Football Plays at BYU in Deseret First Duel

Saturday, September 9

Provo, Utah

8:15 PM

University of Utah

Brigham Young

Buy Tickets

9/4/2017 10:02 AM | Football

Utah vs. BYU Game Notes Kyle Whittingham Press Conference Quotes

The Game
> Utah (1-0, 0-0 Pac-12) vs. Brigham Young (1-1)
> Saturday, Sept. 9, 8:15 p.m. MDT, Lavell Edwards Stadium
> Televised on ESPN2
> Search #UTAHvsBYU for conversation.

Quick Hits
> Utah is 22-1 in non-conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, including a 16-0 non-conference record in the last four years.
> Utah has won the last six games against BYU and Kyle Whittingham is 8-3 against his alma mater as Utah's head coach.
> Utah leads the series with BYU 59-34-4, although the Cougars don't recognize six games (split 3-3) when it was known as Brigham Young Academy.
> Utah won the last two games played in Lavell Edwards Stadium (2011, 2013) and is 19-17-1 all-time in Provo. See page 2 for the complete series history.

Connections
> Both Kyle Whittingham and BYU head coach Kalani Sitake played at BYU and coached at Utah. Whittingham has been an assistant or head coach at Utah since 1994, while Sitake was a Ute assistant from 2005-14.
> Utah assistants Justin Ena and Freddie Whittingham played for the Cougars and second-year receivers coach Guy Holliday coached at BYU. Cougar assistants Ilaisa Tuiki and Steve Kaufusi are former Ute assistant coaches.

Statchat
> Utah is tied for first in the nation in red zone efficiency (1.000, 7-of-7).
> Utah leads the nation in net punting (52.00).
> Utah leads the Pac-12 and ranks No. 18 in the nation in rushing defense (55.0).
> Utah leads the Pac-12 in time of possession (34:26) and is No. 25 nationally.
> Utah ranks second in the Pac-12 in fewest opponent first downs (12.0).
> Utah ranks third in the Pac-12 in total defense (242.0).
> Utah ranks third in the Pac-12 in opponent third-down conversions (31.2).
See sidebar on page 3 for more Utah rankings.

In the Huddle
First-year Ute Matt Gay, who was perfect in field goals and PATs vs. North Dakota, has moved to No. 1 on the depth chart at placekicker ... Alex Whittingham has won the starting job at snapper … Players making their first career NCAA start in last week's 37-16 win over North Dakota were defensive backs Julian Blackmon, Corrion Ballard and Casey Hughes; offensive linemen Jordan Agasiva, Lo Falemaka and Darrin Paulo; quarterback Tyler Huntley; kicker Chayden Johnston and Whittingham ... Four true freshmen have played: Johnston; Tyquez Hampton, Jaylon Johnson, Javelin Guidry and Orlando Umana.

Two-Minute Drill
Utah's current six-game win streak against BYU is the Utes' longest since they took six in a row from the Cougars from 1959-64. The last time the Utes won seven straight against BYU was from 1951-57 … Last week's win over North Dakota was the 190th victory Kyle Whittingham has participated in as a Utah coach—most of any football coach in school history. Of those wins, 105 have come with Whittingham as the head coach … Utah is 16-6 all time in games televised on ESPN2.

Outside the Lines
The Kyle Whittingham radio show is Tuesday at 6 p.m. MDT on ESPN700. The show will be broadcast live from the Smith's on 876 East and 800 South and is free to the public … Use the hashtag #UTAHvsBYU all week to follow the conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram … 30 former Utes are on NFL rosters this week. See page 9 for a complete list of current Utes in the NFL.