RSSBot
News Junkie
—
November 25th – at Salt Lake City Utah 34, Colorado 13
—
In a battle between two teams with 5-6 records, Utah became bowl-eligible with a dominating 34-13 victory over Colorado. The Utes sprinted out to a 28-0 halftime lead, never looking back to post a three-touchdown win, the first game between the teams as members of the Pac-12 decided by more than a touchdown.
Zach Moss ran for a career-high 196 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Utes, while Phillip Lindsay closed out his Colorado career with 18 carries for 72 yards and a touchdown.
“(A bowl game is) a big positive. … It beats the alternative”, said Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. “If we’re sitting here at 5-7 and not going, we’re feeling pretty lousy.”
Of course, the loss left Colorado at 5-7 and “feeling pretty lousy”, completing a worst-to-first-to-worst campaign, finishing the 2017 season as the only team in the Pac-12 South not eligible to compete in a bowl game.
—
The first possession of the game went to Utah, with the Utes crossing into Colorado territory before a Drew Lewis sack of quarterback Troy Williams forced a punt.
The Colorado offense, which had two weeks to prepare for the game … promptly went three-and-out.
On Utah’s next opportunity, the Utes took the lead for good. The Utes needed only six plays to cover 73 yards, with Zach Moss taking it in on a 15-yard run with 6:25 to play in the first quarter.
The Buffs did show some life on their next possession, but came up empty. A Phillip Lindsay run of 11 yards on third-and-two gave CU its first first down of the game. Then, after an offensive pass interference call against Jay MacIntyre, Steven Montez ran for 23 yards on a second-and-22 to keep the drive alive. Another 11-yard run by Lindsay gave the Buffs a first down at the Utah 34-yard line. Three incompletions and a missed 51-yard field goal by James Stefanou later, however, the score was still 7-0.
That would change quickly.
It took Utah only four plays to cover 66 yards to give the Utes all of the points they would need in the game. Aided by two 15-yard penalties against the Buff defense – which made up 30 of the necessary 66 yards – Zach Moss scored his second touchdown of the quarter on a two yard run, making it a 14-0 game in the final minute of the first quarter.
After another quick punt from the Buffs, the Utes made the game a rout.
Two passes from Troy Williams to Raelon Singleton – the first going for 14 yards on third-and-11 at the Utah 11; the second going for 40 yards – were the highlights of an 88-yard drive, capped by an eight-yard scoring run by Williams.
Utah 21, Colorado 0. The game was only one-third complete, but it was done.
The teams traded punts for most of the second quarter, before Utah took over at their own 26 with 1:43 to play. Three passes from Williams to former Oregon star wide receiver Darren Carrington, going for 16, nine, and 10 yards quickly moved the ball into Colorado territory. With 23 seconds remaining before the break, Williams scored his second rushing touchdown of the game, taking it in from eight yards out.
Halftime score: Utah 28, Colorado 0
—
The Buff offense, with the season on the line, came out after halftime … and went three-and-out.
The Buff defense did force a punt on the Utes’ first possession, though, giving the CU offense another chance at redemption.
A 21-yards completion from Montez to Jay MacIntyre got the drive started, with a 13-yard run by Phillip Lindsay and a 19-yard completion from Montez to Chris Bounds setting up the Buffs at the Utah six yard line. On the next play, Lindsay took it in, making it a 28-7 game six minutes into the second half.
Utah restored order on its next possession, however, finishing off an 11-play drive with a 37-yard field goal by Matt Gay. Utah 31, Colorado 7.
The Buffs next put together their most complete drive of the game, covering 78 yards in a 13-play drive. A 14-yard Montez to Juwann Winfree connection was followed on the next play by a 28-yard Montez-to-Bryce Bobo pass. Three plays later, the Buffs faced a fourth-and-12 at the Utah 39-yard line. Going for it, Steven Montez again hooked up with Juwann Winfree, this time for 19 yards and a fresh set of downs.
On the next play, Montez was sacked, but again, the Montez-to-Winfree combination worked, this time for 13 yards. Three Steven Montez runs later, the last covering three yards for a touchdown, made it a 31-13 game two plays into the fourth quarter (the two-point conversion attempt failed).
Still time for a Buff comeback?
The CU defense forced a three-and-out from the Utes on their next possession, giving the Buff Nation hope. Taking over after a short punt from Utah All-American Mitch Wishnowsky, the Buffs set up at the Utah 48 yard line.
Down three scores, but with over 13 minutes remaining, the CU offense went to work. Six plays later, which included a 12-yard run by wide receiver K.D. Nixon on a third-and-two, and the Buffs were in business at the Utah 14 yard line. There, however, quarterback Steven Montez was sacked, fumbling the ball away.
The turnover took the steam out of the Buffs, with the Utes putting together a time-consuming drive to put an end to the comeback threat. A 48-yard field goal by Matt Gay with 5:58 remaining iced the game, and ended the scoring.
Final score: Utah 34, Colorado 13
—
The game statistics resembled the final score.
Utah posted 491 yards of total offense, to just 319 for Colorado. The Utes had 29 first downs, and 310 yards rushing. The Buffs, meanwhile, settled for 17 first downs, with only 124 yards on the ground.
Steven Montez went 14-of-28 for 195 yards, while Phillip Lindsay settled for 18 carries for 72 yards in his final game for Colorado.
“We’ll open up every year with the goal to win the Pac-12, if you’re not then you shouldn’t be coaching,” said Mike MacIntyre. “I’ll look at it, I learned it from Bill Parcells not to say anything emotion in the moment, I’ll look at it over the next few weeks, a little over Christmas time, I’ll look at it and make decisions from there.”
“It’s been a long road for us,” said Phillip Lindsay, who closed out his CU career with over two dozen school records, including most all-purpose yards (5,760), most yards gained from the line of scrimmage (4,683), and most receptions by a running back (110). “Everything we went through made us stronger men. You have to get pushed out of the door at some point, this is just our turn. A lot of greats got pushed out the door. It’s just how it goes. Next ones up.”
—
Game Notes …
— The game gave Utah a 5-2 advantage in games played between the two teams as members of the Pac-12, with CU maintaining a 32-29-3 edge overall in the series;
— In addition to the records noted above, Phillip Lindsay also finished his career with the most receiving yards by a running back (976) while also posting the most carries in a season, with 301;
— CU punter Alex Kinney set a new school record for punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, with half (28) of his 56 punts finishing inside the opponent’s 20 (old record: 27, by Darragh O’Neill, 2014);
— Buff placekicker James Stefanou went 35-for-35 on extra points on the season. The only other freshman kicker in CU history to be perfect on every attempt was Pat Blottiaux, who went 7-for-7 in 1988;
— Quarterback Steven Montez finished the year with 3,313 yards of total offense (2,975 passing, 338 rushing), the third 3,000-yard season in CU history (and just behind the record of 3,336 set by Sefo Liufau in 2014).
— The game was the 100th of Mike MacIntyre’s career. MacIntyre finished the game 41-59 overall; 25-28 at Colorado.
–
—–
Stuart
Continue reading...
November 25th – at Salt Lake City Utah 34, Colorado 13
—
In a battle between two teams with 5-6 records, Utah became bowl-eligible with a dominating 34-13 victory over Colorado. The Utes sprinted out to a 28-0 halftime lead, never looking back to post a three-touchdown win, the first game between the teams as members of the Pac-12 decided by more than a touchdown.
Zach Moss ran for a career-high 196 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Utes, while Phillip Lindsay closed out his Colorado career with 18 carries for 72 yards and a touchdown.
“(A bowl game is) a big positive. … It beats the alternative”, said Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. “If we’re sitting here at 5-7 and not going, we’re feeling pretty lousy.”
Of course, the loss left Colorado at 5-7 and “feeling pretty lousy”, completing a worst-to-first-to-worst campaign, finishing the 2017 season as the only team in the Pac-12 South not eligible to compete in a bowl game.
—
The first possession of the game went to Utah, with the Utes crossing into Colorado territory before a Drew Lewis sack of quarterback Troy Williams forced a punt.
The Colorado offense, which had two weeks to prepare for the game … promptly went three-and-out.
On Utah’s next opportunity, the Utes took the lead for good. The Utes needed only six plays to cover 73 yards, with Zach Moss taking it in on a 15-yard run with 6:25 to play in the first quarter.
The Buffs did show some life on their next possession, but came up empty. A Phillip Lindsay run of 11 yards on third-and-two gave CU its first first down of the game. Then, after an offensive pass interference call against Jay MacIntyre, Steven Montez ran for 23 yards on a second-and-22 to keep the drive alive. Another 11-yard run by Lindsay gave the Buffs a first down at the Utah 34-yard line. Three incompletions and a missed 51-yard field goal by James Stefanou later, however, the score was still 7-0.
That would change quickly.
It took Utah only four plays to cover 66 yards to give the Utes all of the points they would need in the game. Aided by two 15-yard penalties against the Buff defense – which made up 30 of the necessary 66 yards – Zach Moss scored his second touchdown of the quarter on a two yard run, making it a 14-0 game in the final minute of the first quarter.
After another quick punt from the Buffs, the Utes made the game a rout.
Two passes from Troy Williams to Raelon Singleton – the first going for 14 yards on third-and-11 at the Utah 11; the second going for 40 yards – were the highlights of an 88-yard drive, capped by an eight-yard scoring run by Williams.
Utah 21, Colorado 0. The game was only one-third complete, but it was done.
The teams traded punts for most of the second quarter, before Utah took over at their own 26 with 1:43 to play. Three passes from Williams to former Oregon star wide receiver Darren Carrington, going for 16, nine, and 10 yards quickly moved the ball into Colorado territory. With 23 seconds remaining before the break, Williams scored his second rushing touchdown of the game, taking it in from eight yards out.
Halftime score: Utah 28, Colorado 0
—
The Buff offense, with the season on the line, came out after halftime … and went three-and-out.
The Buff defense did force a punt on the Utes’ first possession, though, giving the CU offense another chance at redemption.
A 21-yards completion from Montez to Jay MacIntyre got the drive started, with a 13-yard run by Phillip Lindsay and a 19-yard completion from Montez to Chris Bounds setting up the Buffs at the Utah six yard line. On the next play, Lindsay took it in, making it a 28-7 game six minutes into the second half.
Utah restored order on its next possession, however, finishing off an 11-play drive with a 37-yard field goal by Matt Gay. Utah 31, Colorado 7.
The Buffs next put together their most complete drive of the game, covering 78 yards in a 13-play drive. A 14-yard Montez to Juwann Winfree connection was followed on the next play by a 28-yard Montez-to-Bryce Bobo pass. Three plays later, the Buffs faced a fourth-and-12 at the Utah 39-yard line. Going for it, Steven Montez again hooked up with Juwann Winfree, this time for 19 yards and a fresh set of downs.
On the next play, Montez was sacked, but again, the Montez-to-Winfree combination worked, this time for 13 yards. Three Steven Montez runs later, the last covering three yards for a touchdown, made it a 31-13 game two plays into the fourth quarter (the two-point conversion attempt failed).
Still time for a Buff comeback?
The CU defense forced a three-and-out from the Utes on their next possession, giving the Buff Nation hope. Taking over after a short punt from Utah All-American Mitch Wishnowsky, the Buffs set up at the Utah 48 yard line.
Down three scores, but with over 13 minutes remaining, the CU offense went to work. Six plays later, which included a 12-yard run by wide receiver K.D. Nixon on a third-and-two, and the Buffs were in business at the Utah 14 yard line. There, however, quarterback Steven Montez was sacked, fumbling the ball away.
The turnover took the steam out of the Buffs, with the Utes putting together a time-consuming drive to put an end to the comeback threat. A 48-yard field goal by Matt Gay with 5:58 remaining iced the game, and ended the scoring.
Final score: Utah 34, Colorado 13
—
The game statistics resembled the final score.
Utah posted 491 yards of total offense, to just 319 for Colorado. The Utes had 29 first downs, and 310 yards rushing. The Buffs, meanwhile, settled for 17 first downs, with only 124 yards on the ground.
Steven Montez went 14-of-28 for 195 yards, while Phillip Lindsay settled for 18 carries for 72 yards in his final game for Colorado.
“We’ll open up every year with the goal to win the Pac-12, if you’re not then you shouldn’t be coaching,” said Mike MacIntyre. “I’ll look at it, I learned it from Bill Parcells not to say anything emotion in the moment, I’ll look at it over the next few weeks, a little over Christmas time, I’ll look at it and make decisions from there.”
“It’s been a long road for us,” said Phillip Lindsay, who closed out his CU career with over two dozen school records, including most all-purpose yards (5,760), most yards gained from the line of scrimmage (4,683), and most receptions by a running back (110). “Everything we went through made us stronger men. You have to get pushed out of the door at some point, this is just our turn. A lot of greats got pushed out the door. It’s just how it goes. Next ones up.”
—
Game Notes …
— The game gave Utah a 5-2 advantage in games played between the two teams as members of the Pac-12, with CU maintaining a 32-29-3 edge overall in the series;
— In addition to the records noted above, Phillip Lindsay also finished his career with the most receiving yards by a running back (976) while also posting the most carries in a season, with 301;
— CU punter Alex Kinney set a new school record for punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, with half (28) of his 56 punts finishing inside the opponent’s 20 (old record: 27, by Darragh O’Neill, 2014);
— Buff placekicker James Stefanou went 35-for-35 on extra points on the season. The only other freshman kicker in CU history to be perfect on every attempt was Pat Blottiaux, who went 7-for-7 in 1988;
— Quarterback Steven Montez finished the year with 3,313 yards of total offense (2,975 passing, 338 rushing), the third 3,000-yard season in CU history (and just behind the record of 3,336 set by Sefo Liufau in 2014).
— The game was the 100th of Mike MacIntyre’s career. MacIntyre finished the game 41-59 overall; 25-28 at Colorado.
–
—–
Stuart
Continue reading...