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The University of Utah Athletics
Quotes from Kyle Whittingham's Weekly Press Conference
10/13/2008 12:00 AM | Football
Oct. 13, 2008
Opening statement:
It was good to get back into conference play. We are in league play from here on out. We got the win up in Wyoming, 40-7. The weather was less than ideal for offensive production. It took a toll on both teams but we found several alternative ways to score. I thought it was a good effort by our players. Our offense never found their rhythm. The wind has some effect on the throw game but we didn't run the football as well as we should have. The lack of consistency in the run game made it one of our poorer outings. Defensively we did very well before we put the two's in. We got stronger as the game went on. The defense has been a very consistent phase of our game each week. Special teams had some big plays. Aiona (Key) did a great job blocking the punt and returning it for a touchdown. Louie (Sakoda) scored 10 points, he made a 50 and 39-yarder and drilled all his extra points.
As far as the coming opponent, Colorado State played a tough game against TCU. It was a defensive struggle. They are much improved defensively this year vs. last year. The defense played very well. Larry Kerr is back after being away and has taken over the defense and done a very nice job. The game is at our place and we are excited to get back to our fans. We love playing early kickoffs rather than sitting around all day. We are where we want to be - 7-0, 3-0 in league play. We are never going to be satisfied in any area, but we are heading in the right direction and doing good things as a football team.
On the running game against Wyoming:
We didn't get a great knock off the line of scrimmage. The wind damages the throw game. As a former defensive coordinator, when I was coaching against the wind we would load the box up and make the run game more difficult. We've got to do a better job in the run game and it started with not getting as much off the line of scrimmage. We also didn't seem to be running as violently.
On the inconsistency in the offense:
We are in the top four in the league in every major category offensively. We are doing a lot of good things and have been productive. We are doing a good job in a lot of areas but we are always looking to get better. We have a lot of positive things going on, but we have lacked rhythm. We need to find that more than we have. Another positive is that this is the first game we did not turn the ball over. We had five takeaways and no turnovers. We had great rhythm in '05 and we have yet to find that this year.
On Colorado State:
They are playing very hard. They've got a good tight end in Kory Sperry, he's given them a lot of production. Their tailback is one of the better in the league. The defense is what we saw from CSU for several years in a row under Larry Kerr.
On injuries:
The only person who is going to miss for certain is Kepa Gaison. He will be out several weeks with a knee injury. We have a few guys banged up, but they are all day-to-day - Koa Misi, Trevor Moss. We will know as the week progresses.
On Utah's play in the third quarter of games:
I think the assistants have done a very good job with adjustments and that success is usually indicative of halftime adjustments. The players are able to come out with focus and intensity. That did catch my eye today as I looked at the seven game stats - the third quarter has been our strongest quarter by far. Conditioning also plays a factor. We lift all during the season and it might be a product of that as well.
On controlling the time of possession:
That has been huge for us. It's a team stat - our defense is getting off the field quickly and our offense is hanging onto the ball. As a team we are doing a nice job controlling the clock.
On receiving a No. 1 vote in the Harris Poll:
Well, it wasn't me and my mom doesn't have a vote. Someone out there loves us. We'll take it.
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