Utah Utes football: Big win also comes with a big loss

Utah bounced back from its first loss since 2007 with a decisive 30-14 victory over Louisville at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

"We played our most solid football game of the season, by far," said head coach Kyle Whittingham. "I don't think there's any doubt about that."

The offense, defense and special teams, he added, performed as expected.

It was the unexpected, however, that left Whittingham feeling "bittersweet" about the homecoming victory.

Running back Matt Asiata, the Mountain West Conference's leading rusher, suffered a season-ending knee injury. The senior tore the ACL on his right knee after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter.

"I stood up and my legs went weird," Asiata said. "Then I just walked off."

Injuries, Whittingham acknowledged, are the worst part of the game.

"It breaks your heart when you see a guy like that in that situation," he said while noting that Asiata's injury put a cloud over the win.

Asiata was one of several Utes to get hurt. Left tackle Zane Beadles has a four-inch gash on his left leg; defensive tackle Lei Talamaivao cracked his fibula; safety Joe Dale experienced tightness in his leg muscles; defensive back Lamar Chapman received a hip contusion; and special teams standout Mychal Robinson injured an ankle.

"It jumped on us all at once," Whittingham said. "We had good health."

The Utes also had good spirits in their first outing since having the nation's longest active win streak snapped a week earlier in a 31-24 setback at Oregon.

"We haven't felt a loss in a long time, since '07. It was a gut-wrenching feeling and nobody liked it," said linebacker Kepa Gaison. "We decided as a team we don't want to feel that way again. The only way to get it out of our system was through a win. And that's exactly what we did."

The key, Whittingham explained, was Utah's ability to run the ball (214 yards) and Louisville's inability to do so (80 yards).

Eddie Wide stepped in for the injured Asiata and finished with a game-high 129 yards rushing. Success on the ground opened things up and allowed quarterback Terrance Cain to complete 17-of-22 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 51 yards.

"I really didn't pay too much attention to the stats," Cain said. "... We just tried to come out firing."