Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- After a great performance by the defense last week against the Pittsburgh Panthers, the University of Utah struggled against the California Golden Bears, losing 34-10 in a lopsided defeat.
Quarterback: D-
Jon Hays is not the answer to Utah's quarterback dilemma. Unfortunately, there is no answer for the Utes, who will look to overcome this problem with the remainder of the season. Hays ended the day with three interceptions, one fumble and went 12-of-24 for 138 yards. Many of his passes were under thrown or were thrown into horrible coverage. When Hays throws the ball, it is hard to do anything but cringe, providing little relief to the Utah offense.
The only reason Hays does not fail as a quarterback is because he kept fighting after being knocked down time and time again.
Running Backs/Full Backs: D+
White fought as hard as he could, but it wasn't good enough against a tough Pac-12 defense. White has done well in all of his non-conference games this year, but has struggled to get the ball moving in conference play. It doesn't help that an opposing team knows the ball will go to White on almost every play. Credit must be given to a guy that is working hard to make something happen, but hard work hasn't helped the team get points.
Wide Receiver/Tight End: D
With DeVonte Christopher missing the last two games, the Utah offense has definitely missed his ability to pull down the ball. There was little action from the wide receivers against Cal, except for Reggie Dunn, who worked hard on special teams to give the Utes good field position.
Offensive Line: D-
The Utes offensive line is undisciplined and needs work. In the last two games, Hays has been sacked a total of 10 times, with four sacks coming against the Bears. There is little protection provided for Hays, with players missing tackles and missing assignments. Additionally, penalties from offensive line players has killed the Utes offense. Although the penalties were not as bad against Cal, it is still an area of much needed improvement.
Overall Offense: D
With 35 total yards of offense in the first half, it is needless to say but the offense struggled. The defense can only keep a team in the game for so long before the offense has to put points on the board to actually win the game. Utah will continue to struggle against the remainder of the season if offensive production cannot improve.
Defensive Line: B-
The defensive line was tough and did a decent job of trying to keep the Utes in the game. Their performance wasn't as good as it was last week against Pitt, but there isn't much improvement needed for the defensive line. However, the team does need more time to rest. They looked tired early, which caused the game to get out of hand.
Linebackers: A-
Once again, it is hard to fault the linebackers, who looked to stop Utahn Isi Sofele from picking up yards. Utah linebackers have been done a great job this year of stepping it up for the defense. Despite the 384 yards of offense for the Bears, the linebackers held all players under 100 rushing yards.
Defensive Backs: C
The passing game is what hurt the Utah defense the most. Zach Maynard threw for 255 yards, with several players getting the ball. The Utes secondary is good, but there needs to be some more improvement with the overall production.
Overall Defense: B-
The defense did the best it could, providing the poor offense from its team. It wasn't the best defensive production from a good defensive team, but it wasn't the worst. There are always areas to work on, but the defense continues to do its job. Allowing 34 points isn't a positive aspect, but it's likely the team is worn down from the continuous playing time.
Special Teams: A
After last week's letdown against Pitt, Utah's special teams didn't have any errors. Reggie Dunn did everything he could to help the Utes have good field position, breaking tackles on kick returns for good yardage. Additionally, Sean Sellwood got a chance at quarterback, converting a pass on a faked punt for a first down.
Overall Team: D+
Utah will look to forget Saturday's game against Cal. The offense was poor, to say the least, and the defense has been better. Additionally, four turnovers from Hays does not help a struggling team win.
*Email: jfurlong@ksl.com*Twitter: @JFurKSL
