach said. “Certainly the turnovers [didn’t help]— you only get about 10 or 11 possessions a game on average.

“Have to take a look at the film and see why we didn’t win the line of scrimmage. I don’t know. I just don’t have a great answer right now. We just didn’t play up to our usual standards.”

Another issue? Outside of Davis, Dampier couldn’t connect with his wideouts. The quarterback overthrew Cal transfer Tobias Merriweather for what could’ve been a touchdown late in the third quarter. The Utes missed another big play opportunity in the first quarter after a touchdown bomb to Jackson Bennee was called back due to a penalty.

Utah’s head coach reiterated his trust in Dampier as a “vertical passer” postgame.

“Yeah, absolutely,“ Whittingham said of his trust in Dampier’s passing ability. ”Devon, I’m sure he’s disappointed today. ... He’s a guy that’ll come back. My guess is he’ll be ready to go next week."

But maybe the Utes have a bigger problem: Dampier has limited options in the throw game.

“We’ve got to find a way to get a threat at that position,” Whittingham said. “You’re right. We didn’t get much involvement with the wideouts today, but you’ve got to get open. You’ve got to get open to get the ball.”

Utah’s quarterback placed the blame on himself, though.

“[I just need] to be more on time,” Dampier said. ”I think we have a great offensive line. They’re going to hold up for us. But my connection to the receivers needs to be a lot more efficient and a lot more clean.”

So, how do the Utes avoid a repeat of last year’s 5-7 season? Whittingham put it simply:

“We have to review the film, fix our deficiencies and get back at it come Monday,” he said. “Can’t sit around and feel sorry for yourself. You’ve just got to get back at it and go to work and try to figure out how to beat the next team.”

Utah will have a quick turnaround this week, too. In preparation for its nearly 1,900-mile road trip to West Virginia next Saturday, the Utes will have to leave a day early, according to Whittingham.

But the Utes and their quarterback are still feeling positive, despite the blowout loss to the Red Raiders.

“We didn’t show what we’re capable of doing,” Dampier said. “But, we know what our potential is. No need for that confidence to leave. We’ll be back.”