After Months Of Waiting, Utah Ready To Enter Pac-12 South Title Hunt
It's been a rough few months for the Utah football program.
When the Utes finally got the all clear that they would actually play this season, albeit just a six-game conference-only schedule, the team was ecstatic. It meant that not only would they be able to defend their Pac-12 south division title, they could go after a third consecutive one, something that hasn't been done in the Pac-12
So when the Pac-12 released its schedule in October, nearly everybody in the conference and the nation circled Saturday, Nov. 21 on their calendar. It was the day Utah was set to host USC, who many pundits around the nation believed "was back."
It was expected that both programs would enter that matchup 2-0, ranked in the top-20 and the winner would be seen as the favorite to advance to the Pac-12 title game with an outside shot at the College Football Playoff.
Now just three days away from that game and only one team, USC, has held up its side of the bargain. The Trojans are ranked No. 20 in the country and currently sit at 2-0, although both victories have been less than impressive and have required touchdowns in the final minute to win.
Utah hasn't held up its end of the bargain, and it's due to no fault of its own. The Utes had its first two games of the season canceled due to a rash outbreak of COVID-19 within the program that affected both players and coaches.
Courtesy of Utah Athletics
“Devastating,” Utah starting linebacker Devin Lloyd said on Tuesday. “It’s really just the worst thing that could happen for you as a football player, especially now more than ever. We already knew our games were limited and then for it just to happen the way it did, you know, the day before, I mean, everybody’s mentality is, ‘oh, we’re good, we’re going,’ and it’s just taken away from us. The game we love is taken away from us. I mean, it’s definitely devastating.
Utah was forced to cancel its Nov. 7 season opener against Arizona when it had multiple members of the program (players and staff) test positive for COVID-19. Then add in the players quarantined due to contact tracing and the Utes were unable to meet the minimum number of scholarship players available.
The Utes were then set face UCLA this past Saturday night, but a positive COVID-19 test on Friday also kept the Utes below the minimum scholarship threshold. According to a tweet by lineman Nick Ford and subsequent research, LA County (where the game was being held) wouldn't allow Utah players to test their way out of quarantine.
But now that huge game is finally here and Utah is feeling very confident, both in the game itself and its current COVID-19 situation.
"We've had an encouraging week so far. ... Excellent practice yesterday. Things are trending in the right direction for us, as far as getting back to health and getting guys back out on the practice field, so that's encouraging as well," Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said. "It's still not perfect, but we're in a much better spot than we have been at any point over the last two weeks, and so we feel like we've got ourselves back into a good situation. There's still a few guys that we're missing, but hopefully, we get those guys back shortly."
The Utes and the Trojans have been the class of the Pac-12 south division, combining to win four of the last five titles. Utah is 3-6 against USC since joining the Pac-12, yet hold a 3-1 advantage in games playing in the friendly confines of Rice-Eccles Stadium, which is exactly where the teams will meet on Saturday night.
Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
It's not an ideal situation for the Utes to begin their season against their main rival. And for all intent purposes this is the game that will decide the Pac-12 south division title — unless upstart Colorado has something to say about that.
But in typical fashion, Utah isn't shying away from the moment. Rather, they're embracing the task at hand.
"I look at it as exciting," Lloyd said. "You want to play because you want to play against the best. I personally feel like all the preparation that we've been doing in the offseason, it's led us up to this point. I feel like 2020, coming back from this crazy year, what better way to start off than going against the best team in the South? Two of the best teams in the Pac-12. ... I just feel like it's a perfect matchup, so I can't wait."
Courtesy of Utah Athletics
With nine new starters on defense and a new quarterback and running back on offense, Utah definitely has some questions that need to be answered on both sides of the ball. But the Trojans have just as many questions, starting with lackluster performances by the defense and offense that has struggled to find consistency and rhythm.
Either way, Saturday night is sure to bring the fireworks and the Utes, as per the norm, can't wait for the opportunity to strap up and hit somebody.
"We've got some good things going for us on offense — very few new players on offense, that's a veteran group, and so we expect to be productive on offense," Whittingham said. "And really, the key is how quickly this defense can come around. But we're always looking to win the South and get to the championship game and then win that. That's our objective, and we'll see what happens. We've got to start playing at some point and, hopefully, this is the week we're able to do that."
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