Utah Utes football notebook: Jordan Wynn says confidence returning

SALT LAKE CITY — Jordan Wynn is doing just fine, thank you.

Utah's starting quarterback insists he weathered the storm of last week's roller-coaster performance against BYU well.

"I'm fine. I feel good," Wynn said of his confidence as the Utes returned to the practice field. "I'm ready for the bowl game."

Wynn, who was benched for two series midway through the 17-16 win over the Cougars, completed just 13-of-30 passes for 199 yards last Saturday.

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham noted that Wynn's mindset appeared to be pretty good.

"He had a strong finish to the game," Whittingham said. "He came back in and responded well and he seems to be in a good frame of mind."

And a determined one at that.

Wynn acknowledged that bowl preparation has come at a good time, allowing ample opportunity for himself and the offense to improve.

"I have a lot of time until we play another game," Wynn said. "So I've just got to get better and have fun."

THAT WAS THEN: Whittingham was reminded about comments he made several years ago about the best place to see Las Vegas was in a rear-view mirror.

"That's when I was young and stupid. Now I'm old and stupid," he said. "So we'll just leave that on the back burner."

INJURY UPDATE: With the exception of starting left tackle John Cullen, who is out with a forearm injury, the Utes anticipate having everyone who was hurt in the BYU game back for the bowl game. Whittingham said that sophomore Sam Brenner, who stepped in for Cullen, will most likely assume the starting role.

A bunch of other guys, because of wear and tear during the season, are getting some rest during the three practices this week.

STILL SMILING: When asked if the Utes were still riding the euphoria of winning the rivalry game, senior captain Christian Cox said it'll continue all year long. Check that — forever.

"That was magical," Cox said while noting it was his last game at Rice-Eccles Stadium and reflecting on how the Utes stepped up and scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to get it done. "It was fun."

e-mail: dirk@desnews.com