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The 45-10 Las Vegas Bowl win over Colorado State very well could have been the No. 22 Utah Utes easiest victory of the season.
Junior quarterback Travis Wilson won the game MVP Award, which is quite a change from when he was was benched partway through the season. Wilson accounted for four scores, and looked about as comfortable as he could possibly be. The Utes’ running offense dominated, going for 359 yards, including Wilson running for a season-high 91, so it didn’t really matter that he only had 158 yards passing. Utah’s defense helped out plenty, holding the Rams to just 12 yards rushing and not allowing Colorado State to score after the first quarter.
That the Utes dominated a former Mountain West Conference foe so easily shows how far Utah has come in adapting to Power-Five conference football. When Utah and Colorado expanded the Pac-12 in the summer of 2011, it was expected that those two clubs wouldn’t compete for years. In Colorado’s case, that’s certainly true.
Yet, in Utah’s third conference year, the Utes were mathematically alive to win the Pac-12 South going into November. It was a thoroughly unrealistic chance, but still a chance, and the Utes ought to have a much more realistic chance to win the division next season.
While Wilson and many Utes will return, there is still uncertainty about running back Devontae Booker. The junior ended the season just seven yards away from the Utes’ single-season rushing record and is considering entering the NFL draft. One would like to think that he will wait to see which other running backs declare for the draft before making a decision.
After last season, there were questions about head coach Kyle Whittingham’s job security. Those thoughts seem pretty silly after the Utes came up big winners in Vegas, and the team will ride this momentum heading into 2015.
Alex Drude is a Pac-12 writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Alex_Drude. “Like” him on Facebook and add him to your network on Google+.
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