What Utah players said after beating Nebraska in Las Vegas Bowl

Devon Dampier and Lander Barton broke down the Utes' first win under head coach Morgan Scalley

Utah Utes quarterback Devon Dampier (4) throws the ball against Nebraska Cornhuskers in the second half during the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl at Allegiant Stadium. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

LAS VEGAS — Fueled by a dominant performance from Devon Dampier and some stifling defense from Lander Barton and company, Utah cruised to a 44-22 win over Nebraska in the Las Vegas Bowl on Wednesday.

Dampier took home game MVP honors after throwing for 310 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a big night on the ground, recording 148 rushing yards and three more scores as the Utes (11-2, 7-2 Big 12) racked up 535 total yards of offense against a top-25 defense.

The Cornhuskers (7-6, 4-5 Big Ten) gained an advantage early with back-to-back scoring drives in the first quarter, totaling 157 yards of offense and eight first downs to lead 14-7 through 15 minutes of play.

That's when the Utes defense adjusted to the Cornhuskers' run game accordingly, stymieing Nebraska tailback Mekhi Nelson the rest of the way after he started the game with 58 yards on three carries. Nelson tallied 30 yards on his next 11 carries, underscoring how the Cornhuskers struggled to move the ball in the second and third quarter. Nebraska had just 30 total yards of offense in that span; Utah, meanwhile, had over 300 yards of offense during that stretch, scoring 37 unanswered points in the process to take a 44-14 lead with just over 8 minutes left in regulation.

Both on the days leading up to the game with Morgan Scalley taking over as head coach

Dampier

"I think the way Scalley came in — just right away, when we all sat down and he got up there, he went up there with confidence. And as players — when things get a little change, you don't know what's really going to happen. When you know you're getting led by someone with confidence in himself and also in the program, I think it just lifted us up from the jump."

"Just throughout this trip, he's allowed us to have both the fun of enjoying each other. There's a lot of love for this team that we've created. We've bonded since the beginning. So just for him to allow us to have that time together, and then also, when we got to business; man, we we hit it hard, and practices were hard. We're just just grateful for it all, grateful for coach Scalley, the way he handled everything, and that's kind of what kept us together."

Barton

"I really never felt like the team was ever really distracted by what was going on around us. I mean, it made it easy too, because it's a good group of guys that are all bought into the culture. We're all here for one reason and that's to win a game."

"Coach Scalley preached every single day, every single team meeting that we had; just stay focused on the goal. I mean, we have our time to have fun, like Devon said, and there's time to work. And I'm just happy to be a part of this team and a part of coach Scalley's first win."

Barton on Scalley getting emotional after the game

"It was good to see. He'll cry a little bit sometimes. He's not afraid to cry. I mean, I'm working on it. He doesn't hide his feelings. Doesn't mask it. I think it takes a very brave and strong man to cry in front of others. And that's the type of man coach Scalley is. I mean, that's type of man I want to be some man. He leads by example."

Dampier on what the future holds for him

"It's all about this game. That's what it's been about. These are like the final hours with my seniors. I've been elected to be in the leadership since the beginning, able to earn captain this game."

"They demonstrated leadership to the max. I'm so grateful that this was the way I was raised. I take my relationship very valuable and very serious. So, yeah it's the last couple hours to hang out with those guys. So that's where my mind is going to be at for sure."

Barton on the defensive adjustments Utah made after Nebraska's hot start

"In those first couple series, there was mistakes made on almost every single play where we were kind of just settling in. We just had to play fundamental and technique football, that's all it is. But a lot of big plays happen when things start to break down, so you just got to get back to doing your job and every single person needs to do it on the field. And once you start doing that, you saw the results. We just had to settle in."

Both on the future of the program with Scalley in charge

Dampier

"He's a he's a big believer in hard work, so I can't imagine Utah going away. We're tough minded; we stay together. So, I know that's going to come with it for sure."

"And I think the difference you're going to see is the energies; it has been different, no doubt, the amount of smiles on people's faces, and that just brings that extra juice. So, I can imagine, running up that tunnel, people are going to be hyped."

Barton

"After tonight, I'll be watching the TV to see what this program does. I know great things are in store. The culture's strong; it's not going to dwindle at all. It's just going to build from here. And I mean, I'm excited to watch this program win some rings."