What Whittingham said about the Pac-12 Championship vs USC

Kyle Whittingham says will have a chip on their shoulder heading into the Pac-12 Championship against USC.

Opening Statement:

"Championship Week. First of all, we're thrilled to be back in the championship, obviously. A lot of things had to line up for us. They all transpired. Our team did a really good job of taking care of our business (at Colorado). The game was never really in doubt. Played extremely well on offense, piled up a bunch of yards. Defensively, we didn't give up much at all. So a really good outing by the football team on Saturday."

"Big challenge this week. We find ourselves in a very similar situation as last year, playing a team we already beat one time in league play. As we all know, it's very difficult to beat a really good team twice. But that's what our challenge is. S.C. is ultra-talented. Very efficient on offense. I know they're not No. 1 in total offense, but they're No. 1 in yards per play, which is, to me, more important than the total offense number. Quarterback is terrific, No. 1 passer efficiency rating in the conference. They lead the league in scoring as well, about 42 points per game. Probably their most impressive statistic, overall, without a doubt in my opinion, is their turnover margin. They've only turned it over four times and gained 27. That's got to be No. 1 in the nation, if not close to it. That's really been the biggest factor in their successful season, how they take care of the football and how they take it away on defense. Got a big challenge like I said. It's a short turnaround for both teams, so no advantage or disadvantage there. We have our work cut out for us. We'll go to work today, back on the field. We'll fly down there Thursday, line up on Friday night in Allegiant Stadium, and away we go."

Question: How much has the defense improved since you faced USC back in October?

Utah Utes players celebrate their last minute win over the USC Trojans at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports.

Kyle Whittingham: "I don't think we ever had people not bought in, it's just a matter of the defense maturing, guys gaining experience. (The USC game) was the onset of the defense pivoting and making a reversal...We played extremely well in the second half of that USC game. From that point on, we've played pretty good defense. The way that our guys have grown up this year, it's been a great job by Coach Scalley and his staff getting them ready every week. Great job by the players taking the preparation process dead serious and making sure we don't have any wasted time on the field or in the meeting room. It's a very business-like approach with our defense. They've really played some good football as of late."

Question: Thoughts on the number of guys you have playing in their third and fourth Pac-12 Championship games?

Kyle Whittingham: "I think it speaks volumes. We're in the fourth (Pac-12 Championship) in five years, fourth in four years really because nobody counts (the COVID year)…We did ask for a raise of hands in the team meeting; I think there was half a dozen hands that have been in all four games. To be able to be in that game for four years running is a real testament to our football team, the talent level of players we have in the program, just how dedicated they are to what they do and how bought in they are."

Question: What does that say about recruiting?

Jaylon Glover, Utah.

Courtesy of Jaylon Glover Twitter.

Kyle Whittingham: "That's why you recruit; you recruit to try to win championships and get to the championship and win a bunch of games. We won nine games in the regular season. We're not saying we're thrilled with that, but that speaks to the level of where we're at when you think of a 9-3 season as not quite what you were after."

Question: What did you think about Ja'Quinden Jackson's performance at Colorado?

Utah's Ja'Quinden Jackson (3) runs the ball as ASU defenders Jordan Clark (1) and Kyle Soelle (34) dive for the tackle at Sun Devil Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022.

Joe Rondone/The Republic-USA TODAY NETWORK.

Kyle Whittingham: "He took a step forward, there's no doubt about that. He had a really good showing, over 100 yards. Protected the football, had really good ball security. We grade ball security; it's not just putting the ball on the ground. We flag ball security issues when the ball comes away and it's in a vulnerable position, even if it doesn't come out. His ball security grade went way up and is where it needs to be. Micah Bernard showed you some good things. He had a chance to get out and run. You saw him on the opponent sideline where he really hit the juice and made a nice run. Jaylon Glover came in and gave us some quality carries as well. But to answer your question, JJ has really started to settle in and be productive."

Question: What is Dalton Kincaid's status?

Utah Utes tight end Dalton Kincaid (86) runs after a catch against the USC Trojans in the second half at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Kyle Whittingham: "We expect him to play. It's not a guarantee, but we'll see what happens." 

Question: How does the fact that you've already played USC impact your preparation?

Kyle Whittingham: "You've got to tweak things a little bit. One thing they've done since we played them; they were a '10' personnel-heavy team with '11' being the second group. That's flip-flopped. They've gone more to '11' personnel; those percentages almost did a 180 with each other. That means different personnel on the field for us when they're in '11' as opposed to when they're in '10'. They seem to have really settled into that '11' personnel grouping and getting most of their snaps out of that group."

Question: What was Saturday like for you with the other games in the Pac-12?

Kyle Whittingham: "I got an (Oregon-Oregon State) update when it was 31-10 Oregon. Somebody had the little GameCast thing on ESPN said 99.3% chance of winning. That was a little bit of a downer. But we were just worried about what we could control and we were just hoping for the other stuff to happen. Once that game did the reversal, I started getting a steady flow of updates with about seven or eight minutes to go in the fourth quarter of our game. That's when (Oregon-Oregon State) was winding down. Couldn't believe it when (Oregon State) pulled it off. Then of course, it was all down to one game that night. We were all glued to our TV that night watching the Huskies and Washington State."

Question: What was the conversation in the locker room after Colorado?

Kyle Whittingham: "The (Oregon-Oregon State) game was in the books at that point. We said 'hey, three of the four things have happened. We need one more to go and we'll see if the stars align for us.' And they did. Some people say we back-doored our way into the championship. No, we won the games we needed to win to get there. I don't know what back-door means. We won seven games, and the right seven games, to get into the championship."

Question: What is the current state of the offensive line?

Kyle Whittingham: "(We feel) really good. We've got the same five. Knock on wood, been able to stay relatively healthy there. We've had a little shuffling of the deck here and there, but no major overhauls on the O-Line. We've got the same five right now that have been starting most of the year, that will be ready for this game."

Question: How does previous Pac-12 Championship experience help your players?

Utah Utes quarterback Cameron Rising (7) celebrates the victory against the Oregon Ducks in the 2021 Pac-12 Championship Game at Allegiant Stadium.

Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports.

Kyle Whittingham: "I think it helps a lot. The stage shouldn't be too big. We've got guys that have been there and done that. Handful of guys are going to their fourth (championship game). Experience in that regard is a good thing. I think that will play in our favor."

Question: Why was Dalton Kincaid so effective during the regular season against USC?

Kyle Whittingham: "I don't want to make it sound like he wasn't good at the onset, but we've just been featuring him more and more, and he's made more and more plays. You saw the catch he made that he got dinged up on in the Colorado game. That was spectacular. It's just a matter of continuing to maximize his skillset and understanding how incredible that skillset is. I still can't believe he's not on the (Biletnikoff Award Semifinalist list) which is crazy. He's third or fourth in the league right now in receptions per game, and that's missing a game or two…But he's a terrific talent, he is a guy that every week we need to target him a bunch of times."

Question: Thoughts on Caleb Williams?

Kyle Whittingham: "He's been great every game. Show me a game where he's not great…I think he just keeps getting better and better. He's maybe the most difficult quarterback to sack that we've ever come across, that is also a great throwing threat. We've played some athletic quarterbacks that were really like a wide receiver playing QB. But as far as a 'true QB', nobody harder to sack than that guy. He keeps the plays alive. He extends the plays. He keeps his eyes downfield incredibly well during the scrambles. He very rarely glances at the rush. He's always just seeing it peripherally. It seems like he's got eyes in the back of his head. Some of the escapes that he has are just fantastic. And he's only 20 years old. Second year out of high school, true sophomore. What he's doing is very impressive and odds are on him to win the Heisman, are what we're hearing nationally."

Question: How has the defense evolved?

Kyle Whittingham: "As I mentioned, we've grown up in a lot of position groups. Didn't have a ton of experience early on. We weren't playing very fundamentally-sound. We were leaving gaps, technique-wise not real good. We weren't tackling real well early in the season. We just continued to get better and better as the season wore on. As I mentioned, the real turning point seemed to be second half of the USC game. Since that point, we've been really stingy on defense."

Question: What is the mentality for this weekend?

Kyle Whittingham: "Pretty much everyone's got them winning already and going to the playoffs and Caleb winning the Heisman. That's already kind of been talked about. We love that role. We love the chip on our shoulder (and) nobody giving us a chance. We seem to thrive in that capacity and in that world."

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