Utah Utes vs. Montana St. Bobcats

[Jarid in Cedar]

I can't take it anymore. The summer doldrums, the endless bickering over gross vs net, the pros and cons of polyandry,

IT IS TIME FOR SOME FOOTBALL!!!!!

Given all of the uncertainty of young players at key positions, injuries at key positions, etc, I think there are several things that I am going to be watching intently.

Offense:

1. How agressive is the O-Line.

I think our line play has been dissappointing the last 2 year with Miller as the coach. Personally, I think the hiring of Tim Davis was as important(if not moreso) than the hiring of Norm Chow. I hope that our line has become more aggressive. I hope that our running game will have more of a smash-mouth swagger than the finesse look of 2009-2010.

2. How much zip does Wynn have on the ball.

Pitch counts, rest days, etc have led to a ton of speculation on the health of Wynn's shoulder. We will know within the first 10 passes where things actually stand

3. How effective will John White IV running between the tackles.

From all accounts, he has explosive speed, is elusive, and can find extra yards after first contact. I want to see if he can gain 2 yards when it is 3rd and 1.

4. Will the Tight ends continue to be the mythical unicorn of Utah's offense.

With Chow, everyone assumes that the TE will take a step up in the offense. There are several talented players that just need to see the ball.

5. Will I have to need to reenter therapy to help remove the Ryan Kaneshiro flashbacks that started to creep into my dreams.


Defense:

1. Will the safety duo of McGill and Rowe remove some of the ugly secondary play that we saw last year.

Having 2 players that are more FS than SS will help. Last year, we were plagued by the fact that we did not have a true FS on the field. And that our SS was a better linebacker than a safety. McGill and Rowe carry a huge burden, and will be the deciding factor of whether our secondary play improves over last season's debacle.

2. Will our LB's be a liability in coverage.

I think our starting trio of Walker, Martinez, and Blechen will more than hold their own against the run. I wonder how they will do covering RB's and TE's in man to man schemes.

3. Will our defensive line dominate as expected.

I don't think I recall more hype over a specific unit at Utah than the praise/hyperbole being leveled at the Dline. The talent is there. Will the results match the hype.

4. Will we generate a consistent pass rush with our front 4?

Finau is the guy to watch, IMO. He was a late arrival last fall, but garnered significant playing time by the end of the year. With a full year in the system, I predict he will overshadow both Shelby and Kruger when it is all said and done.

[UtahDan]

Jarid how much do you think we will see against Montana State? I have to think the schemes will stay pretty vanilla. I also wonder if we will see four quarters of Wynn.

[Jarid in Cedar]

Jarid how much do you think we will see against Montana State? I have to think the schemes will stay pretty vanilla. I also wonder if we will see four quarters of Wynn.

I think somewhere in-between. We need to play enough offense to see how things work in a live situation, but not show the whole package. If this game was the opening game for 2012(wynn a senior, second year of the new offense) it would be Mich more of a vanilla look.

As far as wynn, he will play until the games outcome is not on question.

[BoylenOver]

I'm so glad this day is so close.

My three concerns going into the season: Wynn, offensive line (especially depth), and the kicking game. I'm guessing we will we get a small glimpse of their status on Thursday., even if it doesn't affect the result of the game

[DrumNFeather]

I'm so glad this day is so close.

My three concerns going into the season: Wynn, offensive line (especially depth), and the kicking game. I'm guessing we will we get a small glimpse of their status on Thursday., even if it doesn't affect the result of the game

I'm a little concerned with our secondary as well. While I'me excited about Rowe and McGuill, I'm nervous about the DBs, especially as we get into conference play...they might not face decent receivers until then.

[Hot Lunch]

I can't take it anymore. The summer doldrums, the endless bickering over gross vs net, the pros and cons of polyandry,

IT IS TIME FOR SOME FOOTBALL!!!!!

Given all of the uncertainty of young players at key positions, injuries at key positions, etc, I think there are several things that I am going to be watching intently.

Offense:

1. How agressive is the O-Line.

I think our line play has been dissappointing the last 2 year with Miller as the coach. Personally, I think the hiring of Tim Davis was as important(if not moreso) than the hiring of Norm Chow. I hope that our line has become more aggressive. I hope that our running game will have more of a smash-mouth swagger than the finesse look of 2009-2010.

2. How much zip does Wynn have on the ball.

Pitch counts, rest days, etc have led to a ton of speculation on the health of Wynn's shoulder. We will know within the first 10 passes where things actually stand

3. How effective will John White IV running between the tackles.

From all accounts, he has explosive speed, is elusive, and can find extra yards after first contact. I want to see if he can gain 2 yards when it is 3rd and 1.

4. Will the Tight ends continue to be the mythical unicorn of Utah's offense.

With Chow, everyone assumes that the TE will take a step up in the offense. There are several talented players that just need to see the ball.

5. Will I have to need to reenter therapy to help remove the Ryan Kaneshiro flashbacks that started to creep into my dreams.


Defense:

1. Will the safety duo of McGill and Rowe remove some of the ugly secondary play that we saw last year.

Having 2 players that are more FS than SS will help. Last year, we were plagued by the fact that we did not have a true FS on the field. And that our SS was a better linebacker than a safety. McGill and Rowe carry a huge burden, and will be the deciding factor of whether our secondary play improves over last season's debacle.

2. Will our LB's be a liability in coverage.

I think our starting trio of Walker, Martinez, and Blechen will more than hold their own against the run. I wonder how they will do covering RB's and TE's in man to man schemes.

3. Will our defensive line dominate as expected.

I don't think I recall more hype over a specific unit at Utah than the praise/hyperbole being leveled at the Dline. The talent is there. Will the results match the hype.

4. Will we generate a consistent pass rush with our front 4?

Finau is the guy to watch, IMO. He was a late arrival last fall, but garnered significant playing time by the end of the year. With a full year in the system, I predict he will overshadow both Shelby and Kruger when it is all said and done.

This doesn't make me a little nervous for Montana St. for obvious reasons but it does in the future. Kyle's defense relies heavily on the SS to be a run stopper. The SS tends to play in the box a lot based on the design of his defense and is consistently one of the top tacklers on the team year in and year out. With these two being FS type players, I worry about the run support from the position. They will obviously be better against the pass but just knowing what I know of the D, I wonder what it will do to the run defense.

[Jarid in Cedar]

This doesn't make me a little nervous for Montana St. for obvious reasons but it does in the future. Kyle's defense relies heavily on the SS to be a run stopper. The SS tends to play in the box a lot based on the design of his defense and is consistently one of the top tacklers on the team year in and year out. With these two being FS type players, I worry about the run support from the position. They will obviously be better against the pass but just knowing what I know of the D, I wonder what it will do to the run defense.

I think you will see Michael Walker rotate in on more obvious running downs. He seems to be more of a traditional SS. He played LB in high school, and he was one of the better run stoppers in the spring/camp. The question is whether Rowe will slide to FS in those scenarios or if McGill will stay on the field.

[Hot Lunch]

I think you will see Michael Walker rotate in on more obvious running downs. He seems to be more of a traditional SS. He played LB in high school, and he was one of the better run stoppers in the spring/camp. The question is whether Rowe will slide to FS in those scenarios or if McGill will stay on the field.

I agree with you on this, I think we will see a good rotation of the 3. Walker concerns me a little as well. Isn't he pretty small? around 5'9 or 5'10 and 185.

[DrumNFeather]

looks like Utahutes.com is going to video stream the game live on Thursday...nice!

[cougjunkie]

What channel is this game on locally in utah?


Also this is more of a glorified scrimmage for the utes. Nice to get in some live work but I doubt it tells you much.

[Jarid in Cedar]

What channel is this game on locally in utah?


Also this is more of a glorified scrimmage for the utes. Nice to get in some live work but I doubt it tells you much.

KJZZ is carrying the game. I definitely see this game as similar to a "shakedown cruise" that a new ship undergoes prior to entering full time servies.

[Portland Ute]

I'm a little concerned with our secondary as well. While I'me excited about Rowe and McGuill, I'm nervous about the DBs, especially as we get into conference play...they might not face decent receivers until then.

McGill

[Portland Ute]

This doesn't make me a little nervous for Montana St. for obvious reasons but it does in the future. Kyle's defense relies heavily on the SS to be a run stopper. The SS tends to play in the box a lot based on the design of his defense and is consistently one of the top tacklers on the team year in and year out. With these two being FS type players, I worry about the run support from the position. They will obviously be better against the pass but just knowing what I know of the D, I wonder what it will do to the run defense.

You have to wonder if KW and Sitake aren't maybe banking heavily on the front 7 to take care of business against the run.

A sort of calculated gamble.

[Blueintheface]

You have to wonder if KW and Sitake aren't maybe banking heavily on the front 7 to take care of business against the run.

A sort of calculated gamble.

Hardly gambling, as this front 7 should be stellar. In years past Kalani/Kyle have brought the SS up in run support but due to inexperience and these guys up front I'm guessing you won't see this as much. That is unless a standout run-stopper emerges in the secondary.

[Hot Lunch]

You have to wonder if KW and Sitake aren't maybe banking heavily on the front 7 to take care of business against the run.

A sort of calculated gamble.

I think it is a calculated gamble. I think the D line that Utah has is the best they have had since 2004 when they had Sinoe Pouha, Steve Fifita, Jonathen Fanane and Marquis Ledbetter. I still worry about Martinez. I was hoping and somewhat expected Jacoby Hale to overtake him this year.