Morgan Scalley's Utah is becoming the Big 12 team nobody wants to face
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SALT LAKE CITY – By design, Utah's three biggest offensive weapons touch the ball on the very first snap.
The Utes wasted no time making a statement.
By halftime, quarterback Devon Dampier had Arkansas defenders chasing ghosts and Utah had turned Rice-Eccles Stadium into a showcase of everything that makes the program dangerous. By game's end, the No. 20 Utes had rolled to a 43-10 victory and sent a message that the Big 12 is much more than defending champion Texas Tech and No. 15 BYU.
“They had a chip on their shoulder ever since the offseason when people talked about that may be a weak link for the University of Utah,” first-year Utes coach Morgan Scalley told USA TODAY Sports of his team’s physicality. “Obviously (Saturday), it did not prove to be that. We’re going to continue to get better, look at the film, find out what our deficiencies are.
“But, man, did you see guys finishing down the field?”
As Saturday night gave way to Sunday morning and this matchup of first-year head coaches came to a close, one thing was clear: Arkansas faces a long road ahead, while Utah's ceiling appears far higher than many expected.
The Utes boast a dynamic quarterback pairing in Dampier and Byrd Ficklin. Dampier's athleticism and command of the offense are matched by Ficklin's explosiveness as both a runner and passer. And for the Utah traditionalists, former walk-on tight end Noah Bennee led all receivers with 113 yards on four catches.
Defensively, Utah still mirrors its coach, the former hard-hitting safety. The Utes broke up 13 passes, recorded seven tackles for loss and sacked Arkansas quarterbacks four times.
The opening play foreshadowed the entire night. Dampier connected with Ficklin, who lateraled to running back Wayshawn Parker, and 36 yards later Utah was already deep in Arkansas territory. The Razorbacks never found safe harbor after that.
On a night when Utah honored new College Football Hall of Fame inductee Eric Weddle with a place in the program's Ring of Honor and extended its Rice-Eccles Stadium sellout streak to 97 games, the Utes looked as complete as they have in years.
Meanwhile, first-year Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield inherited one of the SEC's most extensive rebuilding projects. Yet even in the conference that insists "It Just Means More," financial advantages and recruiting rankings couldn't mask the gap on the field.
Utah had nine players record receptions of at least 10 yards and four rushers produce runs of 10-plus. The Utes amassed 442 yards on just 60 offensive snaps, scored six touchdowns and added a 2-point conversion from Mana Carvalho. Not a single scoring drive consumed even five minutes.
“A lot of defenses, they get to focus on one guy,” said Dampier, who eclipsed 6,000 career passing yards in this game and amassed 311 total yards with four touchdowns. “’Let’s double this guy. Let’s make the other receivers win the game.’ What else?
“You can’t do that. Everybody’s respectable, everybody’s able to get that ball and do something with it.”
That's exactly the vision offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven has for Utah's attack and exactly why quarterbacks coach Ryan Gunderson embraces the Dampier-Ficklin combination.
Both quarterbacks are frequently on the field together. Both handle the ball. Both are involved in scoring drives.
Just don't expect Utah's coaches to spend much time congratulating themselves for it.
“I don’t know that we sit and pat each other on the back,” Scalley said of the offensive dynamics. “It’s just we try to be as efficient as possible. Creativity's a part of that.
“The handoff-exchange pitch between Dev and Byrd was a pretty cool deal, something we’ve been working on for a bit. But if it doesn’t work, it’s like, ‘You were too cute.’ But it worked, so hooray us. I’m excited.”
Scalley was smiling.
The rest of college football should be paying attention.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Morgan Scalley's Utah is becoming the Big 12 team nobody wants to face
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