First off, I want apologize for no Q&A last week. The Washington publisher never returned my questions and never sent me his either, after agreeing to do it. With that said, here are my answers for the ASU site, this week:
While this year Washington and Colorado are seemingly the most talked about programs in the Pac-12, Utah is quietly building off of their recent success in the last couple of years and are proving to repeat as one of the elite programs in the league. UteNation.com Publisher Alex Markham answered our Huddle members’ questions regarding ASU’s upcoming opponent and the challenges they will pose on Thursday night.
With three games left in the regular season did you expect to see Utah as the only team in the South that controls its destiny for the division championship or have you’ve been very surprised by the Utes’ success this year?
Expect, no. Am I surprised… not at all. This is Whittingham’s most talented team he’s ever had. The Utes have been absolutely ravaged by injuries, so the fact that they’re still in this position is a testament to Utah fans that the Pac-12 is working and that the Utes can go toe-to-toe with the best teams around.
Do you feel quarterback Troy Williams is truly an upgrade over Travis Wilson since the passing numbers appear to be just slightly better than 2015?
I was a strong supporter of Wilson for a long time because he always found a way to keep the Utes in games, but with Williams it’s different. First off, the passing numbers are skewed because of two the things: the Utes have run the ball extremely well and Williams also played in awful weather in Corvallis, completing only four passes.
The reason I feel that Williams is an upgrade is because—when the opportunity presents itself—he slings the ball around, with no apologies. When he’s rolling out of the pocket, his eyes are downfield looking for an open receiver. Wilson would just tuck it and run. Williams’ top receiver, Tim Patrick, hasn’t been 100% healthy until recently. Now that Patrick is good to go, expect those numbers get a jolt. Wilson had the respect of his teammates, but with Williams, it’s just different. He has this cool and calm swagger about him that his guys feed off of.
The success of running back Joe Williams is truly fascinating. What is your take on his whole un-retiring story, and was it something that may have been looked at less favorably before he proceeded to tear it up on the field?
To the fan base, emotions were initially mixed. I’ll admit that I was against it, initially. The thing that changed my opinion, wasn’t his results, it was the fact that his teammates welcomed him back with open arms and they never felt as though he deserted them.
His month off gave him time to clear his head and heal up. Before he hung it up, he looked timid and scared, when carrying the ball. Now, he’s running like he has nothing to lose, keeping his legs churning, and popping people in the mouth.
It’s one of the craziest transformations I’ve ever seen.
Aside from those two players, who would you list as the impact players on offense?
Keep an eye on Tim Patrick and Garett Bolles. Patrick, for the reason I stated above. He’s a reliable game breaker that takes pressure off of Troy Williams and the entire offense. With Bolles, he’s going to be protecting quarterbacks for a long time on Sundays. You want to know just how vicious and good this guy is… just Google “Garett Bolles and Cameron Smith.”
Do you think Utah can really exploit a struggling ASU’s pass defense, or do you not expect them to throw the ball more than usual in this contest?
As an opposing defensive coordinator, how would you effectively defend the Utes’ offense?
The Utes, as with most of their games, should find a nice balance. This time around, look for them to keep ASU honest with their rushing attack—along with Williams, Zack Moss is also a very capable back—that will allow them to hit on timely passes. They’ll exploit ASU’s weakness, but they won’t stray away from their strength. When Troy Williams sees a deep shot he’ll take it and take it and take it, especially with Patrick back to full health.
If I was drawing up a plan to attack the Utes, it would be to double Patrick and devise creative blitzes, keeping Williams from reading through all of his progressions. With Utah’s offensive line, it’s easier said than done to get pressure on Williams, so with double-teaming Patrick, you’d bank on him forcing some passes.
What would you attribute Utah’s defensive success to, aside from an extremely physical defensive line?
The brain of Kyle Whittingham. Look, Defensive Coordinator Morgan Scalley, is a brilliant up-and-coming mind, but as long as Whittingham is at Utah, the defense is going to cause the Pac-12 fits with their physicality, disguising blitzes, and high IQ across the board. In 2016, it’s helped to have DT Lowell Lotulelei and Safety Marcus Williams—both potential early-entrant first rounders in 2017—but both have been dinged up. The good news for the Utes is that they’re loaded with talent in on the interior defensive line and the secondary.
Who are some of the impact players on defense for Utah?
Marcus Williams, Lowell Lotulelei, Hunter Dimmick, and Chase Hansen. Before Williams’ recent injury, the argument could have been made for him and Hansen as the best safety combo in the country.
As an opposing offensive coordinator, how would you effectively attack the Utes’ offense?
Attack the edges—not necessarily Dimick’s side and also hit the quick intermediate routes. You do that and you’ll move the chains against the Utes, but even at that, all year, they’ve buckle down when it’s needed the most.
Are there any key injuries coming into Thursday that could affect Utah on either side of the ball?
Utah keeps a pretty tight lid on injury information, but they’ve been absolutely decimated by injury, yet the backups have continued to step up and perform at a high level. Coming off of the bye week, the Utes are actually expecting numerous impact guys back and healthy, Marcus Williams being probably the most crucial.
This year Utah has proved that its last two seasons (10-3, 9-4) were no flukes. Is this trend just attributed to better recruiting and are there any fears about this success leading to a possible Kyle Whittingham departure?
Of course, there is the fear that Whittingham could leave, but the majority that follows Utah and knows Whittingham, believe that he’s a Utah lifer.
This winning trend hasn’t necessarily been because of better recruiting. The Utes have made their name for finding diamonds in the rough and developing them into stars, that’s not going to change anytime soon. Where the recent bump in recruiting has helped, is that they’ve finally built up quality depth that has helped them survive crucial injuries. This would have been next to impossible in the Mountain West and it was trial and error for the first few years in the Pac-12.
How do you see Thursday’s game unfolding and what is your prediction?
Even though ASU’s weakness is their secondary, I still expect the Utes to rely on the ground game, while being calculated on when to gash the Sun Devil defense with a deep ball. With Wilkins returning, I expect Scalley to dial up schemes intended on making him feel as uncomfortable as possible.
Ultimately, I just see Utah making more key plays than ASU and keeping their Pac-12 South hopes alive with a 34-24 victory.
While this year Washington and Colorado are seemingly the most talked about programs in the Pac-12, Utah is quietly building off of their recent success in the last couple of years and are proving to repeat as one of the elite programs in the league. UteNation.com Publisher Alex Markham answered our Huddle members’ questions regarding ASU’s upcoming opponent and the challenges they will pose on Thursday night.
With three games left in the regular season did you expect to see Utah as the only team in the South that controls its destiny for the division championship or have you’ve been very surprised by the Utes’ success this year?
Expect, no. Am I surprised… not at all. This is Whittingham’s most talented team he’s ever had. The Utes have been absolutely ravaged by injuries, so the fact that they’re still in this position is a testament to Utah fans that the Pac-12 is working and that the Utes can go toe-to-toe with the best teams around.
Do you feel quarterback Troy Williams is truly an upgrade over Travis Wilson since the passing numbers appear to be just slightly better than 2015?
I was a strong supporter of Wilson for a long time because he always found a way to keep the Utes in games, but with Williams it’s different. First off, the passing numbers are skewed because of two the things: the Utes have run the ball extremely well and Williams also played in awful weather in Corvallis, completing only four passes.
The reason I feel that Williams is an upgrade is because—when the opportunity presents itself—he slings the ball around, with no apologies. When he’s rolling out of the pocket, his eyes are downfield looking for an open receiver. Wilson would just tuck it and run. Williams’ top receiver, Tim Patrick, hasn’t been 100% healthy until recently. Now that Patrick is good to go, expect those numbers get a jolt. Wilson had the respect of his teammates, but with Williams, it’s just different. He has this cool and calm swagger about him that his guys feed off of.
The success of running back Joe Williams is truly fascinating. What is your take on his whole un-retiring story, and was it something that may have been looked at less favorably before he proceeded to tear it up on the field?
To the fan base, emotions were initially mixed. I’ll admit that I was against it, initially. The thing that changed my opinion, wasn’t his results, it was the fact that his teammates welcomed him back with open arms and they never felt as though he deserted them.
His month off gave him time to clear his head and heal up. Before he hung it up, he looked timid and scared, when carrying the ball. Now, he’s running like he has nothing to lose, keeping his legs churning, and popping people in the mouth.
It’s one of the craziest transformations I’ve ever seen.
Aside from those two players, who would you list as the impact players on offense?
Keep an eye on Tim Patrick and Garett Bolles. Patrick, for the reason I stated above. He’s a reliable game breaker that takes pressure off of Troy Williams and the entire offense. With Bolles, he’s going to be protecting quarterbacks for a long time on Sundays. You want to know just how vicious and good this guy is… just Google “Garett Bolles and Cameron Smith.”
Do you think Utah can really exploit a struggling ASU’s pass defense, or do you not expect them to throw the ball more than usual in this contest?
As an opposing defensive coordinator, how would you effectively defend the Utes’ offense?
The Utes, as with most of their games, should find a nice balance. This time around, look for them to keep ASU honest with their rushing attack—along with Williams, Zack Moss is also a very capable back—that will allow them to hit on timely passes. They’ll exploit ASU’s weakness, but they won’t stray away from their strength. When Troy Williams sees a deep shot he’ll take it and take it and take it, especially with Patrick back to full health.
If I was drawing up a plan to attack the Utes, it would be to double Patrick and devise creative blitzes, keeping Williams from reading through all of his progressions. With Utah’s offensive line, it’s easier said than done to get pressure on Williams, so with double-teaming Patrick, you’d bank on him forcing some passes.
What would you attribute Utah’s defensive success to, aside from an extremely physical defensive line?
The brain of Kyle Whittingham. Look, Defensive Coordinator Morgan Scalley, is a brilliant up-and-coming mind, but as long as Whittingham is at Utah, the defense is going to cause the Pac-12 fits with their physicality, disguising blitzes, and high IQ across the board. In 2016, it’s helped to have DT Lowell Lotulelei and Safety Marcus Williams—both potential early-entrant first rounders in 2017—but both have been dinged up. The good news for the Utes is that they’re loaded with talent in on the interior defensive line and the secondary.
Who are some of the impact players on defense for Utah?
Marcus Williams, Lowell Lotulelei, Hunter Dimmick, and Chase Hansen. Before Williams’ recent injury, the argument could have been made for him and Hansen as the best safety combo in the country.
As an opposing offensive coordinator, how would you effectively attack the Utes’ offense?
Attack the edges—not necessarily Dimick’s side and also hit the quick intermediate routes. You do that and you’ll move the chains against the Utes, but even at that, all year, they’ve buckle down when it’s needed the most.
Are there any key injuries coming into Thursday that could affect Utah on either side of the ball?
Utah keeps a pretty tight lid on injury information, but they’ve been absolutely decimated by injury, yet the backups have continued to step up and perform at a high level. Coming off of the bye week, the Utes are actually expecting numerous impact guys back and healthy, Marcus Williams being probably the most crucial.
This year Utah has proved that its last two seasons (10-3, 9-4) were no flukes. Is this trend just attributed to better recruiting and are there any fears about this success leading to a possible Kyle Whittingham departure?
Of course, there is the fear that Whittingham could leave, but the majority that follows Utah and knows Whittingham, believe that he’s a Utah lifer.
This winning trend hasn’t necessarily been because of better recruiting. The Utes have made their name for finding diamonds in the rough and developing them into stars, that’s not going to change anytime soon. Where the recent bump in recruiting has helped, is that they’ve finally built up quality depth that has helped them survive crucial injuries. This would have been next to impossible in the Mountain West and it was trial and error for the first few years in the Pac-12.
How do you see Thursday’s game unfolding and what is your prediction?
Even though ASU’s weakness is their secondary, I still expect the Utes to rely on the ground game, while being calculated on when to gash the Sun Devil defense with a deep ball. With Wilkins returning, I expect Scalley to dial up schemes intended on making him feel as uncomfortable as possible.
Ultimately, I just see Utah making more key plays than ASU and keeping their Pac-12 South hopes alive with a 34-24 victory.
