OL coach Blake Miller has left the program

by JazzyUte on Jan 3, 2011 3:33 PM MST in Football

Blake Miller, who came to Utah from Rice in 2009, has left for a similar position with Memphis.

I'm not going to get into details here, but it would not surprise me if Miller was pushed out by Kyle Whittingham.

With that said, I am not too disappointed with this move. I have not been all that impressed with Utah's line lately and think this is a position on the offensive end that definitely could use some changes.

The one area this does hurt, however, is in Texas. Miller was, along with Morgan Scalley, a recruiter of that state - though it's questionable the talent he's been able to bring into the program.

Overall, I am excited and optimistic about this change and hope to see some more in the future.

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agreed.

The line has been atrocious, outside of Slaughterhouse. Zane Taylor did not live up to expectations this year and cullen and bergstrom are both less than average. Time to pick it up guys!

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 3, 2011 3:37 PM MST reply actions

No big loss here

Maybe we need Dickie back. Miller just wasn’t getting consistency out of the line. Taylor’s low snaps, Cullen’s poor blocking, Bergstrom’s lack of effort and Stevens lack of talent were painfully apparent in the loses. In the wins, they looked great, especially Iowa State. They pushed their D-Line all over the field.

by bbmagic on Jan 3, 2011 3:44 PM MST reply actions

Don't forget the discipline. How many false start penalties killed drives?

by JazzyUte on Jan 3, 2011 3:47 PM MST up reply actions

Aaaaaaaaaaa-MEN!!!

"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word" - Andrew Jackson

by uteowl on Jan 5, 2011 2:26 PM MST up reply actions

I'm most frustrated with the run game.

Even against bad opponents, Utah didn’t have many great runs. With two senior running backs, the OL just wan’t creating big enough holes. The OL did not give up too many sacks, but their inability to run on anyone with a pulse was extremely frustrating.

by Ute in DC on Jan 3, 2011 3:55 PM MST up reply actions

O-Line was talented, played poorly down the stretch...

…which is on the coaches.

Right now, other than Whit (of course), and Sitake (who I think put together a strong game plan for Boise State, regardless of the statistics)…everyone should be in danger of getting sacked.

This team underachieved for the amount of talent that was there. Maybe I’m giving our players too much credit, but I don’t understand how a team that could put up 50-60 points per game early in the season turns into the inept bunch we saw from Air Force on. Sure, the competition was awful, and perhaps Wynn’s injury hampered him more than we realized…

…but are we so inept that we can only put up half as much on BYU as Utah St. did? Could we not have capitalized on 2 drives that started in Boise St. territory (& one more or less at the 50) in the 1st Q, or the 3 TO’s in the first half?

Seems to me that more heads should roll…we’re in the Pac-12, and we need the caliber of coaches to match the upcoming competition. Shell out the dough and make it happen Utah!

by Middy_U on Jan 3, 2011 6:00 PM MST reply actions

Agree with move...

For all the hype of the O-Line, especially Zane Taylor and Cullen (Mr. False Start), they were by far the most disappointing unit of the team. I was curiously shocked at the lack of leadership displayed by Taylor during the tough times. He seemed to tolerate the team’s mood and never tried to rally the troops.

Furthermore if it’s true Burton is gone, it’s not a major loss, like say a Sean Smith or Brice McCain. I’m as big a Ute fan as there is and the truth hurts. Burton was slightly overrated. The secondary was exploited several times throughout the season, and 25% of that blame is on him. The real stalwart in the secondary this year was Blechen. Brandon Burton, was a nice player but will always be remembered for “The Block” and not for being a “lockdown corner”.

by PanchoUte on Jan 3, 2011 10:04 PM MST reply actions

so basically

you are saying you didn’t watch many utah football games this year?

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 4, 2011 8:45 AM MST up reply actions

Basically...

I was at every home game and watched every road game. Rather than say he was overrated let’s say he didn’t live up to the hype he was given. Does that make you feel better? Burton was a second team all-conference selection…in the MWC. He was supposed to be a shoe-in for first team selection before the season.

by PanchoUte on Jan 4, 2011 8:32 PM MST up reply actions

ha ha

The second team all-MWC team doesn’t mean anything. Those awards are given out based on stats. Burton didn’t have the stats because people didn’t throw to him. Burton had more of an impact on the game than Sean Smith or Brice McCain did. Did he get beat sometimes? absolutely! but thats teh gamble that the ute defense takes. They leave him alone and yes, he is going to get beat. The best corners in the NFL get beat, every single game! If the all-MWC team was accurate, Burton would have been first team. I think you look more at numbers and not much at the actual game being played on teh field.

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 5, 2011 9:18 AM MST up reply actions

It's true

I do look at the numbers because they are a reflection of what happens on the field. However there are plays on the field that I saw that won’t show up on the stat sheet. Don’t get me wrong, he was a good corner with great speed, but didn’t necessarily rise up to the occasion in critical junctions in a game, the byu game the exception. Getting beat in the NFL is far different than getting beat by college players where most don’t play at the next level. In the end I think its best to agree to disagree. The real question we should be arguing about is how Blechen’s move to LB may hurt us in the secondary.

by PanchoUte on Jan 5, 2011 9:48 AM MST via mobile up reply actions

fair enough

I actually think that having Blechen as a LB will improve the coverage, but obviously not the secondary per se. Our linebackers this year did not contribute as much as they should have to pass coverage. That really hurt. With Blechen, we have a BIG upgrade over Manis (who graduates) and Martinez (who will lose his starting spot) .

Lets take a closer look at the guys we lose:

1. Burton-our best corner. He will be missed. Conroy Black won’t be as good, but he is more than capable.

2. Chapman-great at blitzing, run support, and always competed. He was not a solid man to man corner. His height and lack of elite speed realy hurt him. His spot will be a battle, presumably between Ryan Lacey and Reggie Topps, though others will certainly be in the mix.

3. Taplin-Ross-merely adequate. I thought he would be an impact player and really be a force. He wasn’t. We REALLY missed Ro-Jo this year. Tap tap was merely adequate, nothing special. I think Ketih McGil will be a BIG upgrade.

4. Blechen-very physical, very good in run support, made some great plays in coverage, made some rookie mistakes. I think Greg Bird can be a great replacement and there won’t be a drop off.

All in all, the speed is there. Sitake and Whit always seem to have guys ready to go, so I am not too worried about it. Having more help in coverage from the LB’s will be a big help as well.

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 5, 2011 10:48 AM MST up reply actions

What about...

JJ Williams will be back next year, I think he will be a SR. According to the coaches he was supposed to be the best LB. Also, won’t Nai Fotu be back, hopefully at full strength. With Williams, Fotu and Blechen as the starting LB core, good things happen. At the very least speed will be added and allow different blitzing schemes that may see Blechen be a sack leader. I’m also curious to see how Fehoko will develop.

by PanchoUte on Jan 5, 2011 3:00 PM MST via mobile up reply actions

agreed.

It will be interesting to see who starts next year. According to Kyle Gunther on 1280, Nai Fotu will probably be in only on passing downs to rush the QB. I think that the starters will be Blechen, Chaz, and JJ. Boo, Martinez and Fehoko will probably get the backup minutes. Its a nice problem to have, but Fotu needs playing time, as does Jamel King. I hope that (unlike this year) the top guys get 70-80% of the reps and the other guys just stay ready in case of an injury.

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 5, 2011 3:22 PM MST up reply actions

Agreed

Burton was a lock down corner.

by daedalus17 on Jan 4, 2011 11:06 AM MST reply actions

Question.

JazzyUte,

You are the only one who has reported this. Its not even posted on the school’s athletic site. Can you give us a source of this please? Im not sure this is a credible story……..

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by SportsInUtah on Jan 5, 2011 9:20 AM MST reply actions