Football Team Plays at Arizona on Saturday

10/31/2011 12:00 AM | Football

Oct. 31, 2011

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SALT LAKE CITY

TWO MINUTE DRILL

> Utah (4-4, 1-4 Pac-12) plays at Arizona (2-6, 1-5 Pac-12) on Saturday, Nov. 5 in Tucson, Ariz. Kickoff is 4 p.m. MST (5 p.m. MDT) in Arizona Stadium. Television is KJZZ (Utah only), KWBA, Fox Sports Arizona Plus and Fox College Sports Central. Radio is ESPN700 AM (espn700sports.com), SIRIUS (117) and XM (203).

> Utah will be the opponent in Arizona's 126th homecoming game. The Utes are 1-1 in homecoming games this year, losing to Washington in Salt Lake City on Oct. 1 and spoiling Pittsburgh's homecoming on Oct. 15.

> The first regular-season win of Kyle Whittingham's career came in the 2005 season opener against Arizona (27-24 in Salt Lake City). Whittingham's first overall career victory was as Utah's co-head coach in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl.

> Utah last visited Tucson in 2004, beating the Wildcats 23-6. The last time the Utes played in the state of Arizona was in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl in Tempe, where the Utes beat Pitt 35-7 to finish a 12-0 season.

> Utah leads the all-time series with Arizona 19-15-2 and the series is tied 8-8-2 in Tucson. The Utes are riding a two-game win streak (2004 and 2005) and have won three of the last five matchups..

> Utah and Arizona have played three common opponents this season. Utah is 1-2 against them, with a win over Oregon State (27-8) and losses to USC (23-14) and Washington (31-14). Arizona is 0-3 against the trio, with losses to USC (48-41), Oregon State (37-27) and Washington (42-31).

> Utah, which went 3-0 in non-conference play (beating Montana State, Brigham Young and Pittsburgh), won its first Pac-12 game last Saturday, beating Oregon State 27-8.

INSIDE THE HUDDLE

Utah lost two more players for the season against Oregon State: co-starting offensive guard Latu Heimuli (foot) and linebacker J.J. Williams (foot). The Utes have now lost seven players for the season to injury, including starting quarterback Jordan Wynn (shoulder surgery Oct. 20), co-starting fullback/tight end Dallin Rogers (knee), co-starting safety Keith McGill (shoulder surgery Oct. 20), co-starting offensive guard Heimuli (foot), starting punt returner Charles Henderson (knee) and frequently-used backup linebackers Boo Andersen (knee surgery Oct. 31) and Williams (foot) ... Utah has played five true freshmen this season: safety Eric Rowe, defensive end Nate Fakahafua, running back Harvey Langi, receiver/punt returner Henderson and receiver Quinton Pedroza.

OUTSIDE THE LINES

In addition to regular season road games against Arizona, the Utes have played in two bowl games in Tucson. Utah went 0-2 in Copper Bowl games, losing to Washington State in 1992 (31-28) and to Wisconsin in 1996 (38-10).

U-TWEETS

Utah has three Arizona natives on its roster: F-back Luke Matthews (Phoenix/Desert Vista HS), safety Greg Bird (Mesa/Red Mountain HS) and kicker Kenny Golladay (Mesa/Mountain View HS/Eastern Arizona) ... Arizona is the only school in the Pac-12 against which Utah has a winning record (19-15-2). The Utes have played Washington State to a 5-5 draw to date.

DEFENSIVE DIAMONDS

Utah leads the Pac-12 in total defense (325.6 ypg/22nd NCAA), ranks second in rushing defense (91.0 ypg/11th NCAA) and scoring defense (20.6 ppg/26th) ... Utah has held five of its eight opponents to under 100 net rushing yards: BYU (11), Oregon State (32), Pittsburgh (70), Arizona State (74), Montana State (75) ... Utah held Pitt's Ray Graham, then the nation's second-leading rusher, to 46 yards--103 yards below his average coming into the game ... The Utes are second in the league in opponent fourth-down conversions (4-for-13, 30.8%), sacks (2.88/T-14th NCAA), pass efficiency defense (115.6/24th NCAA), interceptions (10/T-26th NCAA) and turnovers gained (20) ... Utah is third in the Pac-12 in pass defense (234.6) ... The Utes rank 24th in the NCAA (4th in the Pac-12) in red zone defense (17-of-23, 74%).

LAST WEEK

Utah earned its first win as a member of the Pac-12 Conference, beating Oregon State 27-8. John White rushed for a career-high 205 yards on 35 carries (5.9 average) to become the first Ute in nine years to net 200 yards rushing. Jon Hays threw touchdown passes to Dres Anderson and DeVonte Christopher, White rushed for a score and Coleman Petersen made both field goal attempts, including a career-long 48-yarder. Utah held the Beavers to 32 net rushing yards and created four turnovers, including a forced fumble by Chaz Walker on the Utah 1-yard line (recovered by Trevor Reilly). Walker led Utah with 11 tackles (1 for loss), while Tevita Finau collected three sacks for 29 lost yards and Matt Martinez helped seal the win with a fourth-quarter interception--one of three Ute interceptions on the night (others were by Mo Lee and Ryan Lacy).