Utes vs. Sun Devils, Jan. 20, 2012

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

Hicktown, Utah. Makes total sense to me. From your posts I've thought you were a BYU fan anway.

According to Google.com/maps Hicktown is not an actual town in Utah. FWIW.

[UtahJazzFan88]

Hicktown, Utah. Makes total sense to me. From your posts for the longest time I've thought you were a BYU fan anway.

Once again, thanks for the comic relief, anything else?

[TripletDaddy]

I see SeattleUte is taking a snapshot in time approach.

I don't recall his celebrating the take no prisoners defense last week after a 20 point loss to Kal. Perhaps it is a new wrinkle in the team that was just implemented in the last few days.

[Surfah]

Celebrate this win SU. Northern Arizona also beat ASU, a team that BYU beat by 35.

[LA Ute]

lol power rankings don't lie. There's a computer doing it, right? This is all circular. Utah has won a couple of games against Pac teams, played a couple of other top half of the conference teams to the wire, so the Pac must suck. No. 5 is too high because Coach McGwirk says so? well, that is dispositive, if Coach says so.

Go ahead and say it, LA. The Pac is down but it's still a lot better than the WCC in a very down year. How good is BYU, losing at home by 14 to the Loyola Marymount Lions? UTah and BYU are moving in different directions, I know that much.

You Utefans make me want to puke (well, LA only a little bit; and not U-Ute and others). Fans like Portland and TopUte have had the program they deserve the past five years.

This is a team that lost at home to Cal State Fullerton by 31. Why aren't you celebrating the visible improvement? Why aren't you celebrating the fact that for the first time since Majerus we are seeing a take no prisoners ethic on defense? Why aren't you celebrating that for the first time in seven years we have a promising young point guard? Why aren't you celebrating that for the first time in five years we've seen a team improve, not get worse as the season progresses? Why aren't you celebrating that K showed the courage of his convictions with yet another deeply flawed Boylen recruit and the team responded positively?

Don't get wrong. The PAC-12 is down, but "down" for the PAC-12 is still better than most conferences. With 50+ players in the NBA the PAC is second only to the mighty ACC. It will be back, and probably soon.

I'm one of the biggest Krysko fans anywhere. We've actually seen players improve under him, something we haven't seen for 7 years or so on the Hill. When was the last time a Ute hoops team overachieved? Serious basketball people who know hoops and who know Krysko's body of work say he's going to succeed. I think we are seeing evidence of that almost with each passing game. I'm also celebrating everything you list as cause for celebration. I.e., you and I are on the same page, at least on how well the program is doing and its direction.

[SeattleUte]

I see SeattleUte is taking a snapshot in time approach.

I don't recall his celebrating the take no prisoners defense last week after a 20 point loss to Kal. Perhaps it is a new wrinkle in the team that was just implemented in the last few days.

I never said Utah has arrived, and Kal is the best team in the conference (notwithstanding its loss tonight to a team Utah beat), and Utah was on the road playing for the second time in three nights.

I do note that ASU won at USC. USC is so horrid! We have lots of excuses. What's USCs?

[SeattleUte]

Don't get wrong. The PAC-12 is down, but "down" for the PAC-12 is still better than most conferences. With 50+ players in the NBA the PAC is second only to the mighty ACC. It will be back, and probably soon.

I'm one of the biggest Krysko fans anywhere. We've actually seen players improve under him, something we haven't seen for 7 years or so on the Hill. When was the last time a Ute hoops team overachieved? Serious basketball people who know hoops and who know Krysko's body of work say he's going to succeed. I think we are seeing evidence of that almost with each passing game. I'm also celebrating everything you list as cause for celebration. I.e., you and I are on the same page, at least on how well the program is doing and its direction.

That's the spirit. I'm glad to see we are on the same page. I have 100% confidence in this coaching staff.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Holy cow. Just saw the score.

I don't care who you played. That is something to build on. Congrats.

[SeattleUte]

Once again, thanks for the comic relief, anything else?

This is some of the best repartee I have seen here.

[EuropeanFootballMale]

This is some of the best repartee I have seen here.

Prise de fer!

[myboynoah]

Another good win!

The stars have really aligned for the UofUtah, coming into such a weak PAC when the program is so down.

I've got a feeling!

I still believe!

[UtahJazzFan88]

This is some of the best repartee I have seen here.

Sorry, I just thought some of your trolling was pretty funny, but will admit that this is a nice win even though ASU is dreadfully terrible and possibly even worse than the Runnin' Utes. My care level for this team is low when all the games are basically on a video screen stream and rarely on TV. Good thing that will change next season when we're on the PAC-12 Network every game (unless they drop the ball on TV companies).

[Top Ute]

Sorry, I just thought some of your trolling was pretty funny, but will admit that this is a nice win even though ASU is dreadfully terrible and possibly even worse than the Runnin' Utes. My care level for this team is low when all the games are basically on a video screen stream and rarely on TV. Good thing that will change next season when we're on the PAC-12 Network every game (unless they drop the ball on TV companies).

We should bring Herb Sendek on as an assistant after he's fired (and after ASU witnessed what 'Zona did in football in going from Stoops to Rich Rod, that possibility should not be dismissed). ASU is as bad as it is because he's run off dismissed twice as many players as Larry has. I can only imagine the excitement from the fans after we bring in another coach who can't get his top players to buy in to his system has such a strong grasp of discipline in his program.

Then again, his best backcourt player (and only player of note) missed another game against Utah due to injury. So maybe I'll hold back on campaigning to bring Herb to SLC.

[tom_hanks]

SALT LAKE CITY -- Arizona State was forcing turnovers so quickly in the second half, trainers didn't even have time to get the blood off Brock Osweiler's jersey.

"They were cleaning it one second and the next second it was, 'Hey, you got to go,'" the Sun Devils' 6-foot-8 quarterback said. "But that's a credit to our defense. They were staying focused, playing with a lot of intensity, creating turnovers."

Three Utah turnovers on consecutive possessions late in the third quarter and beginning of the fourth helped turn a close game into 35-14 victory for No. 22 Arizona State.

When it was over, the Utes (2-3, 0-3) had committed five turnovers for the second straight game -- and the result wasn't much different than last week's 31-14 loss to Washington.

"The wheels came off," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. "We'll start winning games when we stop turning the ball over. That's the bottom line. Until that happens it's going to be a long road."

Osweiler finished 25 of 41 for 325 yards and three touchdowns for Arizona State (5-1, 3-0 Pac-12). It was the third 300-yard game of his career.

Jon Hays threw three interceptions in his first major-college start in place of injured Jordan Wynn.

For a while, the junior college transfer was holding his own.

Utah had taken a 14-10 lead with 10:32 left in the third quarter on Hays' 2-yard TD pass to tight end Dallin Rogers.

Arizona State then scored 18 straight points in less than four minutes to take a 28-14 lead.

Alex Garoutte's 35-yard field goal cut the gap to 1 with 5 minutes left in the third.

Then Shelly Lyons forced a John White fumble. Five plays later, Osweiler tossed a 14-yard TD pass to Mike Willie, and added a 2-point conversion to Aaron Pflugrad, for a 21-14 lead.

Clint Floyd then intercepted Hays on Utah's next play from scrimmage. Cameron Marshall scored on a 4-yard run 68 seconds later.

The Sun Devils turned Utah's fifth turnover of the game into another seven points, with Osweiler's 12-yard TD pass to Willie capping a 10-play drive set up by Reggie Dunn's fumble with 14:12 left to play.

Floyd forced that turnover also.

"It's big for us," Floyd said of the road win, only the fourth in their last 13 trips. "We knew the second half was our half."

Willie had only 10 catches for 136 yards the first five games. He nearly matched that Saturday with seven for 98 yards. Gerell Robinson had seven for for 101.

"That was our game plan," Osweiler said of using Willie and Robinson more. "We have tremendous wide receivers on the outside ... and we really haven't gotten the guys the football this year. They deserve their touches."

It helped that Utah was playing an eight-man front, and a lot of man-to-man.

[Top Ute]

SALT LAKE CITY -- Arizona State was forcing turnovers so quickly in the second half, trainers didn't even have time to get the blood off Brock Osweiler's jersey.

"They were cleaning it one second and the next second it was, 'Hey, you got to go,'" the Sun Devils' 6-foot-8 quarterback said. "But that's a credit to our defense. They were staying focused, playing with a lot of intensity, creating turnovers."

Three Utah turnovers on consecutive possessions late in the third quarter and beginning of the fourth helped turn a close game into 35-14 victory for No. 22 Arizona State.

When it was over, the Utes (2-3, 0-3) had committed five turnovers for the second straight game -- and the result wasn't much different than last week's 31-14 loss to Washington.

"The wheels came off," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. "We'll start winning games when we stop turning the ball over. That's the bottom line. Until that happens it's going to be a long road."

Osweiler finished 25 of 41 for 325 yards and three touchdowns for Arizona State (5-1, 3-0 Pac-12). It was the third 300-yard game of his career.

Jon Hays threw three interceptions in his first major-college start in place of injured Jordan Wynn.

For a while, the junior college transfer was holding his own.

Utah had taken a 14-10 lead with 10:32 left in the third quarter on Hays' 2-yard TD pass to tight end Dallin Rogers.

Arizona State then scored 18 straight points in less than four minutes to take a 28-14 lead.

Alex Garoutte's 35-yard field goal cut the gap to 1 with 5 minutes left in the third.

Then Shelly Lyons forced a John White fumble. Five plays later, Osweiler tossed a 14-yard TD pass to Mike Willie, and added a 2-point conversion to Aaron Pflugrad, for a 21-14 lead.

Clint Floyd then intercepted Hays on Utah's next play from scrimmage. Cameron Marshall scored on a 4-yard run 68 seconds later.

The Sun Devils turned Utah's fifth turnover of the game into another seven points, with Osweiler's 12-yard TD pass to Willie capping a 10-play drive set up by Reggie Dunn's fumble with 14:12 left to play.

Floyd forced that turnover also.

"It's big for us," Floyd said of the road win, only the fourth in their last 13 trips. "We knew the second half was our half."

Willie had only 10 catches for 136 yards the first five games. He nearly matched that Saturday with seven for 98 yards. Gerell Robinson had seven for for 101.

"That was our game plan," Osweiler said of using Willie and Robinson more. "We have tremendous wide receivers on the outside ... and we really haven't gotten the guys the football this year. They deserve their touches."

It helped that Utah was playing an eight-man front, and a lot of man-to-man.

What the hell is this doing in this thread?