Utes drop a close one to Washington 31-24

It was a game of big plays and swinging momentum, and at the end of the day, the Utes couldn’t come through and drop a close one to Washington 31-24. Early on it looked like Washington was going to get whatever they wanted, as they jumped to a 14-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter. As it turns out, that’s right where Utah wanted them. Utah would storm back and get to within 4 points with 10 unanswered points at halftime.

Utah’s run was sparked by an interception by Chase Hansen, where he returned the ball to about the 19 yard line. From there, Utah rumbled into the end zone on the back of Joe Williams. Speaking of Joe, he had another great game by rushing for 172 yards on 35 carries. The second score, the field goal to go into half, was a bit scary, as Troy Williams was sacked, with no time outs remaining, and Andy Phillips and crew sprinted onto the field, go set and knocked it through with no time remaining on the clock.

Utah came out of the locker room rolling on offense again, as they moved down the field and took a 17-14 lead after Troy Williams found Siaosi Wilson in the end zone. It wasn’t Troy’s best day, as he went 14 of 31 for 163 yards and 2 touchdowns. He actually rebounded pretty well after the first half when he was 5 of 15 for 25 yards. Troy had one heck of a toss to Evan Moeai for 24 yards for a touchdown, as Moeai rumbled down the sideline to get into the end zone to tie the game at 24.

Defensively, the Utes were pretty feast or famine. They held the Huskies to 385 total yards, with 199 coming on the ground. Utah was having a hard time sealing off the end of the line of scrimmage, as UW’s backs ran into open green time and time again. With that said, they did get to Browning a few times and plant him in the turf.

What does this mean? Frankly, not a ton. Utah is still in control of their destiny, they just need to win the final three games of the season at Arizona State, at home against Oregon and at Colorado. It’s not an easy road, but it’s a winnable road. If Utah does that, they’ll be in Santa Clara in December, and have a ticket to a pretty big bowl game after that.

Next up, a bye week for the Utes, finally, and an opportunity to get healthier for the sprint to the Pac-12 Championship Game.