SALT LAKE CITY — Anyone watching Saturday night knew that Utah’s backup quarterback Kendal Thompson brought a much-needed spark to an offense that struggled to get any momentum in a big game for the program.

The decision, though, was one that will have implications for Utah’s future success as a team and will dictate the style of offense that head coach Kyle Whittingham plans to run in the team’s remaining seven games of the season.

While it would be easy to say that Thompson should be named the starter based on his performance against UCLA, the transition to switching a starting quarterback is a difficult road to travel, particularly when the potential benefits are still unknown. And that’s something Whittingham will weigh before changing out quarterbacks after one performance.

Whittingham is expected to name a starting quarterback Monday, but that decision will likely be a fluid, unsteady decision as the season progresses. The ultimate decision Whittingham and his staff have to make, though, is which of the two quarterbacks gives the team the best opportunity to win and get the most out of the offense.

On Saturday, Thompson was the best option in a run-heavy scheme. He brought an immediate spark to the offense, with the help of running back Devontae Booker, and finished the game with a quarterback rating of 163.7, going 10-of-13 for 95 yards and one touchdown. Thompson also had 83 rushing yards on 19 carries.

“We had had that discussion all week long, with Kendal and Travis, that maybe early in the game we’ll give Kendal a shot and see what happens if it felt like the right thing to do,” Whittingham said following Utah’s win over UCLA. “It was no surprise. Kendal came in and did a nice job, was moving the team, taking care of the football, and it was our judgment as coaches to stick with it and continue with it throughout the game with that change up.”

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“I didn’t know when (I would play), but depending on how the game goes, coach tries to use me to switch things up,” Thompson said. “And the way today went our line was getting a good push up front with the run game. That was kinda the factor that went into it.”

Prior to the season, Whittingham said he would not run a two-quarterback system. In fact, he said he hated the idea. But Whittingham followed that up saying Thompson had done enough in fall camp to earn minutes in seemingly every game of the season. The decision of when to play Thompson, though, was left to an in-game situational analysis by the coaching staff.

Thompson brings a run-heavy offense, relying on his ability to use his feet in crunch situations and that of a talented Booker, who finished Saturday’s game with 156 rushing yards and one touchdown on 33 carries, to get the offense moving. But Thompson is not a drop-back quarterback that utilizes his receivers as much as Wilson can if given the opportunity, at least not from what has been showcased in five games.

In back-to-back weeks, the receiving unit has been silent, except for a 42-yard catch by Dres Anderson for a touchdown against UCLA. Although Utah is deep at talented, multi-faceted receivers, Anderson, Kenneth Scott, Kaelin Clay, Tim Patrick and Westlee Tonga have been shut down and have produced little as a result of dropped passes or just their inability to get to the ball.

In terms of passing, Wilson is seen as the best option as the quarterback that could complete the most passes and hit a receiver in stride on a deep route, according to fall camp statements made by Whittingham. Wilson also has the in-game repetition and field vision to seemingly give him an advantage over Thompson. But with the receiving unit essentially absent the last two weeks, Wilson’s game and effectiveness takes a back seat.

Under the previous model of little production from the receivers, the playbook becomes extremely simple, with only Booker (or any other back) as the go-to offensive option.

To Thompson’s credit, he also completes the high-percentage passes with relative ease, but also has the ability to scramble out of the pocket more effectively than Wilson in many situations. Having Thompson under center keeps opposing defenses honest as they’re forced to acknowledge the talent in all aspects of the game.

“His ability to extend the play, when you’re talking about the throwing game — escape, get out of the pocket, move around and allow guys time to get open — is very good,” Whittingham said. “Also the QB run game, the pure run game, off the zone read and just the dialed up pure Q run read, that is his strength.”

"I think the other guy (Travis Wilson) is a good runner, but this guy (Kendal Thompson) is a more agile, faster runner," UCLA head coach Jim Mora said after the game. "He is probably a little more nifty. He doesn't throw the ball quite as well, but he runs the ball well."

But does one good game by Thompson merit the benching of a starting quarterback who hasn’t necessarily done too much wrong in the situations he’s been presented? Wilson has had his struggles, but play calling, offensive line play and receivers dropping passes don’t favor the starter.

Fortunately for Utah’s coaching staff, they have nearly two weeks to figure out what to do on offense.

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