The 2014 VEGAS Bowl Thread

[Applejack]

Is there a thread for this yet? If not, for shame...

I love the matchup, sorry. I still miss some of the MWC teams, including Colorado State. My favorite Utah football memory is still listening to Bill Marcroft go nuts when Harold Lusk unnecessarily returned an INT for a touchdown to seal the game against #10 CSU in 1994. If anyone can find a video of that game, I will send them good karma.

Anyone going to the game? I seriously considered it, until I looked at airline ticket prices from D.C. to Vegas on the weekend before Christmas.

[Senioritis]

I'm going. Love the Veg. Not the city, just the Veg.

Also, not bummed about CSU at all. How soon we forget.

[Ma'ake]

Of course I'm going. To the hoops game, too. Best pre-Christmas road trip in Ute history.

The '94 classic was awesome, Harold going coast to coast, trying to do a Deion Sanders impression the last ten yards, which turned it into about 20 second 100 yard dash. Harold was fun to watch in practice, always yapping, never at a loss for words, and then McBride would tell him to shut his G.D. mouth, and then Fred Whittingham would have a few choice words to offer, which would shut Harold up for about 45 seconds. It was funny to hear Harold talk about Fred, he called him "Big Man", there was definitely fear/respect.

This game should be interesting - CSU's not a bad team. 10-2 is good no matter what league you're in. But we'll be expected to get a solid win.

[hostile]

I would love to go. I agree it would make a great Ute roady. Unfortunately I have to work.

I like the CSU matchup. My BIL played DE for the Rams back in the 90's. I miss talking with him about the yearly game.

[sancho]

I love the matchup, sorry.

I guess this is an okay matchup. But not really. How many CSU games did we collectively watch this season? I saw the 4th quarter of their CU win, and I saw the end of their AFA loss. That's probably more CSU football than 99% of America saw or cared to see. We are the only P5 team playing before xmas, and we are one of like 3 or 4 P5 teams matched up with a G5. It's a disappointment after so many bowl projections over the past 6 weeks had us with juicier opponents. This is the kind of game the P5 usually loses. We have not forgotten how much it used to mean to us to beat a BCS team. That's how CSU feels.

I went off and on and off again on driving to Vegas. 10.5 hours. In the end, there's just too much going on right before Christmas. It's not a good time for a bowl game.

But it is what it is. It's the matchup we have, and CSU really is a good team. Rashard Higgins leads America in everything. So let's think about star WRs and how they have done against us so far:

Funchess, 4-82. Probably could have had 200 yards against us if Gardener wasn't a mess in that game.
Agholor, 10-110. Made the mistake that gave us a game winning drive.
Strong, 5-77-1.
Montgomery, 4-41.
Hill, 3-61.

I think we've done pretty well against the future early draft picks we've played against. Hopefully we can do it again.

[sancho]

I think we've done pretty well against the future early draft picks we've played against. Hopefully we can do it again.

That said, the key matchup is our run D vs Hart. When we shut down a team's run game, everything else goes with it.

[UtahsMrSports]

I was really excited about this matchup when it was announced. And reading a story in the Deseret News today took me down memory lane and reminded me why I am a Ute fan, and how I am really lucky.

It is long, so I didn't want to spam the boards with it. If you have a minute and want to read, go ahead. http://bigbensworld.blogspot.com/2014/12/sometimes-its-just-little-things.html

[Rocker Ute]

Free and nice place to stay, great seats, traveling with my brothers... all of these could have been mine less my wife's misguided niece decided to get married on Saturday at 1:30MST. Reception will be held from 7-10pm that same night and my presence has been requested and expected for the duration of the thing despite never being acknowledged by more than a reluctant grunt by the lovely bride in over 10 years.

When we got married it was immediate family and very close friends only, followed by a wedding luncheon - a small but personal group. Two hours later the festivities were done, we were free from all of the wedding related nonsense and with a fat check in our paltry savings account from a grateful father-in-law who didn't have to pay for a reception. We also estimate that without the reception, well-wishers unable to hide what they actually paid in discount gifts and cut checks in the full amount, meaning we made out better than if we had a reception.

Since then I've gotten out of most all wedding related events by stating, "Hey, we didn't make anyone go to our wedding and reception - that was our gift to humanity, why should we have to go to theirs?" It didn't work this time. I will be watching via game tracker and possibly streaming to my smart phone.

Also, Christmas time wedding? Worst idea ever.

[sancho]

Free and nice place to stay, great seats, traveling with my brothers... all of these could have been mine less my wife's misguided niece decided to get married on Saturday at 1:30MST. Reception will be held from 7-10pm that same night and my presence has been requested and expected for the duration of the thing despite never being acknowledged by more than a reluctant grunt by the lovely bride in over 10 years.

Also, Christmas time wedding? Worst idea ever.

I know some people have Christmas time weddings because they are students, and that is their time off. Others because family is spread out, and that is a time when people will be able to attend. But most of those happen AFTER Christmas. It takes a special kind of thoughtless/selfish to go for Dec 20. It's as thoughtless as the Vegas Bowl itself. Anyway, I guess you are a better man than I am because I'd be in Vegas with my brothers if I were you. I'd probably send a nice gift and card to make up for it.

My Mom could not understand why we didn't have a guestbook at our reception. But when you're elated at having just married, you really don't care who is there and who is not. That's the killer - if you skipped town for Vegas, I doubt anyone would know or care except one in-law.

I slept on it and have more Vegas Bowl griping to do:

The bowl game season in the national conscious starts after xmas. Nobody is waking up Saturday thinking "let's go check out the bowl lineup." Maybe a few football fans will turn on the TV, stumble across a bowl game, and think "Huh, a bowl game this early with a Pac-12 team? Ok, I can watch for an hour."

There was some debate earlier about where this season ranks all time for Utah. With this game and opponent, there is now no case for this season over 1994, when we got to play the famous desert swarm defense against a ranked BCS opponent. Turned out to be the 2nd best Utah bowl game ever. Even if this Vegas Bowl ends up going to the wire, a win would be more like our close win vs Tulsa in whatever forgotten bowl game that was.

[Rocker Ute]

Anyway, I guess you are a better man than I am because I'd be in Vegas with my brothers if I were you. I'd probably send a nice gift and card to make up for it.



This is exactly what I'd be doing except the woman who has given me a free pass without penalty to go to every home football game, every basketball game, three bike races that took me from home for 2-3 days a piece and every other idiotic and selfish thing asked if I'd be there with her. So, you've got to give for the single request and sit in reminder of why I lucked out in life like I did.

As for the selfishness of this event, it is some of that and some of it being some people who are young in life and adult enough to want to do their own thing their own way, but not adult enough to listen to other people. I was like that too (still am).

The Veg sucks for the reasons you list too, it won't provide any exposure for us, but it does give us an extra month of practice time, and I think we need that more than anything else.

[UBlender]

This is exactly what I'd be doing except the woman who has given me a free pass without penalty to go to every home football game, every basketball game, three bike races that took me from home for 2-3 days a piece and every other idiotic and selfish thing asked if I'd be there with her. So, you've got to give for the single request and sit in reminder of why I lucked out in life like I did.

As for the selfishness of this event, it is some of that and some of it being some people who are young in life and adult enough to want to do their own thing their own way, but not adult enough to listen to other people. I was like that too (still am).

The Veg sucks for the reasons you list too, it won't provide any exposure for us, but it does give us an extra month of practice time, and I think we need that more than anything else.

If these kids are LDS, I'm assuming this is code for "they are really eager to get their naked on"?

[mUUser]

.....It takes a special kind of thoughtless/selfish to go for Dec 20....


27 years ago December 18th. Hadn't even considered if it was selfish till this very moment. LOL.:p

Although my wife would be more like, Hey Rat Boy.....:finger:.

[U-Ute]

I was really excited about this matchup when it was announced. And reading a story in the Deseret News today took me down memory lane and reminded me why I am a Ute fan, and how I am really lucky.

It is long, so I didn't want to spam the boards with it. If you have a minute and want to read, go ahead. http://bigbensworld.blogspot.com/2014/12/sometimes-its-just-little-things.html

A great post. It is funny how moments like those seem to change your whole course in life.

Personally, I remember when Lusk intercepted it, as he started to take it out of the end zone I was like "NO! NO! NO!" as I felt like taking a knee would give us better field position. That quickly turned into "YES! YES! YES!" as he crossed the 50.

[sancho]

27 years ago December 18th. Hadn't even considered if it was selfish till this very moment. LOL.:p


The 18th is totally different.

[UBlender]

Is there a thread for this yet? If not, for shame...

I love the matchup, sorry. I still miss some of the MWC teams, including Colorado State. My favorite Utah football memory is still listening to Bill Marcroft go nuts when Harold Lusk unnecessarily returned an INT for a touchdown to seal the game against #10 CSU in 1994. If anyone can find a video of that game, I will send them good karma.

Anyone going to the game? I seriously considered it, until I looked at airline ticket prices from D.C. to Vegas on the weekend before Christmas.

My parents have a vast library of Ute basketball and football games from the '80s and '90s on VHS and I'm pretty sure this game is in there. Now how to get it into a format I could share with you is beyond my expertise.

[U-Ute]

My parents have a vast library of Ute basketball and football games from the '80s and '90s on VHS and I'm pretty sure this game is in there. Now how to get it into a format I could share with you is beyond my expertise.

There are a few places around the valley that will convert VHS into DVD for you. A library conversion it would be a solid Father's Day/birthday gift.

[Mormon Red Death]

Costco will convert vhs to dvd

[UTEopia]

What impact will the limbo status of CSU's coaching search have on the game? I would guess that many of the current players want the OC to be named the head coach and that he will use that possibility to motivate his players to give it their best. I anticipate that this will be an inspired CSU team and I hope our coaches and players are more motivated for this game then some of our fans seem to be. I am heading down on Friday and am excited to get there.

[Diehard Ute]

What impact will the limbo status of CSU's coaching search have on the game? I would guess that many of the current players want the OC to be named the head coach and that he will use that possibility to motivate his players to give it their best. I anticipate that this will be an inspired CSU team and I hope our coaches and players are more motivated for this game then some of our fans seem to be. I am heading down on Friday and am excited to get there.

Seems he's got an outside shot at the job based on his own statements

Saw tonight CSU basically has no rules for their players beyond a curfew. Utah isn't disclosing what rules they have.

[sancho]

I anticipate that this will be an inspired CSU team and I hope our coaches and players are more motivated for this game then some of our fans seem to be.

I agree. Every sign I see is bad for Utah. But we are still the stronger, better team, and Coach Whitt has a good record as far as bowl game preparation goes (he has a good record whenever he has extra time to prepare).

Motivation for bowl games is not a switch that a coach/player can turn on or off. There has not been much buzz among fans, and I think players and coaches feel it too. We had 6+ games this season that were more highly anticipated by the fans, the press, and the players. After stopping Dee Hart, I feel like energy/desire/motivation is the next key to the game.

[U-Ute]

Utah isn't disclosing what rules they have.

Gunther was talking about this earlier this week. He commented on how when they played Georgia Tech, all the Utah players had to leave the club at 1am or so and how the GaTech players in attendance laughed at them.

I wouldn't expect Kyle to change anything.

[Coastal Ute]

I feel like we are going to lose this game. CSU is a good passing team and I'm worried that the secondary is going to get exposed- in particular the safeties. After the way we played against AZ and Colorado what reasons do we have to believe that we're going to win?


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[OrangeUte]

Negative Debbie Downers.

We are going to win this bowl game and it's going to be a great win! I don't care that csu is in the mountain west conference. This is going to be fun to watch. I would be there if it wasn't this week.

GO UTES!!!!!

[OrangeUte]

They have a good qb and can't be taken lightly. I don't think we are overlooking them.

[jrj84105]

I feel like we are going to lose this game. CSU is a good passing team and I'm worried that the secondary is going to get exposed- in particular the safeties. After the way we played against AZ and Colorado what reasons do we have to believe that we're going to win?


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I see it the same way. We have our best defensive player but are missing our two best defensive playmakers (Paul, Carter). KW's going to play for a close win and call on the defense to hold a narrow lead. I don't think the defense will come up with the big stop sans Paul and Carter.

CSU 34

Utah 30

[justaute]

We also have an innovative, prolific offense and a lock-down secondary.

[sancho]

I feel like we are going to lose this game. CSU is a good passing team and I'm worried that the secondary is going to get exposed- in particular the safeties. After the way we played against AZ and Colorado what reasons do we have to believe that we're going to win?


Dee Hart averaged 6.7 ypc this season. Finished with 1200+ yards and 16 TDs. I'm more worried about him than about our secondary. If we stop Hart, their pass game will not be successful.

[justaute]

I certainly would not be surprised if we lose this game.

[sancho]

I certainly would not be surprised if we lose this game.

No, Colorado State is a very good team. We have lost to a far worse team this year (Wazzu). I feel like the general consensus heading into the last week of the season was that CSU was the best G5 team in the nation. But due to their BSU loss, they were not going to be eligible for a NY6 bowl. Of course, they went and lost to AFA (like Boise), so the point was moot.

[Applejack]

I want to see photos from those at the game tomorrow of Ute fans embracing our former enemies. I still have a soft spot for CSU - probably my favorite old WAC team.

I still want to kill them, though.

[sancho]

probably my favorite old WAC team.


Favorite by default?

The old WAC opponent power ranking:

1) Wyoming
2) CSU
3) New Mexico
4) UTEP
5) Hawaii
6) AFA
7) SDSU
8) BYU

[Applejack]

Favorite by default?

The old WAC opponent power ranking:

1) Wyoming
2) CSU
3) New Mexico
4) UTEP
5) Hawaii
6) AFA
7) SDSU
8) BYU

Wyoming? There's no accounting for taste.

1. CSU
2. Hawaii
3. UNM
4. Utep
5. SDSU
6. Wyoming
7. Air Force (they were so boring in basketball).
.
.
.
.
666. BYU

[sancho]

Wyoming? There's no accounting for taste.


Old WAC uniform power rankings:

1) Wyoming
2) CSU
3) AFA
4) UTEP
.
.
10) Hawaii
.
.
40) New Mexico
41) SDSU
.
.
666) BYU

[Applejack]

Old WAC combined basketball/football strength:

666. BYU
2. CSU
3. Hawaii
4. Wyoming
5. New Mexico
6. SDSU
7. AFA
8. UTEP

[Coastal Ute]

Dee Hart averaged 6.7 ypc this season. Finished with 1200+ yards and 16 TDs. I'm more worried about him than about our secondary. If we stop Hart, their pass game will not be successful.

I sincerely hope you are right. You've got to think that without Paul we'll have a tough time stopping him.

[justaute]

It's funny how many Utes fans "look down" at CSU because it's in MWC. I "almost" want to see CSU kick Utah's a$$ just for that reason; this will also further expose Utah's offense, offensive coaching, and secondary.

[Diehard Ute]

It's funny how many Utes fans "look down" at CSU because it's in MWC. I "almost" want to see CSU kick Utah's a$$ just for that reason; this will also further expose Utah's offense, offensive coaching, and secondary.

I think you misnamed yourself. I think you were looking for notaute

[justaute]

"almost"

Plus, in general, I am a fan of sports, Utah graduate or not. I'm not blinded by the idea of where I went to school. And, that doesn't mean I'm not a Utah fan.

Look at here. I proudly "wear" my Utes. :)

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l164/justaute/Shooting%20Comp/KenYuanP10874764_zpsbd2fed48.jpg


I think you misnamed yourself. I think you were looking for notaute

[Applejack]

"almost"

Plus, in general, I am a fan of sports, Utah graduate or not. I'm not blinded by the idea of where I went to school. And, that doesn't mean I'm not a Utah fan.

You harp on this a lot, but is Utah's secondary really that bad? It's not our best set of dbs/safeties, but I think they've been adequate this year. They've made some errors (as young dbs do) and they've been burned when our offense has basically stopped doing anything, but I'm not sure I would put their performance in the same league as our offense's.

[justaute]

I think you're right about our secondary better than our offense.

Don't get me wrong, I try to assess "today" and not project "tomorrow". Just because I don't think highly about our young DBs' performance to-date, that doesn't mean they won't get better -- I'm hopeful they will. Though, I am thoroughly unimpressed with our two senior starters.


You harp on this a lot, but is Utah's secondary really that bad? It's not our best set of dbs/safeties, but I think they've been adequate this year. They've made some errors (as young dbs do) and they've been burned when our offense has basically stopped doing anything, but I'm not sure I would put their performance in the same league as our offense's.

[Applejack]

I think you're right about our secondary better than our offense.

Don't get me wrong, I try to assess "today" and not project "tomorrow". Just because I don't think highly about our young DBs' performance to-date, that doesn't mean they won't get better -- I'm hopeful they will. Though, I am thoroughly unimpressed with our two senior starters.

Interesting. I thought Rowe did pretty well in his switch to DB this year. I think he'll probably get drafted too.

Blechen is limited, but I didn't think he hurt us as much this year as last (which is mostly b/c we had better linebackers to cover some issues).

[Scorcho]

a couple of random bowl game thoughts.

- Bowl winning Percentage (schools with a minimum of 15 bowl game appearances).

#1 University of Utah .765 (13-4)
#2 Ole Miss .657 (23-12)
#3 USC .653 (32-17)

- and you never want to lose an early bowl game for the simple fact that ESPN's TV score crawler will remind your team of the loss every 7-8 minutes for the next 40 bowl games

[justaute]

My biggest issue with Blechen is when he gets ultra-aggressive, he takes bad angles and let WRs slip behind him. He does not have the speed to play that way and shouldn't play that way. He needs to play smarter. I do like his tackling technique when he's on-point -- shoulders squared and wrap-up.

I thought Rowe did ok, at best. His coverage has not been good. I thought he could be more physical at the line. Just my 2 pesos of opinion.


Interesting. I thought Rowe did pretty well in his switch to DB this year. I think he'll probably get drafted too.

Blechen is limited, but I didn't think he hurt us as much this year as last (which is mostly b/c we had better linebackers to cover some issues).

[Applejack]

My biggest issue with Blechen is when he gets ultra-aggressive, he takes bad angles and let WRs slip behind him. He does not have the speed to play that way and shouldn't play that way. He needs to play smarter. I do like his tackling technique when he's on-point -- shoulders squared and wrap-up.

I thought Rowe did ok, at best. His coverage has not been good. I thought he could be more physical at the line. Just my 2 pesos of opinion.

I agree with all of this. Those guys made mistakes this year. But we ask so much of our dbs that they are bound to mess up at times. This website has Rowe as a 3rd or 4th round selection (http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=120020&draftyear=2015&genpos=CB), so he has to be doing something right (although I acknolwedge that some of that is based on potential since he made a position switch).

[LA Ute]

Sports Illustrated preview of the game:

http://www.si.com/college-football/2014/12/17/las-vegas-bowl-preview

[Devildog]

Utes win the Vegas bowl. Big. CSU will be surprised by the onslaught.

Justaute,

Cool pic, stance may be a little wide brother... I get stable platform, but maybe just a little too much of a good thing.

[justaute]

Thanks, DD. It's wide because that was shooting on-the-move (coming around a corner) as you can see both feet are lifted. I was shooting a series of three targets and about to move on.


Utes win the Vegas bowl. Big. CSU will be surprised by the onslaught.

Justaute,

Cool pic, stance may be a little wide brother... I get stable platform, but maybe just a little too much of a good thing.

[LA Ute]

Sam Boyd Stadium looks kinda ridiculous as a place to have a bowl game.

[DrumNFeather]

Last game of the year, friends!
Let's enjoy it, it's a long off-season.

[DrumNFeather]

Trickeration!

[DrumNFeather]

Jason Thompson was in, so there must be a rule that allows him to play.

[DrumNFeather]

Perhaps DC misplaced his playbook all year, and he found it this week. :)

[sancho]

Mac attack - McClellon and McCormick!

[mpfunk]

That is the way to answer.

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[Diehard Ute]

Jason Thompson was in, so there must be a rule that allows him to play.

Twitter world says he's finished classes so he's eligible and he'd already burned his redshirt year so he was losing the year of eligibility whether he played or not

[DrumNFeather]

Twitter world says he's finished classes so he's eligible and he'd already burned his redshirt year so he was losing the year of eligibility whether he played or not
So, he's got 1 more year?

[Diehard Ute]

So, he's got 1 more year?

I think he'll have two. His bio says he played in 2012 as a true Freshman and redshirted last year, so that should have made him a redshirt sophomore this year.

[justaute]

Was the site down?

[Coastal Ute]

This is going to become a close game.

[justaute]

Yup...looks like we may be Cougar-ing this game.


This is going to become a close game.

[justaute]

Good to see TW scoring that TD. As embattled of a QB as he is, the kid as a ton of heart.

[Coastal Ute]

Never mind.

[Diehard Ute]

Good to see TW scoring that TD. As embattled of a QB as he is, the kid as a ton of heart.

On that we agree


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[justaute]

You're a DiehardUte and I'm a notaute (per you) -- together, we are a PrettyGoodUte. LOL


On that we agree


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[Diehard Ute]

You're a DiehardUte and I'm a notaute (per you) -- together, we are a PrettyGoodUte. LOL

Haha. That's good.


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[Mormon Red Death]

So we are playing a Wyoming recruit instead of our two recruits? ??? Wtf???

[DrumNFeather]

So we are playing a Wyoming recruit instead of our two recruits? ??? Wtf???
Probably an indication that DC stays and others may go.

[justaute]

Wilson has a hurt leg and JT looks pretty quick. And, pretty much every opponent we have played has better passing-QB.


So we are playing a Wyoming recruit instead of our two recruits? ??? Wtf???

[Diehard Ute]

CSU obviously upset. Lots of after the play stuff from them


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[Mormon Red Death]

Complete bullshit we are playing a walk on instead of two of our own recruits

[justaute]

Isn't he a senior?


Complete bullshit we are playing a walk on instead of two of our own recruits

[Diehard Ute]

Isn't he a senior?

Double checked and he's only a junior. But at this point there's no reason not to play him. The garbage time isn't going to get any of the QB's meaningful snaps. And given the frustration CSU has shown I think it's not worth risking injury to any of those guys.



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[justaute]

What is the reason for Booker staying in the game?

*** Never mind. It was for a record.

[DrumNFeather]

Nice way to cap off a 9 win season. When is spring ball? ;)

[NorthwestUteFan]

What is the reason for Booker staying in the game?

*** Never mind. It was for a record.

...which he didn't get

[justaute]

What happened? I thought he did.


...which he didn't get

[NorthwestUteFan]

Didn't Wolfman get 1519? Booker ended up with 1512.

[sancho]

Complete bullshit we are playing a walk on instead of two of our own recruits

Schulz deserved those snaps.

Nothing to be upset about here. 45-10.

All that's left is the debate: if we played in the mwc, would we finish 200-0 or 150-0 in a 12 game season?

[sancho]

I know I was complaining about the Vegas bowl, but it was nice to see a relatively full stadium for a bowl game. It's a pretty rare sight.

[justaute]

Who knows.

I would submit that non-P5 teams/conferences are not the same as when Utah/TCU/BSU were playing as non-P5. The delta between "haves" and "have-nots" is much larger now -- and I think this is tragic for "collegiate" sports.


Schulz deserved those snaps.

All that's left is the debate: if we played in the mwc, would we finish 200-0 or 150-0 in a 12 game season?

[Mormon Red Death]

Schulz deserved those snaps.

Nothing to be upset about here. 45-10.

All that's left is the debate: if we played in the mwc, would we finish 200-0 or 150-0 in a 12 game season?
When you play walk on over recruited players you show how bad of recruiters you are and you set back recruiting.

[sancho]

When you play walk on over recruited players you show how bad of recruiters you are and you set back recruiting.

Maybe playing Schulz last year was an indication of this. Playing him yesterday was just a nice reward for an outgoing senior.

[chrisrenrut]

Maybe playing Schulz last year was an indication of this. Playing him yesterday was just a nice reward for an outgoing senior.

Schulz is a junior.

[LA Ute]

Did any of the news media ask Kyle about the decision to play Schulz?

[sancho]

Schulz is a junior.

Oops, outgoing junior then. It was clearly a farewell for someone who started for us last year and is on his way out of the rotation.

I'm more worried about the snaps to Jason Thompson. That looked like round one of a tryout.

[NorthwestUteFan]

Oops, outgoing junior then. It was clearly a farewell for someone who started for us last year and is on his way out of the rotation.

I'm more worried about the snaps to Jason Thompson. That looked like round one of a tryout.

This year counted against JT's 4 years since he already had a Redshirt year. It was nice to give him some snaps since next year is his SR year. I generally like what I saw from him.

Schulz looked decent yesterday as well. He threw a few very difficult passes with pinpoint accuracy. I was happy to be far enough ahead that some of the role players got a chance to see the field.

McClellon and McCormick showed us what to expect in the future.

I enjoyed watching TW yesterday. He is an exciting player and will always be one of my favorites. I get the feeling that he would have been a perennial minimum of Second Team or Honorable Mention All-MWC QB.

CSU is a solid team. But the talent disparity is greater than I imagined it to be when we first came to the PAC-12. It was eye-opening to gauge just how far we have come over the last few years.

[#1 Utefan]

This year counted against JT's 4 years since he already had a Redshirt year. It was nice to give him some snaps since next year is his SR year. I generally like what I saw from him.

Schulz looked decent yesterday as well. He threw a few very difficult passes with pinpoint accuracy. I was happy to be far enough ahead that some of the role players got a chance to see the field.

McClellon and McCormick showed us what to expect in the future.

I enjoyed watching TW yesterday. He is an exciting player and will always be one of my favorites. I get the feeling that he would have been a perennial minimum of Second Team or Honorable Mention All-MWC QB.

CSU is a solid team. But the talent disparity is greater than I imagined it to be when we first came to the PAC-12. It was eye-opening to gauge just how far we have come over the last few years.


Thompson should be a junior next year, not a senior.

[NorthwestUteFan]

Thompson should be a junior next year, not a senior.

He is listed as a Jr this year, like Kendal Thompson.

But it makes sense that he should be a Jr NEXT year. He played as a FR in 2012, RS in 2013, SO in 2014 (ineligible due to transfer), and JR next year. It appears you are correct.

[Applejack]

Great game! I really miss having porous undersized defenses to play against. I turned the game off at the half, even though we were only up 14 it was clear who was going to win. We just had superior athletes everywhere. Also, props to Kyle for getting the kids up for the game. Kyle is now the best bowl coach of all time!

The only player I really care about coming back next year is devontae. I'm not sure he's an nfl back-lacks that top shelf speed. But he is a running back and those guys peak young. My guess is he'll grade out around a sixth rounder. If I'm right, I think he jumps.

[sancho]

If I'm right, I think he jumps.

I also think he goes, and I think he'll be a great RB on the right team.

Turned it off at halftime?!??!

[Brian]

Great game! I really miss having porous undersized defenses to play against. I turned the game off at the half, even though we were only up 14 it was clear who was going to win.

Dude, turn in your fan card.

I have never turned off a football game, regardless of the time, or the score.

[sancho]

Dude, turn in your fan card.

I have never turned off a football game, regardless of the time, or the score.

I think it confirms what was being said about this bowl game - that it was not an enticing matchup. We had AJ turning it off to go read Faulkner, and we had the least amount of discussion on this board of any game this season.

But it was still a great game to watch. We dominated the #2 MWC team. Remember that BYU finished 1-3 against the MWC this season. They should be begging out of any future games they have against us.

[Applejack]

Dude, turn in your fan card.

I have never turned off a football game, regardless of the time, or the score.

This cannot be true. You've never watched part of a football game?


I think it confirms what was being said about this bowl game - that it was not an enticing matchup. We had AJ turning it off to go read Faulkner, and we had the least amount of discussion on this board of any game this season.

But it was still a great game to watch. We dominated the #2 MWC team. Remember that BYU finished 1-3 against the MWC this season. They should be begging out of any future games they have against us.

To be fair, I generally find non-BCS bowl games to be pretty boring. I didn't watch any of our last Las Vegas bowl game. The regular season of college football is where it's at.

To be honest, my daughter wanted to go play outside and so we did. I'll make that choice for every game (except BYU).

[Brian]

This cannot be true. You've never watched part of a football game?



To be fair, I generally find non-BCS bowl games to be pretty boring. I didn't watch any of our last Las Vegas bowl game. The regular season of college football is where it's at.

To be honest, my daughter wanted to go play outside and so we did. I'll make that choice for every game (except BYU).

Not a Utah game.

Ok, I get the daughter thing. But, that's what a DVR is for.

[sancho]

To be honest, my daughter wanted to go play outside and so we did. I'll make that choice for every game (except BYU).

You think you're better than me?

So, here's my early odds on starting QB next season:

Travis Wilson. 1 in 3. Eight wins this year. Hard to argue with that.
Kendall Thompson. 1 in 4. One big win and one Oregon drive. His success was 80% scrambling, 15% called runs, and 5% passes. His failures were 50% horrible ball security and 50% going down 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage.
Jason Thompson. 1 in 7. A DC guy who got reps in the bowl game.
Donovan Isom. 1 in 9. Mystery man. Completely untested means he's more likely than those who have come up short when tested.
Chase Hansen. 1 in 12. Also something of a mystery, though he must have been watched two years ago.
Brandon Cox. 1 in 40. Has had 2 years to impress coaches and has not moved up depth charts.
Conner Manning. 1 in 50. Also has had 2 years.
Adam Schulz. 1 in 100. Not going to be the starter.

I hope Cox moves to defense/WR/KR instead of transferring. If Thompson2 is not in the top 3, I hope he moves to defense as well. I hope Hansen stays at QB, since he is young and Wilson/Thompson will be gone in a year.