As injuries continue to mount, Whittingham looks for continuity to help Utes

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah defensive end Logan Fano quickly got off his block and blitzed his way to Oregon State backup quarterback Aidan Chiles on a first-down play early in the second quarter Friday night in Corvallis, Oregon.

The routine move from one of Utah's most explosive edge players was nothing unusual in his pursuit of an opposing quarterback, but after twisting Chiles to the ground for a 9-yard sack, the redshirt freshman immediately grabbed his left knee as teammates quickly surrounded him.

Fano tried to walk it off but couldn't go more than a step before dropping to the ground while still holding his knee in obvious discomfort.

Anyone that has watched football for long knew exactly what the injury was before Fano was even taken to the team's medical tent and then later on crutches to the locker room. There was no delaying the inevitable confirmation of a torn ACL, Utah's second official season-ending injury for the team this season.

Fano later confirmed on X, formerly Twitter, days later that he had indeed torn his ACL and would miss the remainder of the season.

"How many people can say they got a sack and tore their ACL at the same time?! 😂😂 I know I'm finally where I'm supposed to be here in Salt Lake and I'm excited to attack this rehab process again," Fano said. "I can't wait to get right and play in front of the best fans in the WORLD again."

Minutes after his injury, Fano's younger brother, Spencer, needed the attention of the medical staff for an apparent ankle injury. The younger Fano, after also being evaluated in the team's medical tent, fortunately returned to the field.

To add to the chaos of the night, backup quarterback Bryson Barnes left the game after he was speared during a play. He was eventually taken to the hospital that night — he was, however, cleared to fly home with the team — and backup running back Charlie Vincent left the game early for an apparent ankle injury.

It was all just another blow to a team that has suffered its unfair share of injuries this season — a situation Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham described as "unique." The running tally seems to never end in an unprecedented season for the Utes.

Of the NCAA-allowed 85 scholarship players on the roster, approximately 28% have missed at least some time this season (or have yet to play) for Utah. To further solidify the dire situation Utah has encountered, approximately 59% of the team's starters and approximately 48% of the team's two-deep roster has missed time for the 2023 season.

Those are approximate figures because Whittingham doesn't openly discuss injuries, though it's becoming more difficult for the seasoned coach to avoid the subject altogether given the sheer number of injuries encountered this season.

"As far as losing guys and having to plug in new people, and waiting on your quarterback every week is very unique," Whittingham said ahead of the team's much-needed bye week. 'And so we're just trying to navigate it the best we can."

Utah has managed a 4-1 record on the season, including three wins over Power Five competition, but the offense has suffered drastically over that time with inconsistent play and anemic production, largely due to the turnstile approach at the various positions along the offensive side of the ball.

And though Utah can count at least 14 different players on the offensive side of the ball that have missed time due to injury this season, Whittingham isn't ready to fully embrace injuries as the sole reason for the team's struggles — even if it's becoming more and more difficult to avoid it as a bona fide reason.

"Got to coach it better, got to put our guys in a position to succeed better, got to have better execution," Whittingham said. "I mean, it's across the board. There really isn't any one thing that — I wish it was just one thing, but it's more than one thing, so we've got to get it figured out in a short period of time."

For the second-longest tenured coach in the country, the focus during the bye week is finding some continuity on offense. Some of that may include changing up some of the team's strategies or schemes, but it's more about making sure everything in consistent and comfortable for the team — for whoever is on the field.

That includes finding out earlier in the week (as opposed to later) who the starting quarterback will be. For two weeks in a row, Cam Rising hasn't been cleared by his doctor in California late into the week, leaving Utah little time to fully game plan with Nate Johnson under center.

"I mean, you don't completely overhaul things, but you tweak things and try to figure out what your your best call sheet is for the quarterback that's going to be played," Whittingham said. "We hope to know early next week, rather than later, what the situation is. I think one of the problems is, we've been waiting till the end of the week, and we're going to get an answer early in the next week as to who's going to go."

"We hope it will solve a lot, but we'll have to see," he added. "We're just taking it day-by-day-by-day."

At this point, it's the best Utah can do in an ever-changing landscape.

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