5 keys for the Utes vs. Oregon State


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SALT LAKE CITY — For the Utes, it has nearly been two weeks since Andy Phillips made a 29-yard game winning field goal to push Utah over No. 8 UCLA in the Rose Bowl.

Fresh off a bye week the Utes return to action Thursday night as they travel northwest to take on the Oregon State Beavers in Corvallis.

"We are right about midseason, so we got our legs back underneath of us," Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said regarding the bye week. "We start to get a little leg-weary about midyear, so it came at a good point in time for that. Got some downtime for the guys."

The main concern for Utah is being able to build off of its big win over the Bruins. Last season the Utes upset No. 5 Stanford, only to lose their next five games.

"We have had that conversation, how we didn't capitalize on a big win last year vs. Stanford," Whittingham said. "It's a one game at a time mentality, but we hope to have a better result throughout the second half of the season than we did last year."

Here are five keys for the Utes as they get ready to take on the Beavers:

Keys to the Game: Utes ======================

1\. Get pressure on the quarterback ----------------------------------

It is no secret that Utah's defensive chances in this football game depend on slowing down OSU quarterback Sean Mannion. Mannion passed for 443 yards and five touchdowns in last season's 51-48 overtime Oregon State win over Utah. The Utes lead the nation in total sacks per game, but expect Oregon State to use a lot of max protection packages, leaving eight guys with the sole purpose of blocking for the quarterback with two wide receivers running routes. Can Utah create an interior pass rush to collapse the pocket? Rest assured, don't expect very many three-man rushes like we saw out of the Utes in last season's matchup with the Beavers.

2. Make it easy on third down

Who will start at quarterback for the Utes, Kendal Thompson or Travis Wilson? While the debate has raged on over social media for close to two weeks following the Utes' win over UCLA, it would be pretty surprising if Kendal Thompson isn't the starting quarterback for the Utes when they take on Oregon State. Simply put, he deserves to be rewarded for his play against the Bruins. With that said, expect the Utes to put a strong emphasis on running the football and slowing down the game, similar to what we saw against UCLA. Utah will need to win the first and second down battles to keep the third-down distances managable, even more so now with a run-first style quarterback.

3. Don't be afraid to throw the football with Kendal

Expanding on key 2 will be to keep the game plan in Kendal Thompson's favor. Yes, his strength is his elusiveness, both in scrambling for additional time in the pocket and also in evading defenders for more yards. He runs the zone-read option better than any quarterback on the Ute roster. That said, expect a stacked box for Oregon State, which might limit Utah's success in running the football. Thompson proved that he is a more than adequate passer against UCLA, going 10-13, with two of the incompletions being wide receiver drops. If Oregon State puts eight guys up front to stop the run, trust Kendal to make the throws against one-on-one coverage. If they don't, run the football until they adjust. UCLA never did.

4. Start fast

Utah's offense under Kendal Thompson is built around running the football and shortening the game. It isn't built to come from behind. Utah has trailed for roughly 10 minutes or less of game time this entire season. Starting fast out of the gate with no let-down from the thrilling win over UCLA not only helps the offensive side keep its game plan of running the football, but also aids the defense in making Oregon State depend soley on its passing attack, giving more liberty to Utah's pass rushers.

5. Save the conservative defense for "Slow the Flow"

Utah has gone conservative defensively in its last two games, and one time it cost them with a loss. After building a 21-0 lead against Washington State, Utah's defense went to a three-man front and lost momentum in the game, eventually losing 28-27. Utah built a 24-14 lead against UCLA a week later, only to see the Bruins pull ahead 28-27 in the final minutes before Utah was able to win on a 29-yard field goal. Staying aggressive on defense will be key as Sean Mannion is a more than capable quarterback who will make defenses pay.

Robert Jackson is the cross platform sports and weather producer for ksl.com and KSL-TV. He has covered the Utes for KSL since 2008. You can catch him and co-host Brian Swinney Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7-9 p.m. on the Ute Sports Report 1320 KFAN.

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