Coach Kyle Whittingham had to field several questions about "ball security" at Monday's press conference and he said he and his staff are doing everything they can to solve the problem. On Saturday, the Utes fumbled six times and lost two of them.

One player that helped make the problem not as bad as it could have been was Eddie Wide, who picked up two of the fumbles and turned them into long gains, including a 44-yard TD run.

Wide said he tries to have an "awareness" of where the ball is at all times, but admits luck is also involved.

"I just like turned around the ball was right there on the second one," Wide said of the third-quarter fumble he picked up and gained 13 yards.

As for the first-quarter fumble he picked up and ran for a score, he said, "I was just lucky, because it just bounced into my hands. It was more of a reaction thing, and I didn't see anyone in front of me."

MORE WIDE: With five regular-season games left, Wide is well on his way to becoming Utah's 11th 1,000-yard runner for a season if he stays healthy.

Wide has had four 100-yard games in a row and has 529 yards on the season. He also leads the MWC in yards per carry at 6.1 and is tied for fourth in scoring with six touchdowns.

MWC POW: Ute punter Sean Sellwood was named the Mountain West Conference Special Teams player of the week. He is Utah's second POW of the season, joining Robert Johnson, who got the award two weeks ago.

The freshman from Judge Memorial High School punted eight times for an average of 48.1 yards per kick, including two inside the 10-yard line.

For the season, Sellwood is averaging 43.1 yards per punt with a long of 63 and eight inside the 20.

INJURY REPORT: Things are looking up for the Utes in the injury department with the return this week of three players that have been each been out for more than a couple of games.

Defensive tackle Lei Talamaivao, who has been out for three weeks, offensive guard Walter Watts, who has missed three games and Shaky Smithson, who has been out the past two games, are all returning.

Kenape Eliapo, who started the first six games at nose tackle and missed last week with an eye problem, is questionable this week and freshman David Kruger may get his second start.

EXTRA POINTS: Saturday's game against Wyoming, which starts at 6 p.m., will be the second annual "Blackout Game" with the Utes wearing black and the fans encouraged to wear black … Over the past two seasons, Utah has outscored Wyoming 90-7 … Utah's best national statistical ranking is No. 8 in passing defense, as the Utes are holding opponents to 160.4 yards per game. Among individuals, safety Robert Johnson is tied for third in interceptions with 0.71 per game, while David Reed is 10th in receiving yards per game with 99.3.

e-mail: sor@desnews.com