Wazz-up Wazzu?

After a disappointing but expected loss to Oregon the Utes hit the road again this week to Wazzu! This is a due or die week for the Utes. After missing a bowl last season Utah's goal has been to make a bowl game and at 4-6 that goal is still achievable. The unfortunate truth is, they have to win out. They have to go up to Pullman to face an pass heavy offense Washington State Cougars.

Can Utah Beat Wazzu?

Aboslutely! There are just a few things that Utah needs to do to increase their chance on winning:

Defense:

Shut down the pass
Take the ball away
Force Wazzu out of their comfort zone

Offense:

Run the ball
Use Jake Murphy
Protect the ball

Stats:

There are some interesting stats about Wazzu I would like to share. This whole season I have heard about how Wazzu passes and passes a lot. Just how much? let me give you some insight into this.

Out of 754 offensive plays for Wazzu this year 577 have been passing plays. 76% of all Wazzu's plays are passing plays. Between Halliday and Apodaca Wazzu has 3,604 yards through the air (Halliday claiming 3,417 of those yards). This doesn't include the 32 rushes Halliday has (for -96 yards), the majority no doubt were passing plays he has been sacked or tackled for a loss.


Gabe Marks (#9) has 63 receptions for 721 yards. He is by far Wazzu's leading receiver. the Cougars have 5 other receivers with 30+ receptions, 2 with 20-29 receptions and a 4 with 19 or less receptions. Wazzu spreads the ball around and they have enough play makers to get the ball to.

Halliday is quick to release the ball as well. From the small brief amounts of tape I was able to watch from this past week against Arizona, a team Utah fell to 35-24. Wazzu was most successful passing down the field when they passed right around 3 seconds or less.

Wazzu has 183 rushing attempts between 6 players. They have tallied up 570 yards. There are 115 players who currently have more than 570 yards rushing. 115 individual players who have single handedly rushed more than the entire Wazzu team combined. Including James "Bubba" Poole for Utah (596 yards).

On the flip side, Halliday has 3,417 passing yards and is good for the 4th most in the nation. Which QB has the most passing yards on the season you ask? Sean Mannion from Oregon State with 3,860 yards. The Utes fell to Mannion in overtime earlier this season 51-48. Mannion had his way with Utah's secondary throwing for 443 yards.

I want to compare Utah's numbers and even BYU's to get some good comparison on how much Wazzu really does pass:

                                          Wazzu                         Utah                           BYU                    
  Passing Attempts              577                              312                             343
  Passing Yards                  3,604                           2,255                          2,383
  Rushing Attempts            183                               394                             525
  Rushing Yards                 570                              1,635                          2,654
  Longest Reception            72                                  80                              43
  Longest Rush                    24                                  65                              70

*Stats according to ESPN.com

Utah will have to slow down Wazzu's passing offense. Luckily rushing the pass is something Utah does pretty well. Currently Utah is #1 in the nation in sacks with 36. Trevor Reilly (8.5 sacks) has been an absolute beast this year and has been a great leader. He will need to get off the ball and force Halliday out of the pocket and hopefully into the sweet dominating arms of another Utah defender.




Utah has a new problem to spend a brief moment discussing. Adam Schulz is the new starting QB. Some Utah fans are calling for Conner Manning or Brandon Cox to burn their redshirt and start the final two games. To these fans I say, educate yourselves and think about what you are saying rationally. Adam Schulz is a fine QB. He has a lot of potential and played pretty well considering he was up against the 8th best defense in the nation. Schulz has a lot of work to do and will really need to connect with his WR's more if he expects to win on Saturday. Last week Schulz was 13-30 for 181 yards. Oregon's defense gives up on average of 355 yards and Wazzu gives up 447 yards. I expect Schulz to have a pretty good game and throw for 250 yards.

Summary:

Wazzu = A LOT of offense and even more so passing! They pass quickly and Halliday looks down the field and CAN deliver the ball in tight spaces. Wazzu is a lot better than most Utah fans have and will give them credit for. They gain a lot of yards but don't necessarily score a lot.

Utah - Focus needs to be on the run game. Give Schulz some time to pass. Get pressure on Halliday and stay on WR's like their hopes of a bowl game depends on it. Score more than 30 points. Force turnovers. Use Jake Murphy, he is a stud and a great asset to the offense, use him more.


Utah can win against Wazzu on Saturday. It will be a lot more difficult than Utes' fans think but it is still a very winnable game for Utah. Utah has to focus on passing defense and let the rushes happen. Shut down Halliday and his receivers and you shut down the only strength Washington State has on offense. On offense Utah has to run the ball and run the ball consistently to open up the offense to passing. Rushing effectively should give Adam Schulz some extra time to make the right decision and put the ball on the money.

                   Predictions:

                      Utah:     35

                      Wazzu:  21

             Schulz:   23-35, 247 yards

             Poole:   22 carries, 104 yards

         Defense: 

                    Pass:   250 yards

                   Rush:  32 yards

                  Sacks:  4

                  INT's:  2
Fumble Recovery: 1