BY RYAN TICE
T
he Utah Utes have not been tested
yet this year — they opened with
blowout victories of Idaho State and Fres-
no State at home — but they get their first
chance to make a statement when they
travel to Ann Arbor after a bye last week.
The Utes have previously played at The
Big House in 2002 and 2008. In the last
meeting, head coach Kyle Whittingham
and company opened the season with a
25-23 win in their first step to a 13-0 cam-
paign.
Whittingham was named the 2008 Na-
tional Coach of the Year and then went on
to lead Utah to consecutive 10-win sea-
sons, which helped the school gain entry
into the Pac-12. Both the coach and pro-
gram are in a different place after back-
to-back 5-7 seasons, but a 2-0 start has
optimism flowing once again in Salt Lake
City.
"Being around practice, you can defi-
nitely sense the confidence is growing,"
UteZone.com managing editor Alex
Markham said. "The defense is always
going to be there on a Kyle Whittingham
SEPT. 17, 2014
Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham, now
in his 10th season guiding the Utes, has
compiled a career record of 78-39, includ-
ing a 25-23 win over U-M in 2008.
PHOTO COURTESY UTAH
Undefeated, Rested
And Confident
Utah Is Fresh Off Its Bye And Brings A 2-0 Record To The Big House
