Utah’s final game of the season started about as ugly as anyone could imagine, and ended with one of the best comebacks in recent Utah football history. The Utes struggled on both sides of the ball in the first half, but turned things on in the second half and paid Washington State back in full for 2014, when the Cougars erased a big first half lead to claim victory in Salt Lake City.
Of course, this game will forever be remembered because a hometown hero came in and saved the day when things looked just about hopeless.
Here are the grades, and keep in mind that things are averaged between a dismal first half and a brilliant second half.
QB: B
Outside of a couple moments of brilliance, Jake Bentley struggled mightily in the first half. His accuracy was all over the place and he stared down his targets on nearly every play. He threw an interception that was inexcusable, but he also hit Britain Covey in stride on a perfect long ball that went for a 91 yard touchdown. However, overall, Bentley’s play was poor enough to cause him to be benched late in the first half, giving Utah native Drew Lisk a chance to come in and rally the Utes to victory.
Lisk didn’t do anything spectacular, but he made his reads, took care of the ball, hit his targets, and helped the offense move the ball up and down the field consistently in the second half. More importantly, his cool, calm presence seemed to instill confidence in the rest of the offense, allowing them to clean up their play and rally in the final two quarters. Lisk ended the game 15 of 26 for 152 yards, with six yards rushing. No matter what he decides to do next, Lisk’s performance will not soon be forgotten.
RB: A-
Ty Jordan continued to prove that he is a special talent, as he put together a 154 yard, three touchdown performance on the ground. He also added another 33 yards through the air with a pair of catches. With the news earlier this week of the transfer of Devin Brumfield and Jordan Wilmore, Jordan got the lion’s share of the carries, with 22, but Micah Bernard also got five touches, totaling 27 yards: 15 on the ground and 12 through the air. Despite his limited touches, Bernard had one of the most physical highlights of the game, when he took a pitch around the left edge and bulldozed a Cougar defender for an 11 yard gain. This unit got dinged a bit for Jordan’s fumble in the first quarter, but the way they responded in the second half was impressive.
WR: B+
Britain Covey had another brilliant performance and was a safety net for Lisk throughout the second half. Covey proved that he’s more than just a shifty possession receiver when he took off on a wheel route and hauled in a 91 yard touchdown pass from Bentley, giving Utah their only score in the first half. Then, in the second half, he snagged a few more passes in key moments and ended up with six receptions for 134 yards. Bryan Thompson and Solomon Enis were also a big reason for Utah’s offensive success, making a few clutch grabs of their own while relentlessly blocking on the edges throughout the game. Thompson also got in on the second half fun in the run game when he took an end-around handoff nine yards for a touchdown. The negative of this group came when Samson Nacua lost a fumble, but overall it was a solid performance and something to build on going into the offseason.
TE: A-
Utah’s tight ends again proved that they’re some of the best in the Pac-12, led by another big performance from Brant Kuithe, who accumulated 94 total yards on nine touches. Kuithe caught six passes for 61 yards and rushed three times for 33 yards, but was also active as a blocker, and threw a huge block on the edge which helped spring Bryan Thompson for a nine yard touchdown run. Cole Fotheringham also caught a 14 yard pass and he and Dalton Kincaid were invaluable as blockers, helping Utah’s run game get things going in the second half.
OL: B
Utah’s offensive line had some struggles in the first half, but they rallied around Drew Lisk in the second half and finished the season with an excellent performance. They managed to do that despite being down two starters, with Orlando Umana and Keaton Bills both missing the game. The offensive line shot itself in the foot in the first half with some costly penalties, but they made up for it with a great effort in the second half, helping pave the way for Ty Jordan to put up big numbers and find the endzone three times.
DL: B+
Much like the rest of the team, the defensive line looked somewhat disinterested and almost like effort was lacking through much of the first half. However, they tightened up in the second half and helped hold WSU to 115 rushing yards for the game. They did so without the help of their two starting tackles, both of whom were out for the game. WSU quarterback Jayden De Laura proved to be slippery and escaped pressure several times, but the Utes still managed to bring him down three times, with Mika Tafua making a strip sack in the fourth quarter that the Utes recovered. Devin Kaufusi also made a big play in the fourth quarter when he batted down a pass at the line on 3rd and 12, forcing a punt which gave the ball back to the Utes when the game was tied. Blake Kuithe made his first big play as a Ute, forcing a fumble on WSU’s final drive of the game, which Nephi Sewell recovered, preventing the Cougars from getting a garbage time score.
LB: A-
Once again, Devin Lloyd led the way for the Utes with a performance to remember, totaling 10 tackles, a sack, and four tackles for loss. Hopefully everyone enjoyed watching him as a Ute, because there’s a real possibility that this was his last game playing in Rice Eccles Stadium. Nephi Sewell also had a great game, recording three tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Expect Lloyd to make a decision soon about whether or not he’ll be coming back.
Secondary: B+
Utah’s secondary continued to prove to be a pleasant surprise, and after some struggles in the first half, they locked things down in the second half and were a big reason that the Utes were able to go on their 38-0 run. The Utes held the Cougars to 281 passing yards, and had eight pass breakups. As far as individual standouts, Vonte Davis made a big play on a safety blitz, getting to De Laura for a sack, and Malone Mataele and JaTravis Broughton both had a pair of pass breakups. However, nobody had a bigger day than Clark Phillips, who celebrated his birthday with two pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, and a 36-yard pick six. Phillips, Broughton, and Mataele look to be coming into their own as a lockdown trio, and Davis has emerged as one of the biggest surprises of 2020. Nate Ritchie will be missed next year when he leaves on a church mission, but RJ Hubert was able to get some playing time against the Cougars, and should be fully healthy by the start of the 2021 season.
Special Teams: A-
Let’s begin this section by giving congratulations to Jadon Redding, who made his lone field goal try and nailed all six PAT attempts, keeping him perfect in both categories for the season. Despite Utah’s history of great kickers, a perfect season, albeit a shortened one, is something that rarely happens for a kicker. It’s worthy of recognition. Jared March took over the punting and holding duties for Ben Lennon, who was out for the game. He performed admirably, averaging 42.4 yards on five punts, and helped keep the field position favorable for the Utes throughout much of the game. The grade gets a slight ding here for allowing a 43 yard kickoff return, but overall, special teams play was solid against the Cougars.