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SALT LAKE CITY — It was a recurring theme with head coach Kyle Whittingham and his players following Utah's 30-24 victory over Cal: the game wasn't perfect, but it was still a win.
"I'm really proud of the guys. We knew we were facing a good football team — a really good football team — and a quarterback that might be the best in the country as far as a pocket guy," Whittingham said. "It's great to see your kids with confidence and excitement."
"We pictured it to be a battle, and Cal did a great job of that," quarterback Travis Wilson said.
In some ways, Utah was outmatched against Cal's quarterback Jared Goff. His ability to pick apart even the best defenses is one of many reasons why his talent translates to the next level and why there's so much hype surrounding him. But Utah wasn't concerned that Goff could move the ball at will, which he did. Utah's defense, in particular, stepped up and won the battle to keep the Utes undefeated on the season.
"I had no doubt going into this game," defensive back Marcus Williams, who finished the game with one interception and a fumble recovery, said. "We've got guys, we've got talent, and we were not worried one bit."
The defense picked off Goff five times and forced a sixth turnover on a fumble Saturday night in one of Goff's worst performances at Cal. All six turnovers were needed to keep Cal out of the end zone and from stealing any sort of momentum Utah hoped to establish at home. While it would be easy to say Utah lucked out, that's not the case. The Utes found ways to win throughout the game and never doubted their ability.
"We just do it in practice, and so that's what we do in the game," Williams said.
"We went out there and did what we had to do and got a great team win," senior running back Devontae Booker added.
"My team, we don't feel pressure because we know what type of team we are," defensive back Boobie Hobbs said. "We feel like we're the No. 1 team. We just want to show the world that we can play with the Alabamas the LSUs because we've got the guys and we've got great talent, and putting in a lot of work."
Throughout the remainder of the season, though, it's not a question of if Utah will make mistakes in its final seven games of the regular season, but how the Utes will handle the pressure after their game plan doesn't go exactly as expected. Booker said it's all about Utah keeping the right perspective and settling into its game plan and not worrying about outside factors or issues.
"We go out there and play as a team. Do what we need to do out there and practice all through the week. If you practice perfect, you play perfect," Booker said. "Just go out there and do us. Go out there and have fun and play hard. If something happens, we've all faced adversity, and for us to go out there and overcome that adversity says a lot about us and this team."
Unlike in years past where Utah was close in several games but found a way to lose at the end, this year's team is finding a way to close out the game despite not all facets of the game contributing at full force. The team's maturity and experience playing together has given Utah the edge it needs to continue to be a force for the remainder of the season.
"We have great leadership on this team, and I think those guys do a great job of making sure that we continue to handle our business like we have so far," Whittingham said prior to the Cal game at his weekly press conference. "This team has a maturity about it, which reminds me of the '08 team and the '04 team — same type of maturity, same type of leadership.
"That's where it starts," he added, speaking about needing quality team leaders. "The coach's job is to reinforce that and give the constant reminders of how to operate and what to pay attention to or, in this case, what not to pay attention to."
Reminiscent of Utah's Sugar Bowl season, the team was embroiled in several dogfights and narrowly escaped defeat in all instances, namely against TCU, New Mexico, Oregon State, Air Force and Michigan. The Utes were resilient and came out victors in an undefeated season, setting themselves up for a premier BCS Bowl and talk of the possibility of playing in the national championship game.For Utah, though, it's all about realizing that special teams don't need to be perfect, but they need to believe they are special and can close out games when the pressure increases. If one facet of the game isn't working, the other facets have to pick up the slack. Few games are going to be executed as effectively as when Utah played Oregon. Most games will be similar to that of the Cal game, especially in the Pac-12, where home-field advantage is not necessarily a guarantee.
No team is free of adversity or struggles in its own play. Looking at other Top 5 programs, few are free of playing poorly in one or more facets of a game. Current No. 1 Ohio State hasn't been gifted wins this season and will likely have more dogfights along the way. No. 3 TCU has had to rally against Texas Tech and Kansas State the last few weeks to escape with a win.
Does that exclude any of these programs from being a top-tier program? No. It's a reason so few teams finish the season undefeated. No team finishes without battle scars proving its mettle. Often those dogfights throughout the season define a team for the good and help teams improve and get better, so Utah should chalk it up for a win in the improving column.
Utah will remain a favored team because it has the elements and potential to dominate, as seen in the five previous victories. The recipe is there, it's just a matter of putting it together at the right time and picking up where other areas are lacking. If handled properly, Utah could be up for another one of those special seasons.
