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Gordon Monson: Utah football shows style, substance and stubbornness in its latest win

The Utes stumbled after a dominant start against Kansas, but their resilience, ground game and quarterback play still offer plenty of reasons for optimism.

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Utes quarterback Devon Dampier (4) illegally throws the football during the game between the Utah Utes and the Kansas Jayhawks at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026.

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Utes quarterback Devon Dampier (4) illegally throws the football during the game between the Utah Utes and the Kansas Jayhawks at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026.

By https://author-service-images-prod-us-east-1.publishing.aws.arc.pub/sltrib/2443a7bf-99fd-4b53-a330-e2e3d4b697e9.png Gordon Monson
 | Oct. 11, 2026, 6:00 a.m.

Utah’s Utes looked spectacular wearing their iced-out hats and jerseys on Saturday night against Kansas and, fittingly enough, they seemed to put the game on ice early, matching their actions with their artistic appearances.

Nothing quite as dashing and double-barreled as style and substance.

Uh-oh. Hold it right there. Next thing, everything started to melt down, the Utes thawing and then darn-near liquefying. An offense that was rock solid over the first third of the game and a defense that was equally rock steady struggled to maintain that performance, that prowess.

A game the Utes led by two touchdowns in the second quarter transformed into a tight, three-point affair early in the fourth. An impressive Utah drive ending in a touchdown pass from Devon Dampier to 300-pound-plus Semi Taulanga extended that margin to 10, putting a smile on a lot of faces. Nothing like a big man hauling in a throw in the end zone. A subsequent goal-line stand by the defense, followed by a 90-yard Wayshawn Parker touchdown run, preserved and finished the thing, 41-24, in the Utes’ favor.

No big surprise in that result, considering Utah was a 15-point favorite at Rice-Eccles. But the path to that result was a surprise. Somehow, given the way the Utes had played through their first four games and through this game’s start, garnering all sorts of praise en route, the sudden Utah vulnerabilities that cropped up came out of the dark.

Maybe everyone should know: Nothing comes easy. Most things don’t.

“Not a clean game,” Morgan Scalley said afterward. “It’s tough to win in college football. … There’s a lot to learn from this one.”

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Utes safety Rabbit Evans (1) and Utah Utes linebacker Johnathan Hall (7) tackle Kansas Jayhawks quarterback Isaiah Marshall (8) during the game between the Utah Utes and the Kansas Jayhawks at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026.

The Ute offense suffered turnovers, made other mistakes, wholly seized up here and there, and that defense yielded all 24 Kansas points over the second and third quarters. Yeah, it got a little weird there for a bit.

“We just needed to execute more plays, on all cylinders,” Dampier said. “All of us needed to play better football.”

They did. The truth was ultimately told. Utah was and is the superior team, a superior team.

And while it might be wise to push pause on the mounting compliments that have come the Utes’ way until they do more than they’ve done, there was, in fact, promise in the way this contest unfolded.

Utah showed resolve and resiliency — had to — to take victory here. It’s one thing to roll to a win; it’s quite another to roll, then stumble, then roll again. That kind of character is bound to serve the Utes well in the weeks ahead, likely more difficult weeks.

The positive rotation forward revolves around many things, but three of the most important ones, beyond the shown determination, are 1) a quarterback who can lead, 2) a ground game that can tear the heart out of an opposing defense, and 3) resistance that is good enough.

Let’s start with the middle one and work our way out.

Against Kansas, Utah ran for 287 yards. That number will leave most opponents not just defeated but broken. Parker, who busted loose for his long late touchdown run, rushed for a total of 171 yards, averaging 10.7 per carry. He also scored two touchdowns. Dampier added 71 rushing yards and a TD.

Utah’s defense gave up a mere 58 yards on the ground. Stellar. What was not so terrific was the 333 yards it surrendered through the air, including two touchdowns. That will have to be addressed, repaired and renovated in coming games. For more than half of this game, Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall punished the Utes, throwing darts and throwing their back end into a panic.

“Some of that is getting aligned quicker,” Scalley said. “Some of it is, you’re in man coverage, and you’ve got to find the ball. Some of it is they have scholarship players, too, and they made great plays. We’ll look at the film and improve where we can improve … 17.5 [yards] per completion is not good enough.”

He added: “What saved our bacon was the red-zone stops. They were 2 of 5 in terms of touchdowns in the red zone. That was huge.”

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Utes running back Wayshawn Parker (1) runs the ball for 90 yards for a touchdown during the game between the Utah Utes and the Kansas Jayhawks at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026.

The other key begins and ends with Dampier.

The senior quarterback was far from flawless against the Jayhawks — he missed an open receiver now and again, threw a pass beyond the line of scrimmage (though you can blame physics for that one), was sacked a few times, coughed up the ball on a strange do-si-do play that led to a Jayhawk touchdown and threw a subsequent pick — but Dampier’s imperfections have been methodically winnowed down over his time at Utah. Remember back when — what seems like long ago now — nobody was sure whether Dampier could lead an offense in clutch moments to win games or whether he could complete a high enough percentage of his passes to be efficient?

That seems laughable now, and it seemed laughable on Saturday night, despite his struggles. When the Utes surged to their early lead, Dampier made it look like he was toying with the Kansas defense. When he goofed up, he rebounded to help Utah with its resurgence, throwing for 238 yards and three TDs. He also did his aforementioned business on the ground.

When Dampier first arrived at Utah, he was coming off a season when he hit on 57% of his throws. Last year, as a junior, he connected on just shy of 64%. Thus far this season, he was making good on 70%. Against Kansas, he hit on 23 of 30 passes.

His quarterback rating increased from 121.6 as a sophomore at New Mexico to 146.8 last season. His rating prior to the Kansas game was 172.5. In the Kansas game, it was 169.6.

There’s no question or doubt among the Utes — or in Dampier’s mind — who their leader is. It’s the diminutive QB with big confidence.

(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Utes running back Wayshawn Parker (1) runs the ball during the game between the Utah Utes and the Kansas Jayhawks at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026.

“[My teammates] could tell I was frustrated,” Dampier said. “I hold myself to a high standard. Every single teammate came up to me and said, ‘Dev, we know what you’re capable of. We’re good. Settle in. We got you.’ Just to hear that from so many of my teammates, we preach running off of love. We preach full-team bonding. … That’s why I was able to come out the way I did in the second half.”

Moreover, it’s impressive that Dampier is willing to give space to backup Byrd Ficklin. Ficklin isn’t so much Dampier’s backup as he is Dampier’s partner. And the starter is not insecure about nor threatened by his pal’s presence and emergence.

On account of that, Utah’s offense is about as varied as any in the country, capable of hitting opposing defenses from the right hand (Dampier’s laterality) and from the left (Ficklin’s), through the air, and on the ground (both QBs have speed). Add in the rest of the Utes’ talent on attack — Parker, Braden Pegan, Ricky Johnson, Noah Bennee, Daniel Bray, and more, including an offensive front that is creating room for the whole thing to go.

Scalley put a wrap on it like this: “We’re not predictable.”

A lot of people think Utah has looked as good as or better than any and every other team in the Big 12 thus far, and that observation has nothing to do with cool helmets. All of that will be worked out as the season moves on, and, in the meantime, the 5-0 Utes’ flow is forward.

Uh-huh. It might be wise to back off the praise, though, for a while. Let the whole of whatever the Utes are sit for a bit. Let it just happen. Action over artistry, action over appearances. If Utah is as good as it might be, that will be made clear. The look will line up with the wins, the style with the substance.

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