Tuck’s Take: Wyoming’s Upset Bid Collides With Stark Reality

LARAMIE -- Jay Sawvel said Monday during his weekly press conference he didn't see any weaknesses on film with this Utah football team.

Wyoming's second-year head coach echoed those same sentiments five nights later just moments after a 31-6 setback, courtesy of the No. 20 program in the country.

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Sure, the focus was on Devon Dampier, and rightfully so.

The Utes' dynamic signal caller gashed the Cowboys for 207 rushing yards and three touchdowns under center at New Mexico. His top target in Albuquerque, Ryan Davis, made the move with him this offseason to Salt Lake City. He led all receivers in this one with 91 yards on 10 grabs.

Dampier threw for 230 yards and a pair of touchdowns and added 86 yards on the ground. Three of those third-down scampers extended drives. He averaged 6.6 yards per tote.

Utah, as a team, rushed for 311 yards and two scores. Hunter Andrews found the end zone once. So did NaQuari Rogers.

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Edge rusher John Henry Daley had this staff's full attention. The 6-foot-4, 247-pound sophomore single handedly thwarted Wyoming's lone legit scoring chance in the first half, dragging quarterback Kaden Anderson to the turf for a loss of 15. That snap took place at the visiting 21. It ended with Bart Edmiston's second punt of the evening.

Daley, who capped his night with six tackles, two sacks and a pass breakup, also stripped Anderson near midfield late in the second quarter.

landed a game-high defensive grade of 90.3, according to Pro Football Focus.

Safety Jackson Bennee, who last week returned an interception 46 yards for a touchdown in a 63-9 rout of Cal Poly, extending the Utes' streak of 22 years with a pick-six, snagged a fourth-quarter gift from Anderson. Three plays later Dampier heaved up a beauty from 14 yards that was hauled in by JJ Buchanan in the brown-and-gold paint.

Over the first 30 minutes Saturday night this game played out about as perfectly as Sawvel and Co. could've hoped for.

Placekicker Dillon Curtis, after making his first attempt from 43 yards out, pushed his next try to the right. His boot on the ensuing possession ricocheted off the left upright. With 0.3 ticks remaining in the half, the "six-star" freshman's line drive from 46 yards away was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Wyoming nose guard Aneesh Vyas.

Utah was 11-for-11 in the red zone entering Week 3. Every trip produced a touchdown. That streak came to an end late in the second quarter when nickelback Desman Hearns stripped wideout Nate Johnson inside the Cowboys' 5-yard line.

The Utes were also flagged six times for 63 yards over the first two quarters.

"Weird game," Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said to reporters postgame. "There was very similar yardage in the first and second half, but very different results. We just weren't finishing drives in the first half."

Wyoming trailed just 3-0 heading into the locker room. Did you get Mizzou and Texas Tech vibes? Me too.

It wouldn't last.

Sawvel said he told his coaches and players this week they needed to excel in three key areas if they hoped to pull off this upset: Plus in turnovers, win conversion downs and control clock with an efficient offense.

That didn't happen.

Utah forced two turnovers, compared to just one for the Cowboys. There's no better team in all of FBS at converting third-down opportunities early in the year. That success continued in Laramie with a 9-for-15 night. The Utes were also 1-of-1 on fourth down.

There was little to nothing productive about Wyoming's offense in this one. Anderson completed just 12-of-23 throws for 108 yards. Bricen Brantley and John Michael Gyllenborg were shutout. The latter left the game in the first half with a thigh injury. Jaylen Sargent, Jaylan Bean, Eric Richardson and Evan Svoboda all finished with a single catch.

Paging Jackson Holman. Michael Fitzgerald? Clay Nanke?

The Cowboys ran just seven plays in the third quarter. Utah, 29. Whittingham's team played keep away to the tune of 35:30, including a 19-play drive in the third that erased 7:23 off the game clock.

"Those three markers were things that we needed to try to do -- and needed to be -- and we weren't good enough to do it," Sawvel said postgame. "Utah was better than us in that situation tonight."

Utah, led by an offensive line that features two All-American tackles Caleb Lomu and Spencer Fano, scored on all four of its second-half possessions to put this one to bed.

"You know, we had this game," Anderson said. "I think that's why I'm so hurt -- losses like this. That game was very winnable."

Was it, though?

While crazy things have been known to happen inside this venue that sits 7,220 feet above sea level -- just ask Kelly Bryant and Tyler Shough -- this Utes' squad is on a different level and it all starts at the line of scrimmage. Sprinkle in brute physicality and the edge that comes with following Whittingham's third losing season in 21-plus years on the sideline in SLC and you have real trouble.

Remember Sean Chambers and Xazavian Valladay carving up the visitors from Columbia back in 2019 to the tune of a combined 238 rushing yards and a pair of long touchdown jaunts? Missouri, which jumped out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, gifted Wyoming with three turnovers, too, including a scoop and score from CJ Coldon that sparked that comeback.

That wasn't happening tonight.

Do you recall Joey McGuire's reluctance to stick to the ground game in '23? Despite having what would turn out to be the leading rusher in the country, Tahj Brooks -- not to mention an early 17-0 advantage -- Tech put the ball in the air 47 times. The fifth-year senior finished with just 11 carries for 39 yards on the high plains.

Utah, on the other hand, rushed for 311 yards on 45 attempts.

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While the low-hanging fruit is to question the ineptness of Wyoming's offense and quarterback play in this game -- which I did, getting a response of "I need to look at the tape" and "I gotta do better" -- the often forgotten element is the team across the line.

Sawvel said he wouldn't be surprised to see Saturday's opponent in the Big XII title game when the dust settles. They could very likely end up crashing the College Football Playoff party, too. They've been known to do that a time or two.

Would you be shocked? I wouldn't.

This was by far and away the best team Wyoming will see this fall. That's why this final Whittingham quote should give the locals some solace.

"I've got a lot of respect for that Wyoming team," he said. "They are tough players, well-coached and they gave us everything they have. Hats off to them. I really think they have a bright future."