If there are moral wins, can there be moral defeats?
by JazzyUte on Sep 2, 2011 1:40 PM MDT
in Football
Email
PrintNormally, when Utah loses a game, I toss and turn that first night because I can't quite shut down my brain and find myself in an endless loop going over what went wrong.
I've never really experienced this after a win.
Well, at least until last night.
I hit the pillow and within minutes, started going over this game and how it rapidly went from promising to dumbfounding.
While I waited in a concession line at the start of the second quarter, shortly after the Utes had gone up 24-0, I asked Ute fans on Twitter whether the team looked better than expected, about as expected or worse than expected and the flurry of replies at that moment indicated most fans felt the team looked better than expected.
I agreed. At that time, Utah's offense had almost 100 more yards on Montana State's - and the Utes' defense was holding the Bobcats in check, as they had roughly only 33 or so yards at that moment. There had been a touchdown pass by Jordan Wynn, a blocked punt (oh I love when we block a punt) a made field goal (this was a huge concern heading into the game), an interception, a great ground attack and, to top it all off, the offensive line was, at least to a point, protecting Wynn for the most part.
Had the game ended there, I think we'd all feel pretty good about this year's team.
Unfortunately, there was still two and a half quarters left of play and, at that moment, nearly to the minute I asked that damn question, the Utes sputtered.
The offense found little momentum. The defense started giving up bigger and bigger plays. The offensive line, which had been serviceable for much of the first quarter, failed to hold. Wynn, who produced decent results to that point, started dumping it off for short gains.
Outside the field goal unit (they didn't miss!) and John White, everything quickly deteriorated.
Just like that, 24-0 turned into 24-7 and then 27-10 and you kind of just sat there waiting for Utah to respond. They didn't. In the third and fourth quarters, they didn't really sniff the end zone and, outside a fake punt, hardly did anything spectacular once they built their solid, but far from dominating, lead.
So as I tried to sleep last night, I started going over this game. Why the abrupt change? How could the team go from playing well enough in the first quarter and five minutes of the second to getting out played, at home, by a FCS school?
Then I started thinking about what lies ahead next week and that's when I realized it - Utah might've won Thursday, but it felt like a loss because of who they're about to take on next Saturday.
In my mind, whether I wanted to or not, I conceded not only defeat to the Trojans - but potentially an ugly defeat.
Yeah, the Utes won and are 1-0 and didn't fully embarrass themselves like Ole Miss and Virginia Tech did last year against FCS schools, but there was nothing in this win that gives me confidence this team is ready to head on the road, to play in front of 90,000 fans, and compete, let alone win, against a hungry and talented USC program.
Call me a defeatist and hopefully I'm proven wrong, but Thursday's game makes it difficult to find any confidence in this team - at least right now.
When I got home, I decided to check out the other scores and saw, for the most part, that ever FBS team took care of their FCS opponent. Some were even as highly rated as Montana State at their level - as was the case when #10 New Hampshire lost 58-22 to Toledo.
Toledo!
Villanova, the 13th ranked team, got hammered 42-7 by Temple.
Does that mean those two programs are better than Utah? No, no it doesn't. In fact, I'd wager the Utes would soundly beat Toledo. But that doesn't mean we have less questions than they do.
And that's the problem. We have way too many questions at the moment. It doesn't mean we won't like the answer, or that they won't be answered, it just means, until they do, we're left with this performance.
Hopefully it's a one-game deal and this team comes out firing against SC. If they do, then no one will remember what happened against Montana State.
39 comments
|
1 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
If it makes you feel any better....
In 2000, Oregon State scraped by Eastern Washington 21-19 in their season opener. They went on to finish the season 11-1, tie for the Pac-10 title, and beat the hell of a Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. Sometimes a closer call than expected in the opening game can turn out to be a good thing.
It does...
Iowa also had a near-loss to Northern Iowa back in ’09 and they turned out to be pretty good, going 11-2 and beating Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl.
Of course, I didn’t watch the OSU game, so I don’t know exactly how they looked – if there was a reason for the closeness or whether their fans were concerned after the game.
This is a big reason I hate playing FCS schools because if you win in a laugher, it doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Will Toledo amount to much this season? Probably not. But they looked a bit more impressive than Utah in their opener against a FCS team.
This was my point in the other thread.....
…. It’s one thing to be concerned about serious deficiencies, it’s another to sweat the fact that momentum (or lack of it) might span multiple games. It might, but it also might not.
I’d also reiterate my point from before: USC is good, but this isn’t the all world USC we are used to seeing. They are young and untested in a number of areas. Look for Minnesota to put up a little fight today and give you blockheads a reason for hope
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
@chrislandon
Also...
don’t forget about the game against Weber State in 2008. We played them the 4th or 5th game into the season, right when a team should start hitting their stride, and only beat them 37-21…..and we all know how the Utes finished that season . I know its not an apples-to-apples comparison, and I’m not saying there isn’t anything to worry about, but it was only the 1st game of the year. There is no doubt that we have several issues to resolve in a very short time in order to save ourselves from a disappointing lost in SoCal. All I’m saying is that we can read TOO much into a disappointing 2nd half against an inferior opponent.
agreed
no point in playing in FCS teams. They are there for the paycheck, they go as hard as they can because they literally have nothing to lose. If they get thumped by 50, they won’t fall in the rankings. Montana state brought all kinds of blitz packages at Utah. Utah kept themselves in their base defense all night. Nothing to gain, much to lose. At least we aren’t Michigan, Va. Tech, or Ole Miss!
Want to see someone really get their brain twisted up? Try explaining the Monty Hall problem to them....
Exactly...
Or even Washington State last year, who needed a massive late-game rally to eek out a win over Montana State.
The problem is, when the game isn’t pretty, you leave with a bit more questions than answers. That’s where we’re at right now, you know? We already had concerns about Wynn heading into this game and I think we still do.
Then again, even if we had rolled 70-0, I don’t know how much would’ve been gained with that result, either.
I came away from this game...
…with more concerns about Chow than I did about Wynn (though I still have them about Wynn). But I’m probably looking for those concerns a bit more than most since I was one who was skeptical of the Chow hire from the word go.
I think
You may be looking at this the wrong way. Put yourself in Kalani Wittingchow’s shoes. You are playing an inferior opponent, and you play the first quarter and a half the way you expect to play. You do so well that you leave fans wondering if the Utes are better than the fans thought they were.
Then you, understandably, take your foot off the gas. Bring in your backup RB, who shows a little less foot speed than you expected. This let down has a predictable effect on your team… they stop trying very hard. The QB doesn’t have adrenaline going and his passes lack zip and distance, the O line is going through the motions, etc.
I think we did exactly what we needed to do… I think people haven’t learned an important K-Whit lesson: he doesn’t run up the score. Sometimes his teams score a ton of points, but he doesn’t throw deep or go for it unless he needs to.
by Joseph Silverzweig on Sep 2, 2011 2:22 PM MDT reply actions
True, but
Whittingham himself said in several articles in the D-News and the trib that they needed to throw down the field; they needed to try to open it up. He also said he thought the play-calling was terrible. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t referring only to the 1st quarter and few minutes of the second quarter as we were getting a solid lead – he was referring to the whole game. Every single pass Wynn through was short – even if you have a good lead, there was enough game left to throw it down the field so that the team can gain some confidence in that part of the attack. I’m nervous as all get-out, not just for next week, but the whole season unless Wynn starts playing like he did in the SDSU game, the Iowa State game and before. He seems like he’s lost and rattled. Maybe getting Cullen back will help and the new offensive linemen getting some experience will hopefully help as well.
It isn't surprising to me Wynn looked off for most the game...
It was, after all, his first real action since the BYU game back in November. He didn’t really throw in spring ball and saw limited snaps in fall camp. Maybe the coaches were too conservative with Wynn’s rehabilitation.
But Whittingham was right. The offense didn’t dictate many throws down field. If you watched every play develop, most passes were set up to be short gains. That was absolutely play calling and not entirely on Wynn.
We’ll see if they open things up Saturday against SC. More dink passes and we should get accustom to an offense that just isn’t going to air it out much.
The only pass down field I can remember
is the double move route that Dunn did to get behind the defense and the throw was just short, allowing the defender to recover and make a great play, diving and knocking it down in the end zone and saving the easy TD grab. Would have liked more of those to test Wynn’s arm, but apparently Chow didn’t want to see it.
That doesn't mean there weren't routes downfield, does it?
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
@chrislandon
I don't think
That there were many routes downfield…
by Joseph Silverzweig on Sep 3, 2011 9:25 AM MDT up reply actions
Sometimes no.
But in this case there really weren’t routes downfield. This was a game where the play book got clamped shut early in the first quarter.
First Game
Season really starts next week, I think as folks watch this weekend they will see teams struggle that prove to be great teams later on. Football is one of those sports where teams get better, much better, or worse as the season progresses.
I think the Utes ran into a motivated MSU team and combined it with an off night on offense. That’s what I “think”, we will all know after USC.
GO UTES!!!!
Amusing anecdote
Was listening to Petros and Money in the car… “big night for Norm Chow and his new Utah Offense… Jordan Wynn was nearly perfect in his debut”
Guess he doesn’t read BlockU!
by Joseph Silverzweig on Sep 2, 2011 5:36 PM MDT reply actions
"Had the game ended there, I think we'd all feel pretty good about this year's team."
For me, that’s when the game ended. For my own sanity at least.
I just believe that Utah gave each other high fives after getting 27 points and said, let’s just goof off now and let MSU feel good about themselves.
That’s what I choose to believe in any case.
Baylor vs TCU
Baylor is running the no huddle. They just scored a TD on their possession against the vaunted TCU defense. A defense that Utah struggled against.
Utah needs to mix it up too. College players can’t adjust fast enough to changes in schemes. Utah needs to outsmart their opponents in the Pac-12.
to be fair that defense has only 4 starters back.
Public Enemy #1 and enjoying every minute of it. College Football for the next 4 and 1/2 months!
by wolfmanshowlforever on Sep 2, 2011 6:21 PM MDT up reply actions 1 recs
They have their two best players still
Make that 21 points after 1 quarter and some change
by Utah-UCLA alum on Sep 2, 2011 7:05 PM MDT up reply actions
Their offense has new starters too and new QB
yet they put up 22 points already.
I hope the Utah coaching staff is watching this game. I think they are.
by Utah-UCLA alum on Sep 2, 2011 7:11 PM MDT up reply actions
baylor might actually be pretty good this year. robert griffin is as good as advertised........
some good WR’s too. make that 34 points before halftime. i think tcu last year had 9 straight quarters of no points. how things have changed.
Public Enemy #1 and enjoying every minute of it. Tapology.
by wolfmanshowlforever on Sep 2, 2011 7:34 PM MDT up reply actions
TCU was the number 1 defense in 2008, 2009, 2010
the no huddle works. it always has. it neutralizes aggressive defenses.
A certain Utah team in the 2008 Sugar Bowl used it and beat the Tide, who won the NCAA title the following year.
by Utah-UCLA alum on Sep 2, 2011 7:38 PM MDT up reply actions
I figured out the problem
You guys got up big and then Norm Chow busted out the Prevent Offense.
by scotty256 on Sep 2, 2011 7:31 PM MDT reply actions 1 recs
Coach Whit
was griping about the offense’s slow tempo. He said that they ran their plays with 5 secs left during the game as opposed to in practice they were snapping the ball quicker like around with 10 secs left on the play clock. Well run the no huddle, your tempo is surely going to be quicker.
Actually, he said in practice they were snapping with 22, 21 seconds left
That would have been a much more interesting pace, to be sure.
Dolphins and sharks are natural enemies. Dolphins are like, "Quit eating us," and sharks are like, "Stop smiling all the time, you morons."
Sort-of-daily sort-of-funny sort-of-thoughts at danoftheday.com
After sleeping on it, I'm feeling much better about the game.
So I guess we’re going in opposite directions, Jazzy.
This was not a “moral defeat,” at least not if a moral defeat is the opposite of a moral victory. I see moral victories as losses that a team is able to build upon, where a team proves to itself that it can compete and get better. Conversely, a moral defeat I see as one of two situations: 1) where injuries are so costly that a team would be better off losing, or 2) where a team starts to doubt itself and losses confidence.
Situation #1 is clearly inapplicable. No major injuries happened during the game, and Utah gets John Cullen and Nai Fotu back for USC. We will have to wait to see if situation #2 happens, but I doubt it will. If anything, this game is going to motivate the players and coaches to work harder and iron out the mistakes.
Wynn doesn’t appear to have his confidence back so that will be a lingering problem throughout first few games, and possibly the whole season. But it’s possible to win with mediocre quarterback play. Although Wynn didn’t play great, he didn’t throw any interceptions either. If he can cleanup the fumbled snaps, he will be just good enough to get us to a bowl game. If he can return to his freshman form, then there’s still hope for a division championship.
Wynn's biggest issue has nothing to do with his shoulder.
And that’s why I’m optimistic. The wobbly passes weren’t because he wasn’t healthy. They were because he wasn’t stepping into his throws.
It could be because he’s not confident in himself, it could be because he’s not confident his shoulder could stand up to being hit.
Either way it’s something fixable
My $2 (inflation)?
A quarter and a half in, with the game in hand, the team was already mentally in the Coliseum. Simply put, if the Utes play flat against ‘SC and Wynn can’t throw and the line can’t keep him off the turf, THEN you really worry. Remember Michigan losing to Appy State? They simply never conceived that they could possibly lose, that they could flip a switch and it would be all over. The game last night was sloppy and flat after the first quarter, but it could have been much, much worse. It’s a win, nobody was lost to injury, and even USC doesn’t know what to expect after that pedestrian, vanilla, closed-book playcalling.
Ducks GOOOOD. Fuskies BAAAAAD.
by BigGreenWreckingMachine on Sep 3, 2011 1:34 AM MDT reply actions
Even though he normally hates me,
I almost always find myself agreeing with BGWM, a wise and perspicacious Ducker
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
@chrislandon
One of the voices in my head...
keeps telling me that Utah’s coaching staff are MENSA members. Getting up 24-0 then shutting everything down. Having the O-line go half-assed so Wynn gets his first pile-driver into the turff out of the way and to give him a taste of what’s to come throughout the season. Putting a lock on the playbook keeps the game close and puts added pressure in a game that should be a blowout.
The coaching staff should also be chiseled in for Oscars as well. The fanbase let alone USC have no clue of what to make of this game.
BUT, if that voice is wrong and the Utes really do suck, then the other voices in my head are going to start telling me to burn things.
Jazzy here is your answer, USU - Aub
Utah State University – moral victory against the Tigers
Real Victory would have been much nicer. Moral victories suck.
If were USU, I would be sick to my stomach. They choked.
Ehhh I wouldn’t say that they choked. They were going back and forth for the entire fourth quarter. Their problem was their positioning on the onside kick. That alone cost them the game.
Even their QB implies they choked
USU QB Keeton said, "We played three-and-a-half quarters and we just couldn’t get the last half of the fourth quarter, so all we need to do is just finish. With this team we can definitely win the WAC championship."
BUT Auburn’s take on the game is summed up by reciever Lutzenkirchen when he said, “We were wrong for thinking coming in that they might be a cupcake team and they really ran it down our throat the first half,” he said. “We got lucky with this one.”
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word" - Andrew Jackson
Yeah, they choked...
When you’ve got the defending national champions on the ropes in their house and all you have to do is make ONE freaking play (that is almost always made anyway), you choke.
BUT the way USC played Saturday
against Minnesota I would say we still have a chance next Saturday. Sure Minnesota should be a better team than Montana State since they play in the Big 10, but maybe Minnesota ISN’T a better team. After Thursday night I wasn’t feeling too optimistic about next Saturday, but after yesterday….. I truly believe its is more than doable. USC ain’t the USC of old and their Achilles Heel is exposed – now we have to go after it.
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word" - Andrew Jackson
I have no idea about 9-10-11at 4:30 pm
After last year’s loss to TCU, I was sure we would bounce back against the Irish. No slight to ND (yesterday’s loss somewhat validates this), but I felt we had the better team.
Phillips picked that game to miss a kick, our back man on the punt team just stood there admiring Touchdown Jesus as an ND guy ran by and blocked Sellwood’s kick, Jordan’s impression of a baseball player, all reenforce the notion, that guessing how this Jordan Wynn led Utah team will do is difficult.
In the worst case, I can envision Matt Barkley (former HS player of the year) doing his best imitation of Andy Dalton.
Or which is what I hope, Jordan can show the promise like he did against Cal, and Utah can play inspired football like Utah State did yesterday for 3.5 quarters and for the remaining .5 quarters make “THAT” play which give us the W. No matter what, I hope we have an aggressive game plan and just go for it like we did against the Tide.
by Utah-UCLA alum on Sep 4, 2011 5:42 PM MDT up reply actions
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
- Urban Meyer
"Wow. Wow. Wow."
- Daryl Johnston after Utah took a 21-0 lead on Alabama in the 2009 Sugar Bowl
Related FanPosts on Block U
Related FanShots on Block U
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
