SALT LAKE CITY - Utah (5-4, 2-4 Pac-12) hosts UCLA (5-4, 4-2 Pac-12) on Saturday, Nov. 12. Kickoff is 4:30 p.m. MST in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The game will be televised on KJZZ TV and Prime Ticket. The game will also be streamed live on UtahUtes.com. Radio is ESPN700 AM (espn700sports.com), SIRIUS (139) and XM (196).

Utah has won three of its last four games, beating Pittsburgh, Oregon State and Arizona and losing to Cal.

Utah (5-4) at UCLA (5-4)

Game 10 Notes

• Utah (5-4, 2-4 Pac-12) vs. UCLA (5-4, 4-2 Pac-12)
• Date: Saturday, Nov. 12, 2011
• Time: 4:30 p.m. MST
• Site: Rice-Eccles Stadium - Salt Lake City, Utah
• TV: KJZZ, Prime Ticket
• Radio: ESPN700, SIRIUS 139/XM 196
• Series Record: UCLA leads 8-1
• Last Meeting: 2007 (Utah 44-6)
• Kickoff Weather: Mostly cloudy, temps in the upper 40s

Series Snapshot ...
Utah lost the first eight games to UCLA before upsetting the No. 11-ranked Bruins in 2007. UCLA leads the series 8-1 overall and 3-1 in Salt Lake City, where the Bruins won in 1960, 1962 and 1974.

Utah has won back-to-back Pac-12 games against Oregon State (at home) and Arizona (in Tucson).

Utah needs to win one of its last three games to become bowl eligible. Utah has played in a bowl game for the past eight seasons (and nine of the last 11), including six postseason appearances under head coach Kyle Whittingham.

Utah trails the series with UCLA 8-1, but has the most recent win. On Sept. 15, 2007, with Tommy Grady starting in place of injured Brian Johnson, Utah upset the No. 11-ranked Bruins 44-6 in Rice-Eccles Stadium.

UCLA leads the series 3-1 in Salt Lake City, winning in 1960, 1962 and 1974, but is 0-1 in Rice-Eccles Stadium (2007).

The theme for the game is "Salute America" and the Utah coaches, band, cheerleaders and dance team will wear a special patch in honor of the 70th anniversary of the Tuskegee Airmen, who in World War II were the first African-American military aviators in the United States armed forces.

After playing on the road in three of the last four weeks, two of Utah's final three regular season games will be played in Salt Lake City (vs. UCLA on Nov. 12 and Colorado on Nov. 25).

CONNECTIONS
Utah offensive coordinator Norm Chow served in the same role at UCLA from 2008-10 ... Utah freshman receiver Dres Anderson's father Willie "Flipper" Anderson lettered at UCLA from 1984-87 before embarking on a 10-year NFL career. Dres Anderson has played in all nine games (starting four) for Utah this season and has 21 receptions for 308 yards (14.7 average) and three touchdowns ... Utah offensive graduate assistant Chris Polizzi was an intern with the UCLA football program in 2009 and 2010. Polizzi helps coach the Ute tight ends ... Kyle Whittingham is 1-1 against UCLA, with a loss in the Rose Bowl in the 2006 season opener (31-10) and a win against the No. 11-ranked Bruins in 2007 (44-6).

INSIDE THE HUDDLE
Utah came out of the Arizona game injury free. The Utes have lost seven players for the season to injury, including starting quarterback Jordan Wynn (shoulder surgery Oct. 20), co-starting fullback/tight end Dallin Rogers (knee), co-starting safety Keith McGill (shoulder surgery Oct. 20), co-starting offensive guard Latu Heimuli (foot), starting punt returner Charles Henderson (knee) and frequently-used backup linebackers Boo Andersen (knee surgery Oct. 31) and J.J. Williams (foot) ... Utah has played five true freshmen this season: safety Eric Rowe, defensive end Nate Fakahafua, running back Harvey Langi, receiver/punt returner Henderson and receiver Quinton Pedroza.

OUTSIDE THE LINES
About 200 tickets remain for the UCLA game. Utah has sold out all 10 games in Rice-Eccles Stadium in the last two seasons ... At halftime, there will be a red, white and blue balloon release and the Utah marching band will perform a special salute to the armed forces.

U-TWEETS
The Utes are 5-0 in games when they lead after three quarters ... Utah is winning the scoring battle in every quarter except the third ... The Utes are 5-1 when they score first ... The Utes are also 5-1 when they out-rush the opponent ... Kyle Whittingham improved to 3-0 against Arizona with last week's win ... The Utes have blocked three punts and one blocked field goal this season.

DEFENSIVE DIAMONDS
Utah ranks second in the Pac-12 and 10th in the NCAA in rushing defense (95.44) ... Utah has held five of its nine opponents to under 100 net rushing yards: BYU (11), Oregon State (32), Pittsburgh (70), Arizona State (74), Montana State (75) ... The Utes also rank second in the league in scoring defense (20.67/25th NCAA), pass efficiency defense (117.06/27th NCAA), red zone defense (17-of-25, 68%/T-5th NCAA), opponent fourth-down conversions (4-of-15, 26.7%/T-7th NCAA), turnovers gained (23/T-9th NCAA), interceptions (12/T-15th NCAA), and fumbles recovered (11/T-13th NCAA) ... Utah is third in the league in total defense (340.2/29th NCAA), turnover margin (18 lost, 23 gained, 0.56/27th NCAA) and sacks (2.8/T-17th NCAA).

LAST WEEK
John White rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the 11th player in school history to gain 1,000 yards in a season, to lead Utah past Arizona 34-21. Utah won the turnover battle 3-0 and the Ute defense created back-to-back takeaways in the fourth quarter. The second occurred on first and goal on the Utah 2-yard line and the Utes clinging to a 27-14 lead, when Conroy Black intercepted a pass in the end zone and returned it 57 yards. Black's return set the stage for Utah's game-clinching drive, which culminated with an 11-yard touchdown run by White with 2:50 remaining. Greg Bird blocked two punts and Matt Martinez made an interception to go with his team-leading eight tackles. Jon Hays tied his career high by passing for 199 yards--79 of those to DeVonte Christopher.

Quotes from Kyle Whittingham's Weekly Press Conference

It was good to get the first Pac-12 road victory of the year. I thought we played fairly well in all three phases. We had a good performance on offense. John White went over 100 yards and Hays threw very efficiently and made good decisions, and I thought the line played well. The defense was a little soft - it wasn't their best performance. They were softer than usual in the run game. The last drive was disappointing. Their final touchdown was inconsequential to the outcome, but we still should have found a way out of the drive. We had a couple of ignorant penalties. Overall against a high-powered offense I think we faired ok. Special teams blocked two punts and had some nice returns and stopped a fake field goal. The only downside is that we were 2-for-4 in field goals. We missed a couple of 40-plus yarders. We really needed one of those in the second half to make it a three-score differential, but we couldn't do it.

UCLA is a hot team right now. They are in the thick of the race at 4-2 and tied for first. They are coming off a nice win against Arizona State. They're starting to play well and gaining confidence, so it will be a good test for our football team when the Bruins come to town on Saturday.

On Norm Chow's familiarity with UCLA:
We are obviously pleased to have him on our staff; we hired him for what he brings to the table. I think the advantage or disadvantage is a wash. There's no advantage to either team with Norm having insight and knowledge into their program, but them also knowing Norm. I don't think that will play into it at all. I think they've changed both coordinators, so I don't see that as an advantage one way or another.

On Conroy Black's pass interference against Arizona:
It could have gone either way. I never want to complain about the refs, but I see where they could have called it. I wouldn't have. I'm a defensive guy at heart so I'm a little biased, but it was nice to see him come back and make the play of the game. Conroy intercepts it and we end up scoring on that drive to put the game away. That was the biggest single play of the game.

On John White reaching 1,000 yards rushing:
He's been a big part of our success. When he goes over 100 yards, we win, and when he doesn't, we've lost. Reaching 1,000 yards is a milestone and a benchmark, and to be a 1,000-yard back is a great honor, particularly in a conference like the Pac-12. There are a lot of reasons for him and the football team to be proud of what he's accomplished.

On the offensive line:
They deserve a lot of credit. It's a cliché that everyone says they never get enough respect, and that's true. They've done a nice job, particularly the last few weeks protecting Hays and opening holes for John White. That's a credit to Tony Bergstrom and John Cullen, who are the senior leaders of the group, and the guys inside - Tevita Stevens, Sam Brenner and Miles Mason. Give credit to what they're doing with their work ethic and prep and all that goes into it.

On the team's energy and passion:
A lack of that showed up in the Cal game, and it had not shown up in previous games. We have gotten beat, but it hasn't been for a lack of passion. Coming off the Pitt win that had a lot of passion, the lack of it just showed up at Cal. I met with seniors and juniors and that was a common thread. We were flat and not in the right frame of mind and that's something we can fix. We made a commitment to play with a great deal of passion and energy and we did that against Oregon State and Arizona. It was missing in the Cal game, which was our poorest game of the year.

Related topics