Utah Football Team Opens Season On Saturday At USU

Aug. 26, 2002

SALT LAKE CITY -

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QUICKLY

Utah will kick off its 2002 season on Sat., Aug. 31 in Logan, Utah, against Utah State ... Game time is 7:00 p.m. MDT in Romney Stadium ... It is the season opener for both teams ... Utah State is Utah's oldest rival. The series, which Utah leads 69-28-4, is in its 102nd year (see Series Shorts) ... The Utah-USU game will be televised live by KJZZ. It will also be broadcast on KALL 910 (AM) radio and on the Internet (www.kall910.com).

PRACTICE TIME/PLACE

All Ute practices and scrimmages are closed to the general public, but open to the media. Practices usually start at 3:40 p.m. and last about two hours on Tuesday and Wednesday and an hour and a half Thursday. The Utes run on Mondays. Practices will usually be held at the McCarthey Practice Fields, although some will take place in the stadium. Since times and locations can change, please contact assistant athletics director for sports information Liz Abel at 801-581-3511 for daily updates.

WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE

Utah head football coach Ron McBride and select players from his team will be available at a weekly press conference throughout the season, beginning on Mon., Aug. 26. On Aug. 26, only, the press conference will be from 10:00-11:00 a.m. in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The remaining Monday press conferences will be held from 1:00-2:00 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Center, Utah's football facility. Note: Due to the Labor Day holiday, next week's press conference before the Utah-Indiana game will be held on Tue., Sept. 3 from 1:00-2:00 p.m. in the Smith Center.

HEAD COACH RON MCBRIDE

Ron McBride has an 83-57 record in his 13th year as head Ute coach. He has the second most wins of any coach in Utah football history. McBride has won a share of two conference titles (1995 and 1999) and has 10 winning seasons. He has taken the Utes to six bowl games and has a 3-3 bowl record. Utah capped last year's 8-4 season with a 10-6 win over USC in the Las Vegas Bowl on Christmas Day. McBride is 10-2 against Utah State.

SERIES HISTORY

The oldest rivalry in Utah football history turned 100 in the year 2000 with a 35-14 Utah win. Utah's first football game ever was against USU on Nov. 25, 1892. These teams have met every year but four (1908, 1911, 1918 and 1943) since 1900. Utah has won eight of the last 10 and four straight. Utah leads 69-28-4 all-time and is 21-11 in Logan.

GRIDBITS

The last time Utah played Utah State on Aug. 31 was also the last time USU beat the Utes in Logan (in 1996, 20-17) ... Utah's first home game is on Sept. 7 against Indiana. Kick-off is at 6:00 p.m. in Rice-Eccles Stadium ... The Utah-IU game is the first of three straight games against Bowl Championship Series teams for the Utes, who play at Arizona on Sept. 14 and at Michigan on Sept. 21 ... The annual Mountain West Conference preseason media poll has Utah finishing second behind Colorado State, although the Utes received the most first-place votes ... All-time Ute record is 530-395-31. The Utes are 245-128-10 at home, 14-8 in Rice-Eccles Stadium (1998-on) and 285-267-21 in road/neutral games.

RUNNING BACKS' NOTEBOOK

> Senior running back Marty Johnson (5-11, 222) led all rushers last year against Utah State with 95 yards, but missed the remainder of the season with a rib injury suffered in the USU game.

> Holding onto the No. 2 halfback spot in the preseason was senior J.R. Peroulis (6-1, 207), who is being pushed by junior college transfer Brandon Warfield (6-0, 220, Jr.). Warfield rushed for 1,460 yards and 22 touchdowns last year at Kilgore JC.

QUARTERBACKS' NOTEBOOK

> Junior quarterback Lance Rice (6-2, 203) has started since the last three games of his freshman year in 2000. He is 10-5 as a starter and ranked second in the MWC in pass efficiency last year (124.18) while completing 169-302 passes for 2,086 yards and 16 TDs.

> Sophomore QB Brett Elliott (6-3, 194), who was listed as co-No. 2 with junior Ryan Breska (6-4, 220), now owns the job alone. Also showing well in the preseason was true freshman Alex Smith (6-4, 185).

RECEIVERS' NOTEBOOK

> Senior receiver Josh Lyman (6-0, 197) ranked second on the team last year with 36 catches for 382 yards and was first in touchdowns (5) and yards per catch (16.2). Lyman will start at X receiver.

> There's a horse race right now for starting honors at Z receiver. At this time, senior Devin Houston (5-9, 177) has a slight edge over first-year Ute sophomore Travis LaTendresse (6-1, 191). Houston played in all 11 games last year and had 7 catches for 70 yards.

OFFENSIVE LINE NOTEBOOK

> Senior offensive lineman Jordan Gross (6-5, 306) made the preseason all-MWC team and is an All-America candidate. He will start at left tackle but is equally adept at guard. He is on the "Watch List" for the Rotary Lombardi Award.

DEFENSIVE LINE NOTEBOOK

> Senior defensive tackle Garrett Smith (6-3, 297) is a returning first-team all-MWC pick and made the 2002 preseason all-MWC team. Smith has started 31games in his career (of 33 possible). He had 53 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss and 3 sacks in 2001. He is on the "Watch List" for the Outland Trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award.

> Junior defensive end Jason Kaufusi (6-3, 250) was the 2000 MWC Defensive Freshman of the Year and a first-team all-MWC selection in 2001. He was voted to repeat as a first-team player in the preseason all-MWC poll and is on the Rotary Lombardi "Watch List." As a sophomore last year, he had 12 tackles for loss and 5 sacks.

LINEBACKERS' NOTEBOOK

> Senior linebacker Sheldon Deckart (6-2, 240), a returning first-team all-MWC selection, was named to the 2002 preseason all-MWC team. Deckart led the 2001 Utes in tackles (86), tackles for loss (13), sacks (6) and pass breakups (6). He is on the "Watch List" for the Bronko Nagurski and Rotary Lombardi awards.

DEFENSIVE BACKS' NOTEBOOK

> Junior free safety Antwoine Sanders (6-2, 200, Jr.) was voted to the preseason all-MWC team after a fine sophomore season, his first year of NCAA ball. Sanders was second on the team in tackles (78) and first in interceptions (4). He had 2 picks against USU and was named MWC Defensive Player of the Week.

> Junior defensive back Arnold Parker (6-2, 210), the fastest player on the team (4.39 second 40), moved from strong safety to cornerback in spring ball. Parker has missed most of the preseason with a lower abdominal strain. He is projected to start at nickel back against USU. Parker is a preseason all-MWC selection. > In Parker's absence, senior Cody Weight (5-11, 186) and junior college transfer Shayne Scruggs (5-9, 167, Jr.) have looked good at left corner.

SPECIAL TEAMS' NOTEBOOKS

> Senior Brian Lewis will start at punter for a second year and has consistently been booming punts of 45 yards or better in the preseason. Lewis averaged 40.2 yards per punt a year ago-placing 14 inside the 20. He will also handle kickoffs.

> Redshirt freshman kicker Bryan Borreson will kick field goals and PATs. Borreson originally planned to transfer to a junior college this fall, but when incoming scholarshipped kicker Ford Hall strained a quad muscle, Borreson returned. Borreson originally won the starting job in the spring.

THIS GAME LAST YEAR

Utah handled Utah State more easily than the final score of 23-19 indicated. The Utes were up 23-6 with 2:30 remaining before the Aggies made the outcome close with two late scores, one a 64-yard punt return as time expired. Utah was led by a pair of JC transfers: running back Marty Johnson (95 yards and 1 TD) and free safety Antwoine Sanders (2 interceptions and 3 pass breakups). Sheldon Deckart had a career-best 15 tackles.

MCBRIDE SAYS

"We've certainly had good preparation as a team since last January and we're excited to see if it will pay off. Utah State is traditionally an extremely tough game for us. The games are always very competitive. Since they (the Aggies) are not in a conference, I think the instate games take on added significance. That's where they can make their mark.

"I've liked the way our kids have paid attention to detail and their concentration level. We have a lot of veterans and they know what's going on. They don't appear to get tired or lackadaisical in practice. The way we've organized practices has helped too. By doing three shorter practices, with the most physical one the second, I think we kept the players fresher. (In the preseason camp) we were careful to look for signs of fatigue, and if their legs looked tired, we'd back off and get refreshed.

"We lost some big rushing yards with the graduation of Dameon Hunter and Adam Tate, but I really like our runners. Marty Johnson is the starter and his backups, J.R. Peroulis and Brandon Warfield, both look good. Brandon really came on in the last scrimmage. He showed real quickness and darting ability. Marty sat out of the scrimmages because his knee will flare up if he plays too much, but he practiced every day. He'll be fine for games."

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