Utes Face A Familiar Foe In Chris Petersen
Nov 26, 2018, 4:29 PM | Updated: 7:30 pm
EUGENE, OR - OCTOBER 13: Head coach Chris Petersen walks on the field before the game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
(Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – With one exception, Washington head coach Chris Petersen has had a lot of success when coaching against Kyle Whittingham and the Utah Utes.
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In 2015, his second season coaching the Huskies, he was outdueled at home by Whittingham as the No. 12 Utes rolled to a 34-23 victory.
Other than that, at both Boise State where he coached from 2006-13 and at Washington, Petersen has had the Utes’ number winning five times in six head-to-head matchups.
While Petersen was the head coach at Boise State, he laid two major beatings on Utah. In 2006, the Broncos dominated the Utes in a 36-3 win at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Later, in 2010, the two teams met for the Las Vegas Bowl, where Boise State rolled to a 26-3 victory.
Since Petersen took the reins at Washington, the games have been more competitive. However, since the 2015 win, Petersen and the Huskies are riding a three-game winning streak against Utah.
“He is a very consistent, disciplined football coach,” said Whittingham of Petersen in his Monday press conference. “He knows football extremely well, particularly the offensive side. He is rock solid. In my opinion, he is one of the premier coaches in the country. He has done a great job for a lot of years.”
The two teams met in September with the Huskies claiming a 21-7 victory. However, this matchup has a Rose Bowl berth on the line. It’s the biggest game of the year for both teams and Petersen expects the Utes to bring it on Friday.
“I know this: Our guys have tremendous respect for Utah playing them the first time. We knew that was a really good football team. And they’ll watch the tape and see this is even a better Utah team. They’ve stayed really healthy on defense. Have a couple guys in there who are playing more than when we played them the first time. They’re playing at a really, really high level,” said Petersen.
