2018 Utah Utes football team

2018 Utah Utes football
2018 Utah Utes football
Pac-12 South Division champion
Pac-12 Championship Game, ; L 3–10 vs. Washington
Holiday Bowl, L 20–31 vs. Northwestern
Conference	Pac-12 Conference
	South Division
Record	9–5 (6–3 Pac-12)
Head coach	Kyle Whittingham (14th season);
Offensive coordinator	Troy Taylor (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	West Coast
Defensive coordinator	Morgan Scalley (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Rice–Eccles Stadium
Uniform
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

The 2018 Utah Utes football team represented the University of Utah during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Utes were led by 14th-year head coach Kyle Whittingham and played their home games in Rice–Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT. They were members of the South Division of the Pac-12 Conference.

ConferencePac-12 Conference

South Division

Record9–5 (6–3 Pac-12)

Headcoach

Kyle Whittingham (14th season)

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2018 Pac-12 Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
North Division
No. 13 Washington xy$	7	–	2	10	–	4
No. 10 Washington State x	7	–	2	11	–	2
Stanford	6	–	3	9	–	4
Oregon	5	–	4	9	–	4
California	4	–	5	7	–	6
Oregon State	1	–	8	2	–	10
South Division
Utah xy	6	–	3	9	–	5
Arizona State	5	–	4	7	–	6
USC	4	–	5	5	–	7
Arizona	4	–	5	5	–	7
UCLA	3	–	6	3	–	9
Colorado	2	–	7	5	–	7
Championship: Washington 10, Utah 3
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

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The Utes completed the regular season with a 6–3 record in conference play, winning the South Division for the first time since joining the Pac-12 Conference in 2011. In the Pac-12 Championship Game, the team lost to North Division champion Washington by a score of 10–3. They were invited to the Holiday Bowl to play Big Ten Conference runner-up Northwestern, where the Utes lost by a score of 31–20 to end the year at 9–5 overall.

Utah was led on offense by quarterback Tyler Huntley until he suffered a season-ending collarbone fracture in the game against Arizona State on November 3. Redshirt freshman Jason Shelley started for the rest of the season.^[2] Running back Zack Moss compiled 1,096 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Two members of the Utah offensive line earned first-team all-conference honors, Jordan Agasiva and Jackson Barton. Utah's defense featured four members of the first-team All-Pac-12: defensive linemen Bradlee Anae and Leki Fotu, linebacker Chase Hansen, and cornerback Jaylon Johnson. Hansen led the conference in tackles for loss with 22, and Anae tied for the conference lead in sacks with 8.^[3]

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College recruiting (2018)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Hunter Lotulelei OG	Salt Lake City, Utah	Highland High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	213 lb (97 kg)	Jun 17, 2016
Hunter Lotulelei OG	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jack Tuttle QB	San Marcos, California	Mission Hills High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Dec 16, 2016
Jack Tuttle QB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Malone Mataele DB	Rancho Santa Margarita, California	Santa Margarita Catholic High School	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Apr 21, 2017
Malone Mataele DB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Tevita Fotu TE	Herriman, Utah	Herriman High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Oct 8, 2017
Tevita Fotu TE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Terrell Perriman WR	Miami, Florida	Miami Central High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	176 lb (80 kg)	Nov 3, 2017
Terrell Perriman WR	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Braeden Daniels OL	Carrollton, Texas	Hebron High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	260 lb (120 kg)	Dec 17, 2017
Braeden Daniels OL	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jeremiah Jordan DE	Stone Mountain, Georgia	Mt. San Jacinto College	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Dec 17, 2017
Jeremiah Jordan DE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Bryant Pirtle LB	Louisville, Kentucky	Pima Community College	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Dec 20, 2017
Bryant Pirtle LB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Paul Maile DT	Salt Lake City, Utah	East High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Dec 23, 2017
Paul Maile DT	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Andrew Mataafa LB	San Diego, California	San Diego High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Dec 29, 2017
Andrew Mataafa LB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Vonte Davis CB	Rosenberg, Texas	Blinn College	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Jan 14, 2018
Vonte Davis CB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Blake Kuithe DE	Katy, Texas	Cinco Ranch High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	Jan 14, 2018
Blake Kuithe DE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Brant Kuithe WR	Katy, Texas	Cinco Ranch High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	212 lb (96 kg)	Jan 14, 2018
Brant Kuithe WR	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Jackson Cravens DT	Provo, Utah	Timpview High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	285 lb (129 kg)	Feb 3, 2018
Jackson Cravens DT	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Thomas Yassmin TE	New South Wales, Australia	The Scots College	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	230 lb (100 kg)	Feb 6, 2018
Thomas Yassmin TE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Devin Brumfield RB	Covington, Louisiana	Covington High School	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	219 lb (99 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Devin Brumfield RB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Solomon Enis WR	Phoenix, Arizona	North Canyon High School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Solomon Enis WR	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Simi Moala DE	Hawthorne, California	Cathedral High School	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Simi Moala DE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Mika Tafua DE	Maui, Hawaii	Kamehameha Schools	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Mika Tafua DE	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Tareke Lewis CB	Palatka, Florida	Riverside City College	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Feb 7, 2018
Tareke Lewis CB	Recruit ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Utah Football Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved January 19, 2018. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 19, 2018.

Award	Player	Position	Year
Lott Trophy^[4]	Chase Hansen	LB	SR
Rimington Trophy^[5]	Lo Falemaka	C	SR
Chuck Bednarik Award^[6]	Julian Blackmon	CB	JR
Chuck Bednarik Award^[6]	Bradlee Anae	DE	JR
Maxwell Award^[7]	Zack Moss	RB	JR
Doak Walker Award^[8]	Zack Moss	RB	JR
Bronko Nagurski Trophy^[9]	Julian Blackmon	CB	JR
Outland Trophy^[10]	Lo Falemaka	C	SR
Lou Groza Award^[11]	Matt Gay	K	SR
Ray Guy Award^[12]	Mitch Wishnowsky	P	SR
Wuerffel Trophy^[13]	Chase Hansen	DB	SR
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award^[14]	Tyler Huntley	QB	JR

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	6:00 p.m.	No. 8 (FCS) Weber State*		Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	P12N	W 41–10	45,988
September 8	5:30 p.m.	at Northern Illinois*		Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPNews	W 17–6	16,762
September 15	8:00 p.m.	No. 10 Washington		Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	ESPN	L 7–21	47,445
September 29	4:00 p.m.	at Washington State		Martin Stadium Pullman, WA	P12N	L 24–28	30,088
October 6	8:30 p.m.	at No. 14 Stanford		Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA	ESPN	W 40–21	37,244
October 12	8:00 p.m.	Arizona		Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	ESPN	W 42–10	45,862
October 20	6:00 p.m.	USC		Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	P12N	W 41–28	46,405
October 26	8:30 p.m.	at UCLA	No. 23	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	ESPN	W 41–10	41,848
November 3	2:00 p.m.	at Arizona State	No. 15	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	P12N	L 20–38	46,445
November 10	3:30 p.m.	Oregon		Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	P12N	W 32–25	46,275
November 17	11:30 a.m.	at Colorado	No. 19	Folsom Field Boulder, CO (Rumble in the Rockies)	P12N	W 30–7	39,360
November 24	8:00 p.m.	BYU*	No. 17	Rice–Eccles Stadium Salt Lake City, UT (Holy War/Beehive Boot)	FS1	W 35–27	46,017
November 30	6:00 p.m.	vs. No. 11 Washington	No. 17	Levi's Stadium Santa Clara, CA (Pac-12 Championship Game)	FOX	L 3–10	35,134
December 31	5:00 p.m.	vs. No. 22 Northwestern*	No. 17	SDCCU Stadium San Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl)	FS1	L 20–31	47,007
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after October 30 released prior to game All times are in Mountain time

	1	2	3	4	Total
Utes	0	0	7	10	17
Huskies	3	0	0	3	6

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 10 Huskies	7	7	7	0	21
Utes	7	0	0	0	7

2018 Utah Utes football team

Preseason

Recruits

Award watch lists

Pac-12 media days

Schedule

Game summaries

Weber State

At Northern Illinois

Washington

At Washington State

At Stanford

Arizona

USC

At UCLA

At Arizona State

Oregon

At Colorado

BYU

Vs. Washington (Pac-12 Championship game)

Vs. Northwestern (Holiday Bowl)

Rankings

Players drafted into the NFL

References

Related Articles

Timelines

Top Qs

Fact Checks

2018 Utah Utes football

Pac-12 South Division champion
Pac-12 Championship Game, L 3–10 vs. Washington
Holiday Bowl, L 20–31 vs. Northwestern
Conference	Pac-12 Conference
Division	South Division
Record	9–5 (6–3 Pac-12)
Head coach	Kyle Whittingham (14th season)
Offensive coordinator	Troy Taylor (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	West Coast
Defensive coordinator	Morgan Scalley (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Rice–Eccles Stadium^[1]
Uniform

Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	—	RV	RV	23	16	RV	21	18	17	20	RV
Coaches	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	—	RV	RV	24	16	24	19	17	17	19	RV
CFP	Not released									15	—	19	17	17	17	Not released

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
2	47	Marquise Blair	S	Seattle Seahawks
3	88	Cody Barton	LB	Seattle Seahawks
4	110	Mitch Wishnowsky	P	San Francisco 49ers
5	145	Matt Gay	K	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
7	240	Jackson Barton	OT	Indianapolis Colts

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 23 Utes	3	14	21	3	41
Bruins	7	0	3	0	10

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Utes	0	7	17	6	30
Buffaloes	7	0	0	0	7

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cougars	13	7	7	0	27
No. 18 Utes	0	0	14	21	35