Offense
QB: A-
With as much as Huntley is hucking it and tucking it (43 passing attempts and 14 carries), I can live with the turnovers. His 341 passing yards are the most by a Utah QB in the Pac-12 era (!) and he nearly exceeded 400 yards on his own. Think of Huntley as Lamar Jackson Lite: he's becoming one of the most pure dual threat QB's in the west, but needs more experience and slow the game down a notch.
RB: B-
Improvement from last week against BYU, but still not where they need to be. The run game is dominated by Huntley, but someone from this running back corp needs to step up and relieve some pressure. Maybe it's Moss, maybe it's DHC going forward, but someone needs to establish the run game or opposing defenses are going to double up Carrington or spy on Huntley and take away his strengths.
WR: A
Ask and you shall receive--no penalties on the wideouts! Utah has an NFL wide receiver on their roster, and even if teams start playing tighter on Carrington, he will still get his yards and it'll allow someone like Nacua, Wilson or Singleton to break out and get their yards. This is the most dangerous receiving group Utah has had in recent memory.
OL: B+
Snaps were cleaned up by a new "sweep" snap by Falemaka. The line still had a couple penalties, allowed a sack on Huntley, and I'd like to see the pass protection improve, but this group has improved week-by-week. This was my biggest area of concern for the Utes this season, and they are easing my concerns as they get more experienced.
Defense
Front 7: A
The front seven absolutely dominated against San Jose State. I'm still trying to decide the most impressive stat: is it the 30 yards allowed on the ground? Or the 5 sacks? Or the three fumbles recovered? Or the tip drill interception by Tauteoli? Either way, it was utter domination and an embarrassment of riches for the Utes on Saturday. Let's hope Fitts is good to go after getting his bell rung but a blocking receiver, but Repp stepped up big in his place.
Secondary: C
The Utes missed Chase Hansen on Saturday. Blair and Afia had 7 and 4 tackles respectively, but they missed some assignments that resulted in huge gains for the Spartans. Blackmon gave up a big gain as well, but made up for it for a perfectly positioned interception. Still, way to many chunk yardage and big plays given up.
Special Teams
FG: A++++
Matt Gay take a bow! Four field goals, two from 50+ and one from 56 yards out. He's clearly the frontrunner for the Lou Groza Award with 11/11 FG and two over 50. What an incredible story for the former UVU soccer player. I think the Utes need to start scouting the next non-football sport for the next great Utah kicker. I'm thinking wrestling or water polo is next. Suggestions?
Punting: B
Wishnowsky turned a would-be disaster into an acrobatic kick with his left leg--there's the rugby player in him coming out. But he did only average 40 yards per punt, well below his 50+ average.
Returns: A
There we go, Boobie! Three punt returns for 95 yards for Hobbs, and was a block away from taking it to the house on each of them. If the Utes can get even half of that kind of production out of him on a weekly basis, then watch out.
QB: A-
With as much as Huntley is hucking it and tucking it (43 passing attempts and 14 carries), I can live with the turnovers. His 341 passing yards are the most by a Utah QB in the Pac-12 era (!) and he nearly exceeded 400 yards on his own. Think of Huntley as Lamar Jackson Lite: he's becoming one of the most pure dual threat QB's in the west, but needs more experience and slow the game down a notch.
RB: B-
Improvement from last week against BYU, but still not where they need to be. The run game is dominated by Huntley, but someone from this running back corp needs to step up and relieve some pressure. Maybe it's Moss, maybe it's DHC going forward, but someone needs to establish the run game or opposing defenses are going to double up Carrington or spy on Huntley and take away his strengths.
WR: A
Ask and you shall receive--no penalties on the wideouts! Utah has an NFL wide receiver on their roster, and even if teams start playing tighter on Carrington, he will still get his yards and it'll allow someone like Nacua, Wilson or Singleton to break out and get their yards. This is the most dangerous receiving group Utah has had in recent memory.
OL: B+
Snaps were cleaned up by a new "sweep" snap by Falemaka. The line still had a couple penalties, allowed a sack on Huntley, and I'd like to see the pass protection improve, but this group has improved week-by-week. This was my biggest area of concern for the Utes this season, and they are easing my concerns as they get more experienced.
Defense
Front 7: A
The front seven absolutely dominated against San Jose State. I'm still trying to decide the most impressive stat: is it the 30 yards allowed on the ground? Or the 5 sacks? Or the three fumbles recovered? Or the tip drill interception by Tauteoli? Either way, it was utter domination and an embarrassment of riches for the Utes on Saturday. Let's hope Fitts is good to go after getting his bell rung but a blocking receiver, but Repp stepped up big in his place.
Secondary: C
The Utes missed Chase Hansen on Saturday. Blair and Afia had 7 and 4 tackles respectively, but they missed some assignments that resulted in huge gains for the Spartans. Blackmon gave up a big gain as well, but made up for it for a perfectly positioned interception. Still, way to many chunk yardage and big plays given up.
Special Teams
FG: A++++
Matt Gay take a bow! Four field goals, two from 50+ and one from 56 yards out. He's clearly the frontrunner for the Lou Groza Award with 11/11 FG and two over 50. What an incredible story for the former UVU soccer player. I think the Utes need to start scouting the next non-football sport for the next great Utah kicker. I'm thinking wrestling or water polo is next. Suggestions?
Punting: B
Wishnowsky turned a would-be disaster into an acrobatic kick with his left leg--there's the rugby player in him coming out. But he did only average 40 yards per punt, well below his 50+ average.
Returns: A
There we go, Boobie! Three punt returns for 95 yards for Hobbs, and was a block away from taking it to the house on each of them. If the Utes can get even half of that kind of production out of him on a weekly basis, then watch out.
