Utah’s offense nearly waited until the last minute to show life against UCLA in 2012, capping off a 90-yard scoring drive for its lone offensive touchdown with only 3:16 left in the fourth quarter.
Nearly a full year after its 21-14 win, the Bruins face what they expect to be a punchier Utes offense, energized by new co-offensive coordinator Dennis Erickson, who installed a quick-tempo spread offense this offseason.
UCLA coach Jim Mora said that the Erickson’s influence brings dynamic elements to what he categorized as an efficient offense that rarely puts a strong, physical Utah team in bad positions.
“His mindset has always been about the big play, creating the big play. And I think they’re looking for that a bit more,” Mora said. “It’s an interesting combination quite frankly, Dennis being there. I think he adds a lot to their offense.”
As a defensive coordinator for San Francisco during one year of Erickson’s head coaching stint for the 49ers, Mora experienced firsthand the expertise of Utah’s 66-year-old coordinator.
“Dennis does an excellent job of taking advantage of weaknesses that he may perceive in a defense,” Mora said. “He’s a great offensive mind. He’s creative as a thinker. He’s very aggressive as a play caller. … He’ll have some things drawn up that we haven’t seen, and we just have to react to it.”
Utah’s offense has flourished under Erickson’s guidance. Within the conference, Utah ranks fourth in points scored, after finishing eighth last season. Utah sophomore quarterback Travis Wilson has seen his yards per attempt jump from 6.4 to 9.7, and has already thrown for two more touchdowns this year than he did all of last year.
Wilson’s weapon of choice to open the season, as well as the skill-positions’ poster boy for a more explosive Utah offense, comes in the form of wide receiver Dres Anderson.
The junior has racked up 404 yards on 18 catches en route to currently leading the Pac-12 in yards per catch, and owns the fourth-most receiving yards per game among receivers in the conference. Anderson represents UCLA’s most productive and explosive opponent on the perimeter yet: none of the Bruins’ past opponents this year has a receiver with at least 300 yards through the air.
Anderson’s biggest play of the year, a 74-yarder, highlighted the receiver’s elusiveness. After executing a double-move to blow past a BYU cornerback two weeks ago, Anderson waited a split second for a Wilson pass that traveled some 35 yards in the air. Ball in hand, the receiver stopped on a dime, evaded his defender and three would-be arm tackles before being brought down at the one-yard line.
Redshirt sophomore cornerback Ishmael Adams heaped praise on the entirety of Utah’s aerial arsenal, which he said he sees as providing “great wide receivers” and large targets for Wilson, a quarterback he considers more accurate than those seen by UCLA so far. Adams said he expects the Bruins to step up to the test before them by playing tighter coverage and “staying on top of routes.” Adams also stressed the importance of staying in position to deflect passes, as opposed to gambling on interceptions.
Playing Tight
Unlike that of UCLA, Utah’s spread offense recognizes tight ends as separate entities from wide receivers. Erickson noted his propensity to seek out mismatches in a late August interview with the Salt Lake Tribune, when he named the unit featuring junior Jake Murphy and senior Westlee Tonga, two 6-foot, 4-inch tight ends weighing in at 250-plus pounds each, as the offense’s top personnel grouping.
Erickson’s praise for his tight ends has proven disproportionate to their receiving numbers four games into the season. Murphy and Tonga have thus far taken a backseat to Anderson in terms of catching passes, with the duo combining for 170 yards on 10 catches. Both Utes, however, own 30-yard catches on the season. Murphy has come up with a handful of big plays, producing at least a 19-yard gain in each his first four performances.
Having covered wide receivers on his team and on others, freshman outside linebacker Myles Jack feels “very comfortable” with the potential of tailing the likes of Murphy and Tonga. At the same time, Jack respects the capabilities of Utah’s tight ends.
“I’ve seen them on film. Both of them are excellent athletes, and it’s going to be a big-time challenge for me.”
It’s gonna be a fun game. Go Utes!