No. 12 Utah hopes to have a few of its injured gamers again in motion — maybe even quarterback Cameron Rising — because it travels to Waco, Texas, to play battered and ego-bruised Baylor on Saturday.
This would be the first-ever assembly on the gridiron between the 2 applications.
The Utes (1-0) waylaid Florida 24-11 at house final Thursday, utilizing the mix of backup quarterbacks Bryson Barnes and Nate Johnson to just do sufficient on offense to beat the Gators.
Barnes handed for 159 yards, together with a 70-yard TD to Cash Parks on the Utes’ first play from scrimmage, and ran for one more rating. Johnson pitched in 51 complete yards (45 of them dashing) and a landing.
Rising has been cleared for full contact after rehabbing a torn ACL suffered in final 12 months’s Rose Bowl recreation. His standing for Baylor will likely be decided by recreation time. He was one in all eight gamers from the Utes’ projected two-deep roster to overlook the Florida recreation with an damage.
“It was a superb win for our program on Thursday evening,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham stated Monday. “We definitely performed rather a lot higher on protection than we did within the earlier 12 months (in opposition to Florida), and that was actually the storyline of the sport.”
Utah’s protection held Florida to simply 1-for-13 on third-down conversions and 13 yards on the bottom. The Utes additionally amassed 5 sacks, seven tackles for loss and an interception within the dominating defensive efficiency.
“We are going to transfer on to a different Energy 5 program in Baylor this week,” Whittingham stated. “We’re very assured that they’re going to be a much-improved workforce between Week 1 and Week 2. … So, we’re going to must play exceptionally properly and have an incredible week of preparation similar to we’ve to each single week.”
The Bears (0-1) are licking their wounds after a shocking 42-31 loss to Texas State at house final Saturday. Baylor racked up 524 yards of complete offense regardless of shedding beginning quarterback Blake Shapen to a knee damage halfway by means of the fourth quarter.
By the point he was pressured to the sideline, Shapen had thrown for 303 yards and two TDs and ran for one more rating. He was changed by Mississippi State switch Sawyer Robertson, who threw for 113 yards on the Bears’ ultimate two drives earlier than each resulted in turnovers.
Baylor coach Dave Aranda stated Monday that Shapen would miss 2-3 weeks with an MCL sprain. He additionally dominated out beginning security Devin Lemear resulting from an elbow damage.
“We’re working by means of these accidents, and we’ll be with these guys as they rehab and get again into enjoying form and all of it,” Aranda added. “(I am) excited concerning the guys we have and searching ahead to their efforts this week.”
Aranda stated he anticipated enchancment throughout the board from his workforce and added that it will be particularly wanted from the offensive line.
“It will be demanded that we enhance,” Aranda stated. “I really feel like from that arduous lesson that we had Saturday, shifting ahead all through the week, that we’ll see some good enchancment.”
Saturday’s recreation is the second of 4 at house to start out the season for the Bears. Baylor has eight house contests on its schedule in 2023.
—Subject Stage Media
