Utes want to sideline option

As far as Utah coach Kyle Whittingham is concerned, the best defense against Air Force is a good offense.

"The best way to handle, or have a chance to beat Air Force, is to keep that option attack on their sidelines with your offense out controlling the football," Whittingham said as the Utes gear up for Saturday's game with the Falcons.

Controlling the tempo, he added, is of extreme importance.

"I think that's going to be the key," Whittingham said. "Anytime you've got their option attack on the sidelines then it's not doing anything, obviously."

Keeping Air Force's offense off the field won't be easy. The Falcons lead the Mountain West Conference and rank third in the nation in time of possession, averaging 33:35 per game. They also rate among the country's leaders in third-down conversions (57.5 percent).

Utah hopes to counter the numbers by scoring early and often. Air Force's offense, Whittingham said, isn't as effective when trailing.

The Utes, who are 5-0 when scoring first this season, racked up a season-high 526 yards of total offense in last week's 35-22 victory over Colorado State. Mass contributions led to 26 first downs and 205 yards rushing.

The latter, Whittingham explained, would be nice to duplicate Saturday in Colorado Springs.

"If you're talking about the exact recipe to try and have a chance to win, 200-plus yards rushing is a good place to start," he said.

Utah's offense has played well in consecutive wins over UNLV and CSU. Whittingham said a combination of factors have played into the success. The variables include solid play by the offensive line, efficiency in the running game, quarterback Brett Ratliff's decisionmaking and accuracy, as well as the receiving corps making strides.

Ratliff said the vast contributions have helped him a lot. Continued success will make it easier to execute Utah's game plan at Air Force.

"It's always important to give the defense a break. In the games we've lost, it's because the offense wasn't on the field enough. The defense was on the field too much," Ratliff said. "We made them have to do too much when we turned the ball over or whatever. The offense has just got to step up, do our part and put points on the board."

The Utes don't necessarily need to rush for 200 yards, he noted, they just need to be successful and efficient — good passing opens up the run and vice-versa.