Here is a quote from the Ann Arbor Newspaper. I thought the readers might like to see it before the blue bloods down in Utah County start to slam the Utes again

Now that Carr's gone, our season-starting troubles are hopefully over. Still, the coming season might not start as easily as some are expecting. Don't forget, Utah beat UCLA and Louisville last year, finished the season with a seven-game win streak and has gone 3-0 in bowl games since Kyle Whittingham took over as coach. Our defense will prove superior to Utah's offense, but Utah's defense is not to be overlooked.

This is more of a reality check than the brethern of unchristian comments would want to consider.

Utes will do well this year! I can't wait for the first game!

They forgot to mention how many MWC championships Utah has won since Kyle took over as head coach.

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Utah's defense should be able to handle Michigan's offense; the big question is whether Utah's offense can score on Michigan's defense.

Bad sign: If Utah gets early chances to score and settles for field goals instead of touchdowns.

Where was the defense while all this was going on? Sounds like the offense pretty much had their way with them. Oh well, so much for the fear of Utah's defense expressed in the Ann Arbor News.

you never know what to make of these stories. same with the cougs' dud article. deep down teammates don't like to pound on each other b/c they know if they hurt someone their team is hurt. it's not until the real game against michigan that they truly let it all out in a sense. even then it's not until the holy war that all everything lets loose at full speed and emotion. so probably not to learn from these articles. Utah has the best defense in the nation and yet Johnson is throwing TD's on them? doesn't make sense b/c the offense is certainly not the best. so it's a lot of role playing going on right now.

Big Hit, and BJ is out for the year. This is football and he has proven he can't take a hit. When he goes down so do the Eweetes...

If the Utes have any chance of winning, it better be a low scoring game, 20-17 game or something close to that. Instead of scoring quickly, Utah needs to control the clock on offense. This will enable the defense to rest and still have the energy to take on Michigan's superior athletes and depth. If Utah's offense can't control the ball, it could be a long day.

Utah just needs to score, whenever and however they can, period.

Whether that's quickly or slowly will depend on what Michigan's defense gives them. If Utah expects to win by simply controlling the ball, they'll lose.

Play to win, NOT, not to lose.

I think it's amusing how many zoobies come over on and post on what is clearly a Ute article. Obviously the must be worried, and if I were a zoobie I would be too (then I would shoot myself)

First of all, if BYU doesn't make the BCS this year it will be a laughable failure on their part. They have no excuse for not being there. Pre-season rankings and a soft schedule.

Second, to all you zoobtards bagging on the Utes..

What is your post season bowl record again? What is the utes?

What is the all time series record between the Utes and Zoobs?

Okay thanks... see you when you drop out of the polls.

I don't think that we have to worry about a high scoring game personally. Michigan might be going to a spread offense but Rodriguez doesn't have the personnel yet to fully implement it. Besides it's never a good sign for your offense when a walk-on is your starting quarterback and a true freshman is your expected starting rb. Their o-line hasn't been able to control the line of scrimmage all camp either. With that said I don't consider this game to be easy. It will be low scoring and hopefully a seven point win for the Utes come the 30th.

It will be on Louis' leg. Take that to the bank.

How many bowl games had Utah played in before 1992?

How many bowl games has Utah played in, ever?

How many times has Utah played a ranked opponent in a bowl?

Better hope that Utah can beat Michigan or Utah's "others receiving votes" will end before the Utes even get into the polls.

See U in November.

Remember, Utah "owns" BYU in RES.

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Last 20 BYU/Utah games played in RES:

1968 - Utah 30, BYU 21           
1970 - Utah 14, BYU 13           
1972 - BYU 16, Utah 7           
1973 - BYU 46, Utah 22           
1976 - BYU 34, Utah 12           
1978 - Utah 23, BYU 22           
1980 - BYU 56, Utah 6           
1982 - BYU 17, Utah 12           
1984 - BYU 24, Utah 14           
1986 - BYU 35, Utah 21           
1988 - Utah 57, BYU 28           
1990 - BYU 45, Utah 22           
1992 - BYU 31, Utah 22           
1994 - Utah 34, BYU 31           
1996 - BYU 37, Utah 17           
1998 - BYU 26, Utah 24           
2000 - BYU 34, Utah 27           
2002 - Utah 13, BYU 6           
2004 - Utah 52, BYU 21           
2006 - BYU 33, Utah 31           

BYU 13
Utah 7

I don't think they have much of a chance but I'd tip my cap to them if they beat Michigan. I would enjoy Utah beating them. I just can't wait for the season to start! Go Cougs!

They didn't mention MWC titles because they couldn't care less. Conference titles only mean something to the conference - especially when it's of a perceived 2nd tier conference. Bonehead.

I have a question for anyone who wants a real conversation about Ute football instead of a bunch of idiots running their mouth.
Why do you think Whit is thinking of playing both DeVonte Christopher and Shak? I understand that you want your best players on the field, but we are plenty deep at RB, and the receiving position looks pretty good too (especially if Key ever shows up and is anywhere near as good as advertised). I think it is a mistake to burn up a redshirt on both of these athletes when they would just be burried in the depth chart and be able to have a much greater impact down the road.
Any thoughts from other Ute fans?

The only thing I agree with in "Zoob trolls" post is how humorous it is to see BYU fans commenting so fiercely on Utah articles the past few days. The reason I find it humorous is Utah fans are often accused of hating BYU more than taking an interest in their own team. That philosophy obviously applies to both sides.

I wouldn't be too concerned with the 2nd team offense moving the ball on Utah's defense. First of all, it is practice, and secondly, the offensive and defensive units face each other so often one side is bound to take advantage of the other based on familiarity of schemes. Utah v. Michigan is going to be a classic matchup. I am beginning to change my tune. I am not ready to declare Utah winners yet, but the teams appear to be quite evenly matched. Playing in the Big House still worries me, though.

Sorry, I meant a mistake to NOT take the redshirt.

is a little premature. Let's get through the season first.

However, food for thought in November:

Is a good win/loss record in bowl games the most significant measure of success?

Good luck to Utah and BYU for very successful seasons.

I'm not worried about the Michigan game. It would be nice to win that one but it doesn't really count against us since it's a pre-season game. The one we really need to win is byu. We have a lot of talented players and we've beaten some very good teams the past 2 years. But we haven't won any conference championships since Urban left and we finish in 3rd place. Why is it that we haven't beaten byu and won the MWC?

"They didn't mention MWC titles because they couldn't care less."

BEAP!

Wrong answer.

The correct answer is "Kyle hasn't won ANY MWC titles at Utah."

Thanks for playing.

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That's why Whittinghams's first priority for this season is winning a MWC title.

He's trying to break out of the rut of occassional big wins surrounded by seasons of "good, but could have been better."

The answer to your question is obviously no. A teams bowl record is a measure of success, just as conference championships is a measure of success. The question I would set out is, if you had to end the season with a 9-4 record, would you rather have your four losses come to respectable OOC opponents and win the conference, or have wins against those OOC opponents and fall short on the conference title?

It worked out well when Chad Henne and Mike Hart started as true freshman.... I wonder how they did?

Why are they always so obsessed they read about Utah's practice then decide to post?

The article from Ann Arbor forgot to mention that the same team that beat UCLA last year also put up a goose egg against lowly UNLV a week later while the Utah defense looked like a deer in the head lights as UNLV put up 27 points. The point here is that the Utes have been inconsistent and they better take their A game to Ann Arbor if they expect to win. Michigan lost their opening game last year and I'm guessing they will be motivated to not let that happen again.

I am a UTE FAN and i am very confident about the game but the comment about the true freshman running back dont bag on him he is a beast look up Sam McGuffie on youtube and you will see him in high school he is a beast. The kid is a straight athelete. Still i am a confident we will win.

It begins with winning conference championships. If you aren't consistently winning championships, especially as a member of a non-BCS conference, NOBODY is going to take your occassional OOC BCS wins seriously.

Did Applachian State gain respect from beating Michigan last season, or did that win just cast national disrespect on Michigan?

What national respect did Utah gain from beating UCLA when they got hammered the following week by UNLV?

Bottom line, it takes both, OOC wins AND conference championships.

As for bowl game wins, here's what an SEC Sports Fan site had to say when rating the Top College Football Bowl Conference for 2007-2008:

"Mountain West: 4-1 (great job by the MWC, but they simply didn't play in any major bowls or face the tough competition the other conferences faced)."

Pat on the head, nice job, now go back to playing in the kiddie pool.

Utah has not won a conference title in 3 years. Utah has defeated BYU only once in three years. Utah is not ranked. BYU talks of running the table, a third straight conference title, and a BCS bowl appearance. The noble Ute name is constantly disrespected by Cougar fans. BYU owns Utah at RES.

BYU has the up and coming coach.

And oh yes, I do remember, Collie and Hairline are still open.

So what is all the FEAR about. Come on Cougars, if you really ain't a little intimidated, what are all the abrassive and defensive posts about. What are you really trying to say, and who are you really trying to convince?

Or, can't you just leave an annoying, not so good "little brother" alone?

It doesn't seem like it?

Here is their ranking:

SEC: 7-2

Pac-10: 4-2

Big 12: 5-3

Big East: 3-2

Big Ten: 3-5

ACC: 2-6

WAC: 1-3

*Mountain West: 4-1 (great job by the MWC, but they simply didn't play in any major bowls or face the tough competition the other conferences faced).

Sun Belt: 1-0 (Florida Atlantic won the New Orleans Bowl against Memphis)

And their analysis:

You can see that the SEC finished the 2007-2008 Bowl Season as the top college football bowl conference. It set an all-time record with 7 bowl victories in one season.

I agree with question? why are they burning up a redshirt with Shak? the utes have depth in the rb's but i think coach whit wants to really win games this year and is pulling out all the stops.shak is a great player and i think he can pull this off if he can break through plays but we should save him for next year when we may really need him right now i think we have great running backs in asiata and mack. I am way excited about this season the Utes have depth and talent i cant wait until they stomp all over the Y and win the MWC as well as go to a ball game. I dont care(well i do actually) if the utes dont win all games but it would be so sweet if they win against the Y especially when we are at home.....GO UTES.....

Is Shak going to get playing time? sounds like he's been doing pretty good in camp

hey helmet wearing window lickers. byu got smoked by tulsa and ucla before they miracled the win in vegas in byu vs ulca III. and utes lose to weak teams each year. point is we don't hear about those zoobie screw ups. you're both EQUALLY lame. wave from the short bus !!

"hey helmet wearing window lickers"

Is that what you call your football playing friends when they're not wearing their cowboy hats?

I'm glad you're enjoying your ride on the short bus.

Here's my wave back to the short bus.

Make sure your team has been practicing their on-side kick defense. This year we're going to get it right.

I agree with the redshirt for Christopher and Shaq. However, I talked with someone who saw one of the scrimages in the spring camp, when Christopher was playing. He apparently was a shifty runner but not much of a passer (not too accurate). If that is the case, I'm not as worried about buring up a year on him, if the coaches are thinking he isn't quarterback material. If that isn't the case and he really does have quarterback skills, then they probably should redshirt him and let him pick up the system and save him. As for Shaq, they should redshirt for sure. The only reason not to would be injuries to the other backs or if he really was head and shoulders above the other backs.

To the byU fans: why are you sooooo annoying? Who cares about the past bowl records, hiesman trophies, national championships, blah, blah, blah. This year is this year. Witt's tendancies has been to give uninspiring efforts against weak teams. byU's has been to lose all non-conference games against BCS opponents. Which problem would you rather have: consistency (can fix) or less talented teams (can't fix)???

I just read that they are almost certainly going to redshirt Christopher. I agree with "Redshirts" assessment, if he doesn't have the right skill set to be a QB, then put him somewhere else. Accuracy is something that he should be able to improve on though in his redshirt season. Speed is not really coachable. If he is anything like his numbers coming out of high school indicate, I think he will be the future of the team. That is how he was touted up to this point, as the QB of the future. Hopefully the coaches are just preparing to have Shak take over if Asiata gets injured (a very real possibility). Or if he has good field vision, I would feel comfortable putting him in. What the heck happened in the Air Force game last year? That goal line run where there was a huge hole on the right side but the RB went to the middle. Who was that? That is why we have Asiata, for short situation runs.
Go Utes

Calling All Blue Bloods

Remember Tulsa and UCLA ?
over 50 for Tulsa ?
Consecutive bowl games

Utah 8
1st. To bust BCS

Byu 2 ( barely )
One can tell by the noteriety that Las Vegas Bowl is not much positive exposure , except for the wins by miracles.
Time for some humility.

First of all, if BYU doesn't make the BCS this year it will be a laughable failure on their part. They have no excuse for not being there. Pre-season rankings and a soft schedule.

Okay thanks... see you when you drop out of the polls.
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Do you think about what you're writing or do you always just spout off stupidity? Guess what, you're part of our "soft schedule". If we have no excuse to not be in the BCS then you're expecting us to beat you? You're right, if we drop out of the polls we'll see you there because you'll never even reach them. Enjoy another mediocre season.

from now we'll all be dead and no one will care but some zoob somewhere!! let's roll the drums....dahn, duhn,dahn, duhn, duhn,duhn duhn..duhn duhn, duhn.!!!

Reading these comments from my BYU brothers leaves me embarrassed to be numbered among you. Good luck, UTAH!

Good luck to the Utes in Michigan. I think they stand a pretty good chance.

I think Shak playing this year is going to be no problem. The kid has 4 years and Kyle will most certainly find some more talent in the RB stable.

Reading these posts makes me so very, very, very, very glad that I'm not a byu fan. You people are joke and an embarrassment to LDS members (including myself) and to the state of Utah.

I predict the Cougars trounce the Uteless Utes...

with or without your "mr live my life right" receiver Collie, you still wont get past the UTE d, and our O is going to put up points and numbers. either way both teams will be good, but Utah will walk away with a victory if they are able to run the ball consistently (Mack, Asiata, Shak)

sure the michigan O is inexperinenced but that doesnt mean they wont be able to score on the utah "d". i think the michigan defence will own the game hands down. also this since everyone is predicting that utah has a chance intead of michigan blowing them out, the wolverines are going to be prepared (unlike last year).

GO BLUE!!! HAIL TO THE VICTORS

bywho? Exactly your overrated face it. Your not going to make the bcs or win the mountain west title because on November 22 when robert Johnson intercepts max halls lousy pass and takes it to the house to for the games winning touchdown, how does that sound kitty fans!!!!!