Not a lot that has happened during the 2015 college football season has been predictable. Sure, The Ohio State University remains #1 in the AP poll. But some (including yours truly) would argue that’s by default rather than merit. Most of the top teams have been dinged, deflated, and defeated at least once. Those that haven’t have to be concerned their turn is coming in the weeks ahead.
With that we’ve had quite a few surprise teams so far this year including Clemson, Northwestern and Florida. But few teams have rattled the rankings like the Utah Utes. They’ve gone from preseason #24 to #5 as we enter week six. They’ve gone from after thoughts to being in the driver seat of the PAC-12.
Yes, the team from Salt Lake City in shaking up college football.
A Coach Under Fire
When you think of D-I football programs with high expectations, a shortlist of schools comes immediately to mind. Notre Dame, Alabama, Florida State, USC, Texas, Michigan … you can add your own here. But a team that probably didn’t jump to mind is the University of Utah. Nestled in Salt Lake City and formerly one of the occasional darlings of mid-conference schools (with the likes of Boise State and others), the Utes are not a team most CFB fans think of as a high pressure program. But that’s an outsider’s perspective looking in. A view from the inside tells a very different story.
Kyle Whittingham is no stranger to winning. He’s also no stranger to losing. And his roots at Utah go deep — two decades deep. His time at Utah goes back to the Urban Meyer regime where he was an assistant coach. He stayed on when Meyer left and worked under then head coach Ron McBride. Then in 2004, it was Whittingham’s turn at the top job.
Whittingham’s tenure has witnessed great highs and great lows. While they Utes have struggled to be consistently competitive since joining the new PAC-12 in 2011, it appears the veteran coach finally has the program headed in the right direction. They won nine games last year and had their first winning record (5-4) in conference play. Now with a 4-0 start that include a big win at Oregon two weeks ago, Utah is getting some attention as a national playoff contender.
And if it appears that Coach Whittingham is playing like a man with something to prove — well, he is. After back to back 5-7 seasons in 2012 and 2013, there were more than a few whispers that it was time to make a change. Even after their bowl eligible season last year, Whittingham’s future was in doubt because of an apparent rift with the school’s athletic director. It didn’t help that he lost two assistant coaches to vacancies at other schools within a span of a month.
“Job security, taking care of their families, that’s important, obviously,” Whittingham told a local sports radio station in January. “If they felt they were able to better manage that in a different situation, that’s their prerogative. That’s something, it’s not the most stable profession, and there’s a lot of change. There’s far more volatility now than there was eight or 10 years ago. It’s really a lot of movement. They felt, in their best interest, family, security, all those things, that making the move was in their best interest.”
To those of us outside of Salt Lake City, it’s amazing there’s been any talk of getting rid of a coach who has a 85-43 records (including 8-1 in bowl games) and was named the 2008 National Head Coach of the Year. Still after that tumultuous offseason, Whittingham came back on a one-year contract for this season. What happens after the 2015 season is still shrouded in uncertainty. Maybe in a lot ways, that doesn’t matter. Whittingham and his team seem clearly focused on the now.
Contenders or Pretenders?
It might be a bit premature to elevate the Utes to legitimate contender status. They are off to a great start, but the real meat of their schedule lies ahead. This week they’ll square off against also overachieving California (5-0). After that, Arizona State, UCLA, and USC still remain on their conference schedule. The road to Pac-12 title game will have to go through the old guard.
After their 62-20 blowout of the Oregon Ducks, Utah jumped into the AP Top 10. They sat out this past weekend on their bye week while upsets and surprises abound. As a result, the Utes moved all the way to #5 in this week’s poll (how’s that for taking a week off?). Of course, getting there is one thing. Staying there is something completely different.
Senior Devontae Booker is the workhorse running back of the 32nd ranked rushing attack in the nation. He has carried the ball 20+ times in all four games and 30+ times in two games. It’s a role he’s used to as he gained 1512 yards and scored 10 touchdowns during his junior year. Booker is a steady back, albeit nothing spectacular, who will grind away for a consistent 3 to 4 yards per carry.
Quarterback Travis Wilson is as big a threat with his arm and he is with his legs. Wilson, who stands a towering 6″7, has tossed 4 touchdowns and also ran for 3. But like his coach, the QB who grew up in California, has faced his share of critics. Every year he’s competed for the starting job with many fans and second-guessers unhappy when he was finally appointed at the #1 guy. Through it all, Wilson has persevered. In fact, he’s the first QB in school history to start all four seasons. Not bad for a guy who was never good enough to be a true incumbent.
If battling criticism wasn’t enough, Wilson also suffered a scary injury during his sophomore season. After getting a concussion, doctors noticed a preexisting brain injury that could have ended his playing career. Wilson was able to battle back and was even ready to compete for his job again going into his junior year.
Now with more spotlight on him than ever before, Wilson has a chance to finally quiet all those critics for good. His performance over the next few weeks will be key if Utah is continue its winning streak. Fair or not, if he stumbles the naysayers will have fresh ammo. If he succeeds, it might be the most beautiful silence he’s ever heard.
Leading the PAC
Utah, California, and Stanford are all unbeaten in conference play thus far. Stanford has one loss on the season in their non-conference opener to Northwestern. To most observers, the PAC-12 is a bit of an enigma this season. Oregon and USC were expected to dominate. UCLA and Arizona State were supposed to be a step behind and Stanford in the wings.
USC is still very much in the hunt with their only loss coming at the hands of Stanford. UCLA is probably still in the mix as well, although they’ve looked less convincing and have a true freshman QB. Oregon is out with two losses as is Arizona State. California is not getting much respect but that could change for them in the coming weeks. They looked to have benefited from a soft schedule thus far as they’ve jumped out to 5-0. They’ll have to prove they can be contenders to be a contender.
Which is exactly where the Utes find themselves regardless of the current love the AP is showing them. Polls can tease us early in the season and one week’s darling is next week’s donkey (just ask Georgia who dropped from #6 to #19 after getting handled by Alabama). Utah is right there on the doorstep of the college playoffs but we’re a long way from January.
Are the Utes legitimate contenders?
Ask me again in four weeks.