Shooting for Six Straight: Utah vs. BYU 2016

[SeattleUte]

What a doozy! I can't say I enjoyed the game much; there was not a whole lot of enjoyment all night. I was on pins and needles after our first fumble through our 15th fumble. Some random thoughts:

- I'm glad to have Taysom Hill in the rear view. He has definitely lost a step and he is still a RB who lines up behind center, but the guy is a devil to tackle. Even on the two-point conversion (more on that later) we had an unblocked LBer with a full run at him and they had a play designed (stupidly) for the left side and HE NEARLY SCORED. If the right side of the line had held their blocks for a step more we're talking about A-Rods head, how stupid it was to kick that last field goal, and how our offense is broken instead of targeting, Kilani's growing pains, and boy genius Ty Detmer. That said, I start Mangum if I'm the Y.
- Is that the best TE BYU can find? He moves like he has a deuce in his pants and he has the hands of a past-his-prime Nate Althoff. Embarrassing.
- Kyle's decision to kick on 4th down was a mistake, IMO. It all worked out, but I take a chance that my offensive line can get me three inches. Even if they can't you make BYU go the length of the field against a defense that has stuffed them all game long. But, that is reason 1,892,510 why I'm not on the Utah payroll.
- Kalani's decision to go for two was the correct choice, and on this point I will accept no disputes. You have a team (BYU) missing it's only effective running back (other than the guy listed as QB), two safeties, with a dog-tired defense, an offense that has been stopped all game, a freshman kicker who looks like a 13 year old at EFY, on the road. There is no way I go to overtime when I can have one play decide the game. But a designed qb sneak to the weak side of my line? Wrong call.
- I thought the targeting call on Chester McChesneyface was a good one. Didn't like the Nacua call.
- Is it me or are there WAY too many replays now?
- [WARNING: APPLEJACK IS ABOUT TO BITCH ABOUT THE LINEBACKERS]: Actually, I think Tauteoli played really well: the pick six was a gift he was all to happy to receive, and the other pick was all about Dimick getting to Taysom, and for the most part he played really solid. But there was way too much confusion in the secondary that stemmed from him (I think) leading to a lot of assignments in which he was trying to catch up to the play while Taysom ran by him. Also, going for the pump fake near the end zone just about had me slitting my wrists. Barton is hard working if not especially talented.
- I think "Mitchell Juergens" is my wife's shampoo of choice.
- Love our secondary. LOVE IT. Even without Domo, we shut BYU's passing game down even though Taysom had a surprising amount of time to throw. I can't even name BYU's receivers any better than I could yesterday: Hanneman, Moroni Latui-polysyllable, shampoo, are there more? You couldn't tell. Good job.
- It's a bad idea to run at Lowell. Every time I yell, in my best high-pitched imitation, LET'S GO!
- I'm not sold on Troy, sorry. He's a decent passer, but holy hell, the Nacua INTs were ridiculous. You can't make those mistakes against Oregon STATE, let alone Oregon. Plus, wasn't he the number 1 dual threat QB recruit in the country three years ago? What is the second threat? And don't say running because I have watched him for two games and I have seen BYU tight ends that run better than he does.
- I agree with Sancho--I'm not sure what purpose Joe Williams serves. With Moss being a revelation and McCormick being the change of pace I'm not sure if Joe should get a whole lot of carries going forward.
- I have never seen a non-McBride coached Utah team be as sloppy with the ball. Everyone (Rb, qb, wr, Boobie) was dropping balls with and without contact. That was some voodoo, karma stuff for last year's Vegas bowl.
- All in all, six straight. When I was growing up a Ute fan in the 80s I'm not sure I ever dreamed of winning six against the Y in my lifetime. Kudos to Kyle for the win.

So you're writing off Troy for throwing 2 ugly INTs in his first real game ever against a real DI opponent. Okay; got it. I disagree.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

This shouldn't even be debated because they were reviewed and affirmed. I don't care what the stupid sportscasters say. The purpose of review is to make sure it's right.

That's what I'm saying to Oklahoma State fans today also.

[SeattleUte]

That's what I'm saying to Oklahoma State fans today also.

That mistake didn't involve a judgment. The rule said the play shouldn't have been run at all.

[U-Ute]

BYU's receivers any better than I could yesterday: Hanneman, Moroni Latui-polysyllable

Lufua Putatutu or something like that. My wife commented that it sounded like the announcers were talking Jazz Scat.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

I wondered a couple of times last night how much Gus Johnson and Klatt stressed during the week about doing Utah/BYU game. There area lot of names that can be difficult to pronounce that need to be said quickly.

[U-Ute]

I wondered a couple of times last night how much Gus Johnson and Klatt stressed during the week about doing Utah/BYU game. There area lot of names that can be difficult to pronounce that need to be said quickly.

Klatt did pretty good. Gus was terrible.

Especially since they are given pronunciation guides by the schools.

[Diehard Ute]

I wondered a couple of times last night how much Gus Johnson and Klatt stressed during the week about doing Utah/BYU game. There area lot of names that can be difficult to pronounce that need to be said quickly.

I work with several Polynesian guys. When I first start working with them and pronounce a name correctly it usually gets a look. Then I just remind them I've been going to Ute games for 33 years, they all just laugh. Just takes practice haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Redbird]

I wondered a couple of times last night how much Gus Johnson and Klatt stressed during the week about doing Utah/BYU game. There area lot of names that can be difficult to pronounce that need to be said quickly.

Troy Williams, Joe Williams, Jamaal Williams. Not that hard!

[Diehard Ute]

From someone I know on Facebook


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Scratch]

- Is that the best TE BYU can find? He moves like he has a deuce in his pants and he has the hands of a past-his-prime Nate Althoff. Embarrassing.

For what it's worth (not much), when BYU brought in its new staff, Kalani and Detmer went really hard after Cole Fotheringham, and they told him that they needed him this year and wanted him to put off his mission for a year and go play for the Y, because he would almost certainly be their starter from day 1. Even with all that he stuck with his commitment to the Utes.

[concerned]

For what it's worth (not much), when BYU brought in its new staff, Kalani and Detmer went really hard after Cole Fotheringham, and they told him that they needed him this year and wanted him to put off his mission for a year and go play for the Y, because he would almost certainly be their starter from day 1. Even with all that he stuck with his commitment to the Utes.

Let's see what happens when he comes back from his mission. It's on you to make sure he keeps his commitment

[U-Ute]

These guys have a point. The 6 game streak is Max Hall's fault.

http://www.tornbysports.com/sports-b...all-end-curse/

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

These guys have a point. The 6 game streak is Max Hall's fault.

http://www.tornbysports.com/sports-b...all-end-curse/

What if the only way the curse could end is if Max got gay married?

[hostile]

What if the only way the curse could end is if Max got gay married?

LOL. And then he would have to carry a rainbow flag out at the beginning of a game.

[LA Ute]

Hans Olsen breakdown of the final play:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=...&v=L2RjUSqaKQk

[LA Ute]

The last six games:

https://www.facebook.com/john.fackle...10583205555510

[DrumNFeather]

DNF's 5 key takeaways from the game...

But first...can I call a swish here? Judges? I think it's pretty close to what happened...

On your final point - there is a growing sentiment that this is BYU's year...I'm not sure I see that. Emotions can only take you so far before preparation takes over...and as SU pointed out, this is a very green staff that is coming off a tough, hard-fought win going up against a veteran staff with extra time to prepare...and showed virtually nothing against SUU.

1) The Offense will be fine - I watched my facebook feed on Sunday fill up with discussions between Y and U fans regarding the two lousy teams that played on Saturday night. Stop it. This is game two of a 12 game regular season. You aren't supposed to be a finished product yet, and you build from one game to the next. Whit said in an interview early in the week that it is much easier to regroup and teach the players coming off a win than it is a loss where they are more emotionally fragile. Point is, there were moments in that game where the offense was on the cusp of seizing control and for whatever reason, it didn't happen. The encouraging thing is that I believe we have the horses to get it done and get it corrected.

2) Troy Williams will be fine - There's no sugar coating the mistakes that Troy made. Every single INT was a WTF? throw...particularly the one in the endzone. He'll learn from this and be better for it. It was clear early on that we were going to try to grind this one out because that's what we do. When we were up 17-13, I texted UD and said "Whit might be holding on for dear life here." Back to Troy. He has a command of the huddle and appears to have the respect of his teammates. Give him time, and I think we'll see a kid that can move this offense efficiently. Plus, I will maintain that there's not much you can glean from a game like this. If you look at other QB performances from the league on the day...Davis Webb 522 yards in a loss...Luke Falk, 400 yards 4 TD and one pick in a loss. The guy he lost to? Brett Rypien....1 TD and 3 picks in a win. I don't think we'll ever have the 500 yard passer...but Troy can move this team and I think he'll win a lot of ball games the next two years.

3) Tim Patrick is the real deal and we need to get him the ball more. I'll only expand on that thought to say this: Every time we are inside the 10 we need to throw at least one fade to Patrick. I suspect he'll come up with it more often than not.

4) How can you not love what you saw from this defense? Tough as nails and came up with big stops in big spots. The first Hill TD run was guys taking some real bad angles, but other than that, I thought they did well to bottle up the Cougar's best player (Williams) and limit the rest of the offense.

5) Moss and McCormick would be a nice inside outside combo. That is not to throw Joe Williams out completely...but it wasn't really until Moss and McCormick got going that we saw any productive runs from Joe Williams. I think Moss is going to be the guy that makes this engine go. Strong, powerful, downhill runner like we've had in the past. I think we'll see this offense really start to utilize all these guys and throw defenses off.

As for the Cougars. I'll give them credit. I didn't think they had the horses to hang with us for four quarters, and they did a good job. Jamaal Williams is a really good RB. I'm a little on the side of AJ here in that I think that at times in that game Hill was a big time liability for their offense, so it will be interesting to see what happens the rest of their season. You have to appreciate Sitake for having his player's backs...that will serve him well as he attempts to rebuild the program there.

UCLA will probably beat them by more than 1 point...get ready for some serious gnashing of teeth by Ute Nation.

2-0!

[NorthwestUteFan]

.

UCLA will probably beat them by more than 1 point...get ready for some serious gnashing of teeth by Ute Nation.

2-0!

You mean gnashing of teeth by Cougar nation, don't you?

Ute nation will be perfectly
happy with a Bruin win, and we will find a different way to handle UCLA down the road.

[NorthwestUteFan]

This is an after thought, but one of byu's more admirable qualities is they NEVER give up and quit. They always play hard until the final whistle.

Because of this they are always dangerous.

[SoCalPat]

The percentages, as provided by Pro Football Reference's Win Probability Calculator.

Final drive start, Utah 1st and 10 from the Utah 10: 76 percent

Utah 4th and 1 from the BYU 7: 89.4 percent

Let's say we go for it on fourth down, and have Utah 1st and goal from the BYU 6: 97.4 percent

As things went, we kicked the FG. Kicking the FG actually DECREASED our chances of winning. Because BYU went from 10.6 percent chance of winning, to 14.4 percent once it had 1st and 10 from its down 25 with 2:47 left. Normally, I'm against doing things that decrease your chances of winning, but more on that later.

Interestingly enough, BYU's chances of winning still weren't that great when it had 2nd and goal from the 7 with 24 seconds left -- the play in which Hill scored. Just 27.2 percent. Because there's no extra point feature on this calculator, I can only assume BYU's chances of winning after it scored the TD but before it lined up for 2 were the same as the odds of converting the 2-point conversion -- about 38-40 percent.

While kicking the FG decreased Utah's chances of winning, it's not hardly cut-and-dried that Utah should kick the FG. There's room for debate here. Normally, I advocate the move that plays into the conservative nature of most coaches. Kick the FG, and even if the opposition scores a TD, they'll kick the PAT and go to OT. But if there was ever a time for a coach to buck that philosophy, it was Saturday for Sitake. It's his second game ever. Even if he loses, he gets kudos for playing to win. He's down two starters in the secondary. He doesn't have the edge in the kicking game. And Utah's got a little mojo going with its offense. We also don't really know how reliable Jamaal Williams is at this point, health-wise.

Conventional wisdom is if you're the underdog, you take your shot at 2. If you're the favorite, your goal is to extend the game and let your built-in advantages take over. But Sitake has reason for extending the game, too. Utah has committed 6 turnovers, several by a QB with questionable decision-making ability. Utah's best short-yardage option has a propensity for fumbling. Nobody on the offensive side of the ball has been in a OT situation. The offensive line is more than capable of giving up yards via penalty.

There are situations that are far more clear, but leading by 4 can only put you in position to be second-guessed. I don't think Kyle's being totally honest when he says he would've done the same if in Sitake's shoes -- if that's really the case, you should've thought of that when Utah had 4th and inches from the 7 and gone for the first down. Given everything that was going on, it's a lot to process everything that goes into a decision like this. While going for the first down could've virtually ensured victory, kicking the FG did not ensure defeat, not by a long shot. Kyle's made some bad decisions in this regard while at Utah, but Saturday's wasn't one of them.

[LA Ute]

Kyle's made some bad decisions in this regard while at Utah, but Saturday's wasn't one of them.

I agree. I don't think it was a bad decision at all. It was a Kyle decision. When that fourth and one play came up, my son asked me if I thought Kyle would go for it. I said "No way," because that is just not the way Kyle operates. In fact, I was able to predict the next series by BYU too. I told my son, "They will get the ball on the 25, and we will give them short passes all the way down the field. Then we will try to stop them as they get close." It is the way Kyle plays. He is a smart guy, and he wins, and that is good enough for me.

Either way, there is no way Kyle would've gone for two in the same situation as BYU's. That doesn't mean Sitake did not make the right call. It just means KW wouldn't have made that call.

[SoCalPat]

Klatt did pretty good. Gus was terrible.

Especially since they are given pronunciation guides by the schools.

Gus Johnson is the most overrated PBP man in sports. He's had a couple of memorable calls in the NCAA Tournament that built his name, but he's no Al Michaels or Mike Tirico, and not by a damn sight.

[DrumNFeather]

Gus Johnson is the most overrated PBP man in sports. He's had a couple of memorable calls in the NCAA Tournament that built his name, but he's no Al Michaels or Mike Tirico, and not by a damn sight.

I enjoy his enthusiasm in calling the game...and it's a lot more fun when you are on the winning side (See: Oregon last year). What is your main issue with him?

[SoCalPat]

I enjoy his enthusiasm in calling the game...and it's a lot more fun when you are on the winning side (See: Oregon last year). What is your main issue with him?

Gus is about the sizzle, when I prefer the steak. Anybody can be enthusiastic, but Gus lacks in informing viewers.

[SoCalPat]

I agree. I don't think it was a bad decision at all. It was a Kyle decision. When that fourth and one play came up, my son asked me if I thought Kyle would go for it. I said "No way," because that is just not the way Kyle operates. In fact, I was able to predict the next series by BYU too. I told my son, "They will get the ball on the 25, and we will give them short passes all the way down the field. Then we will try to stop them as they get close." It is the way Kyle plays. He is a smart guy, and he wins, and that is good enough for me.

Either way, there is no way Kyle would've gone for two in the same situation as BYU's. That doesn't mean Sitake did not make the right call. It just means KW wouldn't have made that call.

Kyle knows football and he's a defensive wizard. He's largely clueless on game theory, as are many HCs. I'm fairly confident if we're up 3 instead of 4, Kyle still kicks the FG in that situation.

[concerned]

The percentages, as provided by Pro Football Reference's Win Probability Calculator.

Final drive start, Utah 1st and 10 from the Utah 10: 76 percent

Utah 4th and 1 from the BYU 7: 89.4 percent

Let's say we go for it on fourth down, and have Utah 1st and goal from the BYU 6: 97.4 percent

As things went, we kicked the FG. Kicking the FG actually DECREASED our chances of winning. Because BYU went from 10.6 percent chance of winning, to 14.4 percent once it had 1st and 10 from its down 25 with 2:47 left. Normally, I'm against doing things that decrease your chances of winning, but more on that later.

Interestingly enough, BYU's chances of winning still weren't that great when it had 2nd and goal from the 7 with 24 seconds left -- the play in which Hill scored. Just 27.2 percent. Because there's no extra point feature on this calculator, I can only assume BYU's chances of winning after it scored the TD but before it lined up for 2 were the same as the odds of converting the 2-point conversion -- about 38-40 percent.

While kicking the FG decreased Utah's chances of winning, it's not hardly cut-and-dried that Utah should kick the FG. There's room for debate here. Normally, I advocate the move that plays into the conservative nature of most coaches. Kick the FG, and even if the opposition scores a TD, they'll kick the PAT and go to OT. But if there was ever a time for a coach to buck that philosophy, it was Saturday for Sitake. It's his second game ever. Even if he loses, he gets kudos for playing to win. He's down two starters in the secondary. He doesn't have the edge in the kicking game. And Utah's got a little mojo going with its offense. We also don't really know how reliable Jamaal Williams is at this point, health-wise.

Conventional wisdom is if you're the underdog, you take your shot at 2. If you're the favorite, your goal is to extend the game and let your built-in advantages take over. But Sitake has reason for extending the game, too. Utah has committed 6 turnovers, several by a QB with questionable decision-making ability. Utah's best short-yardage option has a propensity for fumbling. Nobody on the offensive side of the ball has been in a OT situation. The offensive line is more than capable of giving up yards via penalty.

There are situations that are far more clear, but leading by 4 can only put you in position to be second-guessed. I don't think Kyle's being totally honest when he says he would've done the same if in Sitake's shoes -- if that's really the case, you should've thought of that when Utah had 4th and inches from the 7 and gone for the first down. Given everything that was going on, it's a lot to process everything that goes into a decision like this. While going for the first down could've virtually ensured victory, kicking the FG did not ensure defeat, not by a long shot. Kyle's made some bad decisions in this regard while at Utah, but Saturday's wasn't one of them.

Yes but if we had gotten the first down, we would have covered. A guy on my row was pissed that KW didn't take that into account.

[DrumNFeather]

Gus is about the sizzle, when I prefer the steak. Anybody can be enthusiastic, but Gus lacks in informing viewers.

I can see that. Some of those "steak" guys seem to want to move on from their current game and talk about something else. I watched some of the Notre Dame game and Tirico as always was fantastic...though I'm not sure there is a football broadcast that is generally more boring than a Notre Dame broadcast.

[SoCalPat]

Yes but if we had gotten the first down, we would have covered. A guy on my row was pissed that KW didn't take that into account.

He needs to start fading Utah at home. Last nine home wins, only 2-7 ATS (Arizona State and Michigan). Since 2014, Utah at home has been a horrible play, 5-10 ATS.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

I enjoy his enthusiasm in calling the game...and it's a lot more fun when you are on the winning side (See: Oregon last year). What is your main issue with him?

I think Gus was built for the NCAA tourney, I still miss him in March. He's decent at football, but college hoops was perfect for him.

[Redbird]

Gus Johnson is the most overrated PBP man in sports. He's had a couple of memorable calls in the NCAA Tournament that built his name, but he's no Al Michaels or Mike Tirico, and not by a damn sight.

I don't like him calling soccer, either.