Utah Utes football notebook: Jordan Wynn wins MWC player of the week

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn has earned his second career Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Week award. The sophomore completed 23-of-29 passes for 321 yards and three touchdowns in the Utes' 59-6 win over Colorado State.

"I felt I played pretty solid Saturday night," said Wynn, who bounced back after a three-interception performance at Wyoming a week earlier. "I took care of the football. That was my main focus. So I went out and did that. I'm just grateful I got another player of the week."

The Utes have now won eight MWC weekly awards this season.

SAFE BET: Utah coach Kyle Whittingham is expecting more of the same when it comes to the series with Air Force. The last seven games played in Colorado have been decided by seven points or less, including a triple-overtime thriller in 2003.

"This will be a typical Air Force-Utah match-up in my opinion," Whittingham said. "It's been a great series through the years, a lot of close ball games, and I really expect this year to be no different."

GROUND GAME CLASH: Something's got to give Saturday when the nation's top rushing team takes on one of the highest-ranked run defenses in the country. Air Force averages 326.5 yards on the ground, while Utah gives up just 87.4 per game.

Defensive end Christian Cox said the Utes will be up for the challenge. They held Colorado State to only 28 yards on 26 carries last week.

"I think from week-to-week we've locked it down even further. I think Saturday was our best defensive day against the run in a while," Cox said. "So we're excited to go play the option."

INJURY UPDATE: Whittingham confirmed that senior tight end Brad Clifford, who missed the CSU game with a shoulder injury, is still sidelined and will not play at Air Force. Freshman tight end Westlee Tonga will miss 2-3 weeks with a sore knee and defensive back Wykie Freeman is out indefinitely with a leg injury.

EXTRA POINTS: Senior Shaky Smithson leads the nation in four punt return categories. ... Kicker Joe Phillips is tied for the longest active run of field goals made with 18. ... The Utes are 7-0 for the third time in seven seasons. The other two ended with a BCS-bowl bid and an unblemished record.

e-mail: dirk@desnews.com