Utah Utes football: Wynn sparked offense, but not officially starting

Jordan Wynn made an impact in his collegiate debut. The true freshman quarterbacked the Utes to a pair of touchdown drives in Saturday's 22-10 come-from-behind win over Wyoming at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Wynn replaced starter Terrance Cain when play began in the second half.

"We were looking for a spark and he gave that to us," said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham. "He did a nice job running the offense, very poised. I thought he handled things very well."

Wynn wound up completing 9-of-14 passes for 82 yards and a touchdown. He teamed with Jereme Brooks on a 22-yard scoring strike that put the Utes ahead with 7:35 left to play.

The decision to insert Wynn, who had not taken a single snap in Utah's first seven games, came after an ineffective first half for the offense.

The Utes had trouble finishing drives, converting on just 1-of-6 third-down situations. Cain completed 10-of-13 passes for 121 yards, but was sacked twice and guided the offense to just three points in the first half.

At halftime, the decision was made to give Wynn his first opportunity.

"We just felt it was the right time to give him a chance and see what he could do," Whittingham said while noting that Wynn prepares as if he's the starter each week and puts in hours of film study on his own.

Wynn explained that the coaches have told him all season to "just prepare." It's a message the 19-year-old took seriously.

"I was well-prepared," said Wynn, who acknowledged that redshirting this season was a definitely a possibility. "Obviously it's a little late in the season, but I told them if they want to play me I'm ready to play."

Whittingham said the coaching staff felt the time was right on Saturday. He was pleased with Wynn's poise in the pocket and described him as an incredibly smart football player who reminds him of former Utah quarterback Alex Smith.

Wynn said the transition from the sideline to the field wasn't all that hard.

"I just have the mentality like I'm starting each and every week," he explained. "I just prepare like that. If I get in, I get in. If I don't, I don't."

Now that he has, however, comes the big question. Should he be the starter?

"You've got to ask the coaches that," Wynn said. "That's a tough question."