KFAN's Mystery Man's Thoughts on Utah - OSU
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As PK alluded to in a previous blog, there are big changes coming to the afternoon drive on 1320 KFAN. While we can't tell you who's coming, this secret addition to the KFAN staff has decided to step slightly out of the shadows and post his thoughts on Utah's 24-7 loss to Oregon State....
So until the major announcement is made, here is the KFAN Mystery Host's thoughts on what went wrong in Utah's loss to OSU:
It is hard to imagine a more dreadful opening football game. The injuries to Asiata and Johnson (and don’t forget Boone) left the Utes a shell of the team we envisioned this season. Even more discouraging was when things went south the Utes got physically manhandled and outclassed.
In the past, the Utes have looked like a team that could compete in this caliber of football. Tonight that was not the case. The defensive line was non-existent on pass rush and got manhandled in the run game. The offensive tackles both got worked throughout the game. The Six Pack of Receivers are talented, but didn’t seem to have a physical speed advantage on the Beavers. The injuries to the Utes main offensive forces put a cloud over the entire game, but underneath their were many other substandard signs.
With the injuries tonight, only one really really good player was left on the field and he dominated. Oregon State’s Bernard was terrific. The Beavers offensive line deserves a ton of credit, but Bernard was special and he willed his team to an impressive win.
Here are some of my other thoughts from this tough opener.
- If you are going to run a system as specific as the spread offense the Utes are running don’t all of your players have to match the system? Grady and Stower don’t seem to match the system at all. With that said I think Grady will be ok once he knows he is the guy and the coaches are able to build a game plan to match his strengths.
- Every time the Utes ran the handoff to Casteel the left tackle Zane Beadles got beat so badly that Casteel had to veer back and lost his angle. They are going to have to find ways to create offense from their wide receivers.
- Gabe Long and Martial Barnett showed signs of being very talented and at some point this season they are going to dominate games. Oregon State’s offensive line was very good and these guys wore down. Watch them this year they will make big plays. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the same feel about the right side of the line.
- Sean Smith got two nice interceptions and for the most part looked good in his adaptation into a cornerback. However, his lack of defensive experience really shows up anytime he has to make a tackle. He missed more tackles than Ute offense had first downs in the second half.
-The Ute pass rush disappeared early in this game and allowed the young inexperience QB’s of Oregon State to get into a rhythm. Those guys might not even have to take a whirlpool.
- Not sure if it was the mental burden of losing Johnson, but the Utes looked spent early in this game. It makes you wonder about the conditioning level of the club.
- In conclusion, this was a disaster and a disaster that will linger for a long time. It is hard to imagine that a season can be lost before classes open, but this is as close as it gets. The Beavers have a lot of talent and they outclassed the Utes in too many spots on the football field.
In the upcoming weeks I think Grady will be ok and the defense will continue to improve. However, the Utes are going to have to figure out if they have the offensive talent to match their system anywhere other than their wide-receivers.
Finally, with Johnson out, leadership is going to be a huge issue, because there are going to be tough times and the Utes are going to have to figure out how to fight through those times.
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Posted by scottyg at 11:38 PM | Link | 0 comments
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