Instant Takeaways From Utah’s 22-19 Victory Over Oklahoma State
Sep 21, 2024, 5:39 PM | Updated: 6:37 pm
Utah Football holds onto 22-10 win over No. 14 Oklahoma State
SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Football gets their first win Big 12 Conference play with a 22-19 victory over No. 14 Oklahoma State.
Despite a last-gasp effort from the Cowboys, the Utes were able to hold onto the victory in the end.
Here are the instant takeaways from the win that put Utah at 4-0 for the 2024 season.
Isaac Wilson, a tip of the cap to you young man
Taking into account all of the context of his start, Wilson was impressive.
It wasn’t the cleanest performance or the fairest situation, it says a lot about him and the belief in him that they entrusted him in this sort of environment. It’s not easy to do what he did today, don’t take it for granted.
Given how he performed, it’s unfortunate that Utah didn’t just sink all available practice reps into him this past week. Yet, Wilson made the best of his opportunity.
The numbers paint an ugly picture for him individually but he made several key plays to keep possessions alive. He led the offense on the following drives today:
- 12 plays, 62 yards, FG
- 11 plays, 64 yards, TD
- 9 plays 41 yards, TO
- 9 plays, 61 yards, FG Miss
- 10 plays, 44 yards, FG
- 1 play, 45 yards, TD
Wilson finished the game 17-of-29 for 207 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions while adding 41 yards on the ground himself. He ended up generating seven first downs through the air and three more on the ground.
Overall, tip of the cap to you young man.
Micah Bernard’s evolution
There were a lot of questions and even doubts regarding Bernard’s ability to handle RB1 duties.
After three straight games of 100-yard games, which includes a new career-high today, that’s a thing of the past.
Bernard’s evolution has been exciting to watch through these first four games. He’s raised his level of play to a new high.
He’s provided Utah with a back capable of churning out efficient gains, while also increasing their ability to generate explosive plays.
He finished the day with 182 yards on 22 carries, good for a 7.8 yard average. That included five runs of at least 10 yards, including a 62-yard gain.
Dorian Singer, Brant Kuithe came up big again today
Utah’s top receiver was impressive today. It’s clear that he and Wilson have a good rapport working in these last two games.
He finished the game just 5 yards short of the 100-yard mark on 7 receptions. More importantly, he made a number of plays in crucial moments to move the chains for Utah.
Utah’s star tight end Brant Kuithe finished with 4 receptions for 74 yards and a score through the air, he also added a 1-yard touchdown on the ground.
Utah’s defensive efficiency
The Oklahoma State offense had been averaging 42 points, 446 yards, 341 passing yards, and 105 rushing yards on an average of 73 plays per game.
Utah’s defense limited the Cowboys offense to a number of season lows. They finished with 285 total yards, split 237 through the air and 48 on the ground. It also took the Cowboys 59 plays to generate those totals, which left OSU with a 4.8 yards per play average.
This Utah defense is good at making opponents work for every point. Defensive efficiency is turning into the hallmark of the Utes.
Utah also learned a valuable lesson when they ease their foot off the gas. They allowed Oklahoma State to score a quick touchdown late in the 4th, which gave the Cowboys life.
That led to another late touchdown in the final two minutes of the game, which got the Cowboys back to a 22-19 deficit. They escaped with the win, which makes that a valuable lesson to learn from, instead of a painful lesson.
Too many empty possessions
Wilson and his playmakers did enough to get Utah into scoring position seven different times. They ended up with points on just four of those possessions.
Two of the possessions ended in a turnover, while there was another missed field goal. In a game where points are extremely hard to come by, every single one of them matters.
Fortunately, Utah got three more of them than Oklahoma State.
