Utah Utes football: Cain, teammates pleased with his performance

Terrance Cain's debut as Utah's starting quarterback drew rave reviews from his teammates.

"He made a lot of good choices and will be a very good player for us in the future," said wide receiver David Reed, who finished with a game-high 10 receptions for 172 yards and a touchdown.

Running back Matt Asiata, who rushed for a game-high 156 yards and two scores, was equally impressed.

"He did a really good job with the first D-1 game," he said. "I give it all to him."

Cain wound up completing 20-of-30 passes for 286 yards and a pair of touchdowns in 19th-ranked Utah's 35-17 season-opening win over Utah State Thursday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

"I was just trying to get the ball to the playmakers. Asiata runs hard and I have great receivers," Cain said. "They were in man-to-man coverage the whole time, so I knew we would have opportunities. We just have to stop turning the ball over."

Although the Utes racked up 519 yards of total offense in the opener, they did lose two fumbles and were intercepted once.

Eliminating turnovers, Cain said, topped his list of things to work on as Utah prepares to visit San Jose State next Saturday. He'd also like to push the tempo a little harder.

"I know I can play a lot better, but I gave a good effort," Cain said.

"The team played hard and made a lot of plays. The offense did a great job pushing the tempo and making the other team tired."

Utah's offense averaged 70 plays last season. The Utes ran 80 against USU.

"The offense had success moving the ball," Whittingham said. "We got a lot of production from a lot of different players."

Of the six players who made their first career starts Thursday, four were on offense — Cain, Reed, wide receiver Aiona Key and right guard Walter Watts.

Cain, though, drew the most attention after his battle with Jordan Wynn for the starting job. Cain said he was told the job was his on Tuesday.

The junior-college transfer from Texas responded with an impressive start. He completed his first seven passes en route to leading the Utes past the Aggies.

Utah's defense and special teams units also made significant contributions in extending the nation's longest win streak to 15 games.