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The University of Utah Athletics
Photo by: Brooke Frederickson
Quotes From Kyle Whittingham's Weekly Press Conference
10/8/2018 1:26 PM | Football
Opening Statement…
"It was good to get the win at Stanford on Saturday night. I am proud of our players and I am proud of our coaches. It was a really good effort all around. All three phases of the game were in sync. The offense was productive. We scored a bunch of points, ran the ball well, threw efficiently and for the second week in a row we had no turnovers offensively. Our defense generated four takeaways, so anytime you are in the plus-four, that makes you tough to beat. Defensively we played the run well, but didn't hold up in the pass game as well as we wanted to. They have some really good receivers and the quarterback threw the ball well so you have to give them credit for making those plays. A lot of those catches were contested but they did a great job of making plays. Matt Gay had four field goals and is finally getting on track. He hasn't had a whole lot of opportunities before Saturday night. I think that was one of the primary differences in the game was our field goal and PAT unit scored 16 points as opposed to their three, so I think that was a big margin of difference in production. Now we move on to Arizona. We have a short week so we have one less day to prepare, which is not a big deal because they are in the same situation. Obviously, their quarterback is a talented kid, their running back is very good and they have a couple of good receivers, so we have our work cut out for us. They are coming off a nice victory over Cal, so we will line up Friday night and see where we are at."
On the tight ends production against Stanford and if we will see that same game plan moving forward…
"They have been involved in blocking for us and they are a big part of our run game, but they did make some catches on Saturday night. Brant Kuithe is starting to emerge as a viable weapon at the tight end spot. Going forward, we would like that production to continue, but it is a week-to-week thing with what the defense is giving you."
On the timing of the takeaways against Stanford and if he thinks they've gotten better at forcing turnovers…
"Yeah we had two in the red zone, which magnifies them. Bradlee Anae got good pressure on the quarterback during the game and I thought Morgan Scalley did a nice job dialing up some really timely blitzes in some critical situations. Takeaways, particularly interceptions, pass rush can have a significant effect. I think our pass rush has gotten better as the season has gone on and hopefully it will continue to do so."
On how he plans to keep the momentum going forward…
"It is a big positive that we can build off last game, not only with the production but with the energy, the passion and the juice that they played with. I think it started last week, even though we didn't win the game at Washington State, I think we are starting to figure out who we are and develop some confidence on offense. That will be a big push this week to continue that mindset."
On the offensive line with Orlando Umana and Nick Ford trading positions…
"It worked out really well. They both played well. We rushed the ball for over 220 yards and only gave up one sack. Both those players played exceptionally well. We hope to have Lo Falemaka back this week, but only time will tell. But those are two young and talented offensive linemen in our program."
On the balanced offense against Stanford…
"We try to be balanced and we achieved that. For us, we have a heck of a running back in Zack Moss and we have to utilize him. Armand Shyne played exceptionally well and gave us some really good reps. Tyler threw the ball very efficiently. I think it was around 80-percent, which is outstanding. It was a very good night."
On if they will continue to put Jaylon Johnson on the opponent's best wide receiver moving forward…
"We just play right and left, but sometimes there will be situations where we have corners where they are both on the same side, but we didn't design that. We feel just as good about Julian Blackmon. We think both those guys are good players and we don't play a lot of that 'star coverage.' We just play left and right."
On what he thinks they need to improve on after watching film on the Stanford game…
"There are always things you can look at and find things that need improving. It was good to see us play like we are capable of though. I think that is a real positive for our team to see everything clicking and see the team we are capable of being."
On if he is concerned with the amount of passing yards they've given up in the last two games…
"I think it is concerning, but I think it is a little misleading because of circumstances. We aren't necessarily concerned with raw yardage because we are looking at efficiency. We are first in the Pac-12 in pass defense efficiency, which is the No. 1 barometer for us as coaches to see how we are doing in pass defense."
On Gary Andersen's impact with the team so far…
"He has been a great addition to our staff. He is one of the best defensive line coaches in the country in my opinion. He was a successful coordinator while he was here and he has always had his hand in the defense since he left here. He has been a huge help to both Morgan and myself as a sounding board and as a guy that has a lot of experience. It has been exactly what I had envisioned it to be."
On if there is an explanation of the ups and downs of the season…
"The disappointing game, even though it was a win, was Northern Illinois. We played Washington and they are in the top-10 and my guess is that Washington State is going to continue to win a lot of games. So, a lot of it had to do with catching two teams that are playing really well and are really talented. You like to play at peak capacity every week, which I don't think that is possible for anytime in the country to do, but it is nice to know when we are hitting on all cylinders we are able to perform like we did."
On Bradlee Anae's performance against Stanford…
"He played his best game of the season without a doubt. He was our in-house player of the game. He made very few mistakes and had a big impact on the game. He is a talented player and we expect a lot of production out of him week-in and week-out."
On how critical it is that Utah has been able to get third down stops…
"Huge. Winning third downs is like a mini-turnover and gets the ball back to your offense. Unless they go for it on fourth, which we haven't been good at stopping ironically. Third down is the money down. You play first and second downs to set up the third down and third down is what it is all about. We have a saying here that third down is the only down and if you win third downs defensively and offensively, you can sustain drives and get out of drives."
On Arizona's balanced offense…
"They are doing a nice job. They are getting about 450 yards a week offensively, so they are very productive. Their quarterback is playing more from the pocket than he has in previous years, but he is still a huge threat to run the football. As the coaching changes take hold and get some traction throughout the season, I think you start to see more of what their true capabilities are."
On if he thinks that them going 16 quarters without a passing touchdown was an anomaly…
"Yeah let's call it an anomaly. We have a running back who is a sledge hammer all over the field and especially in the red zone. I think it is just the way things have shaken out. We haven't made a conscience effort to not throw the ball in the red zone, I just think things will start to balance out as the season goes on."
On if he is happy with the development of the throw game…
"I think it is getting better. Hardly any drops in the last game and the protection is getting better and that is where it starts. I think our protection was a little spotty in the first few weeks and is now seemed to have settled in."
"It was good to get the win at Stanford on Saturday night. I am proud of our players and I am proud of our coaches. It was a really good effort all around. All three phases of the game were in sync. The offense was productive. We scored a bunch of points, ran the ball well, threw efficiently and for the second week in a row we had no turnovers offensively. Our defense generated four takeaways, so anytime you are in the plus-four, that makes you tough to beat. Defensively we played the run well, but didn't hold up in the pass game as well as we wanted to. They have some really good receivers and the quarterback threw the ball well so you have to give them credit for making those plays. A lot of those catches were contested but they did a great job of making plays. Matt Gay had four field goals and is finally getting on track. He hasn't had a whole lot of opportunities before Saturday night. I think that was one of the primary differences in the game was our field goal and PAT unit scored 16 points as opposed to their three, so I think that was a big margin of difference in production. Now we move on to Arizona. We have a short week so we have one less day to prepare, which is not a big deal because they are in the same situation. Obviously, their quarterback is a talented kid, their running back is very good and they have a couple of good receivers, so we have our work cut out for us. They are coming off a nice victory over Cal, so we will line up Friday night and see where we are at."
On the tight ends production against Stanford and if we will see that same game plan moving forward…
"They have been involved in blocking for us and they are a big part of our run game, but they did make some catches on Saturday night. Brant Kuithe is starting to emerge as a viable weapon at the tight end spot. Going forward, we would like that production to continue, but it is a week-to-week thing with what the defense is giving you."
On the timing of the takeaways against Stanford and if he thinks they've gotten better at forcing turnovers…
"Yeah we had two in the red zone, which magnifies them. Bradlee Anae got good pressure on the quarterback during the game and I thought Morgan Scalley did a nice job dialing up some really timely blitzes in some critical situations. Takeaways, particularly interceptions, pass rush can have a significant effect. I think our pass rush has gotten better as the season has gone on and hopefully it will continue to do so."
On how he plans to keep the momentum going forward…
"It is a big positive that we can build off last game, not only with the production but with the energy, the passion and the juice that they played with. I think it started last week, even though we didn't win the game at Washington State, I think we are starting to figure out who we are and develop some confidence on offense. That will be a big push this week to continue that mindset."
On the offensive line with Orlando Umana and Nick Ford trading positions…
"It worked out really well. They both played well. We rushed the ball for over 220 yards and only gave up one sack. Both those players played exceptionally well. We hope to have Lo Falemaka back this week, but only time will tell. But those are two young and talented offensive linemen in our program."
On the balanced offense against Stanford…
"We try to be balanced and we achieved that. For us, we have a heck of a running back in Zack Moss and we have to utilize him. Armand Shyne played exceptionally well and gave us some really good reps. Tyler threw the ball very efficiently. I think it was around 80-percent, which is outstanding. It was a very good night."
On if they will continue to put Jaylon Johnson on the opponent's best wide receiver moving forward…
"We just play right and left, but sometimes there will be situations where we have corners where they are both on the same side, but we didn't design that. We feel just as good about Julian Blackmon. We think both those guys are good players and we don't play a lot of that 'star coverage.' We just play left and right."
On what he thinks they need to improve on after watching film on the Stanford game…
"There are always things you can look at and find things that need improving. It was good to see us play like we are capable of though. I think that is a real positive for our team to see everything clicking and see the team we are capable of being."
On if he is concerned with the amount of passing yards they've given up in the last two games…
"I think it is concerning, but I think it is a little misleading because of circumstances. We aren't necessarily concerned with raw yardage because we are looking at efficiency. We are first in the Pac-12 in pass defense efficiency, which is the No. 1 barometer for us as coaches to see how we are doing in pass defense."
On Gary Andersen's impact with the team so far…
"He has been a great addition to our staff. He is one of the best defensive line coaches in the country in my opinion. He was a successful coordinator while he was here and he has always had his hand in the defense since he left here. He has been a huge help to both Morgan and myself as a sounding board and as a guy that has a lot of experience. It has been exactly what I had envisioned it to be."
On if there is an explanation of the ups and downs of the season…
"The disappointing game, even though it was a win, was Northern Illinois. We played Washington and they are in the top-10 and my guess is that Washington State is going to continue to win a lot of games. So, a lot of it had to do with catching two teams that are playing really well and are really talented. You like to play at peak capacity every week, which I don't think that is possible for anytime in the country to do, but it is nice to know when we are hitting on all cylinders we are able to perform like we did."
On Bradlee Anae's performance against Stanford…
"He played his best game of the season without a doubt. He was our in-house player of the game. He made very few mistakes and had a big impact on the game. He is a talented player and we expect a lot of production out of him week-in and week-out."
On how critical it is that Utah has been able to get third down stops…
"Huge. Winning third downs is like a mini-turnover and gets the ball back to your offense. Unless they go for it on fourth, which we haven't been good at stopping ironically. Third down is the money down. You play first and second downs to set up the third down and third down is what it is all about. We have a saying here that third down is the only down and if you win third downs defensively and offensively, you can sustain drives and get out of drives."
On Arizona's balanced offense…
"They are doing a nice job. They are getting about 450 yards a week offensively, so they are very productive. Their quarterback is playing more from the pocket than he has in previous years, but he is still a huge threat to run the football. As the coaching changes take hold and get some traction throughout the season, I think you start to see more of what their true capabilities are."
On if he thinks that them going 16 quarters without a passing touchdown was an anomaly…
"Yeah let's call it an anomaly. We have a running back who is a sledge hammer all over the field and especially in the red zone. I think it is just the way things have shaken out. We haven't made a conscience effort to not throw the ball in the red zone, I just think things will start to balance out as the season goes on."
On if he is happy with the development of the throw game…
"I think it is getting better. Hardly any drops in the last game and the protection is getting better and that is where it starts. I think our protection was a little spotty in the first few weeks and is now seemed to have settled in."
Players Mentioned
DE
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DB
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OL
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DB
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TE
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RB
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OL
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