Kyle Whittingham, Utah Football In Need Of Change Following 13-7 Loss To TCU

Oct 20, 2024, 10:59 AM | Updated: 11:08 am

Utah Utes Football head coach Kyle Whittingham...

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - OCTOBER 19: Kyle Whittingham head coach of the Utah Utes watches a replay during the first half of their game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Rice Eccles Stadium on October 19, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah.(Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)

(Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)

BY STEVE BARTLE

Utah Insider

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Football suffered its third-straight loss, this time in a painful 13-7 defeat to the TCU Horned Frogs.

The Utes defense did all that it could to keep them in striking distance, but the offense failed to produce yet again.

Utah’s inability to make offensive progress is now quite alarming. Given last night’s performance, serious questions linger around the program.

The issues are obvious, Utah’s offensive coaches are failing

“I guess we’re fine other than not being able to score points, make first downs, run the ball, throw the ball efficiently, make a conversion on 3rd or 4th down, other than that I think we’re okay,” an obviously frustrated Kyle Whittingham stated.

Utah’s offense finished the game with the following totals:

267 total yards, 199 passing, 68 rushing
12 1st downs, 2-of-15 on 3rd down, 0-of-2 on 4th down
4 sacks allowed, 8 tackles for loss given up
0 trips to the red zone
11 punts
7 points

The offense has seemingly deteriorated over time. Not only in the sense of production but its character. The offense has lost its identity and feels out of touch with the personnel on the field.

Everyone understands that there is going to be a dropoff from an experienced quarterback to a true freshman. This steep decline is not though. The offense doesn’t need to be this complicated and production doesn’t have to be this difficult.

Coach Whittingham post-game presser pic.twitter.com/yi0CfztzPn

— Steve Bartle (@BartleKSLsports) October 20, 2024

What sort of changes could be on the way?

“There’s no mystery as to what our issues are, they’ve shown up for three weeks in a row now,” he said. “So, we’ve got to look at everything really hard in the next 24-48 hours and make some tough decisions.”

Knowing the offense is struggling is one thing but the willingness to make the changes necessary is another. When asked whether there could be changes to the offensive staff, Whittingham didn’t dismiss the possibility.

“Everything’s up for evaluation and we will evaluate,” Whittingham stated.

The offense was painfully predictable for the majority of the night. The TCU defense could seemingly tee off into the backfield without fear of any consequences. They knew what was coming and played a step ahead of the Utah offense.

The entire offense is out of sorts. It also has not shown any signs of progress in three games. There seems to be only one change that would be of any significance; a change in offensive coordinator duties.

What about player personnel changes?

Questions abound around Utah’s personnel decisions too. There are players who have proven themselves at this level but have been completely non-existent in Utah’s plan of attack this season.

In football, coaches typically meet after the week of practice for final run-throughs of the game plan. It is also there where head coach and assistants determine personnel packages and who will play.

Given the absence of players who have proven themselves at this level- Jaylon Glover, Landen King, and Munir McClain, it’s also time to thoroughly evaluate the thought process on those personnel decisions.

Depth is not just about having insurance, it’s about having multiple options and skillsets available. Utah’s unwillingness to utilize certain players or the depth at various also needs to change.

A season on the brink

After four straight wins to start 2024, Utah’s season has nose-dived with three consecutive losses. These weren’t just ‘losses’ though, these were demoralizing and embarrassing defeats.

Suddenly, with five games left to play, Utah’s bowl eligibility is seriously up for debate. The leaders will do all they can to keep the team together but Whittingham’s program faces a tough task now.

Preseason expectations were quite high for this team. The dropoff has been abrupt and it’s been steep. Whittingham needs to thoroughly evaluate the issues that have plagued their 2024 campaign, that much is obvious.

However, we’re now to the point where Utah leadership needs to evaluate the big picture. There has to be greater concern for the future of the program.

Utah cannot afford to stagnate and fall behind in the constant evolution of college football. Unfortunately, after last night’s performance, it’s starting to feel like it has.