Game balls for Utah’s win over Idaho State

Offense - Tyler Huntley

Back-to-back weeks for Tyler Huntley taking home the game ball. Huntley has been praised as one of the most accurate QB’s to start the 2019 and this week was no different. Huntley finished the game, albeit a short stay in the game, with a 79% completion percentage (15/19) along with 282 passing yards and 3 touchdowns, including an 82-yard bomb to Bryan Thompson.

Some people have claimed that Huntley is just a ‘game manager,’ and there may be some truth to that - his main job is to take care of the ball and let Zack Moss carry the offense. But if being a game manager includes throwing for 300 yards and three touchdowns, Huntley may be the best game manager in college football. If Huntley can continue to be as efficient as he has been to start the season once conference play begins against USC Friday night, then Utah fans could be booking trips to Southern California on January 1, at the very least.

Defense - Devin Lloyd

Just like Huntley, this is the second straight week that Devin Lloyd has earned the game ball for his defensive performance. Lloyd has shown exactly why Utah coaches and teammates were so high on the young linebacker. Lloyd recorded a sack for the second straight week and led the Ute defense in tackles with nine, including three solo tackles.

It was a solid performance by the entire defense Saturday afternoon, but Lloyd has continued to stand out. I touched on it last week, but I don’t think fans could have asked for a better start to a season by Lloyd, who was thrust into a larger role in the Utah defense after the departure of Manny Bowen. Everyone knows the defense for the Utes is going to be key to a Pac-12 championship, but if Utah can continue to get production from guys outside of the core-defensive stars (Anae, Fotu, Bernard, etc.) then this Utah defense may be better than we originally thought.

Special Teams - Jadon Redding

Utah still has some questions in the kicking game, but for the second straight week, it appears as if the special teams unit, and Redding specifically, have taken some strides forward. Redding was good on his one field goal attempt from 35 yards and was 4-for-4 on extra points.

The questions haven’t all been answered just yet, and we will get a better idea of where the Utes are at in the kicking game once the games start to get a little bit tighter and the level of competition increases, but Utah fans should be happy with the direction of the special teams, for now.