Nate Johnson’s Second Touchdown Gives Utah Commanding Lead

Nov 5, 2022, 7:10 PM

SALT LAKE CITY UT- NOVEMBER 5: Swoop the mascot of the Utah Utes leads the team onto the field before the start of their game against the Arizona Wildcats at Rice Eccles Stadium November 5, 2022 in Salt Lake City Utah.

BY BRIAN PREECE

KSL Sports

SALT LAKE CITY – Wind and rain led to a muffed punt and Utah turned the Arizona mistake into Nate Johnson’s second rushing score of the night.

With Utah in front 21-7 and a driving rain coming down, the Utes punted the ball away, hoping to pin the Wildcats deep and get one more stop before halftime.

Wildcat return man Jacob Cowing couldn’t corral the fair catch, allowing Zemaiah Vaughn to recover the muffed kick. Utah took possession at the Arizona nine-yard line.

Johnson scored his second touchdown of the night on the next snap.

Nate Johnson’s speed is legit. pic.twitter.com/Ps9zs9plTf

— Nate Dowdle (@NateDowdle) November 6, 2022

Utah has outgained Arizona 105 yards to just 19 yards in the second period. They now lead 28-10.

Arizona Wildcats (3-5, 1-4) vs. No. 14 Utah Utes (6-2, 4-1)

The Utes limped out of Pullman, Washington a bit last week with a win and are hoping to be in better health this week. On the other hand, Arizona is coming off of a game where they gave USC everything they could possibly handle for 60 minutes but came up short.

FOOTBALL GAMEDAY‼️

🏈 @Utah_Football vs @ArizonaFBall
⏰ 5:30pm MT
📍 Rice-Eccles Stadium
📺 @Pac12Network
📻 @ESPN700
📝 https://t.co/0o77o3Fyj3 #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/GAh8JpQ1VA

— Utah Athletics (@utahathletics) November 5, 2022

With a win, Utah keeps their Pac-12 title hopes alive. Arizona needs to win three of their final four games to become bowl eligible.

Last week against Washington State, guys that hadn’t been depended on a lot through the season to that point had to step up and carry the team. Barnes, Glover, and Jackson did a good job pulling their weight when Rising, Bernard, and Kincaid weren’t able to go.

Who will it be this week? Even if Rising, Bernard, and Kincaid are all good to play, it seems safe to assume Utah will still need guys to step up and help carry the load for some of their leaders while they work their way back in.

Run To Win?

The Utes currently rank fourth in the Pac-12 in rushing offense even without Tavion Thomas (non-injury reasons) for most of the season.

Micah Bernard and quarterback Cam Rising have largely been responsible for that production the past few weeks, however, both players are on the “banged up” list which means if they do play, they most likely won’t be asked to run much if at all.

Great team win! #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/PdwSOQGFGD

— Jaylon “2 Piece” Glover 💨 (@officiallyyjay1) September 25, 2022

Utah does have two up-and-coming running backs in freshman Jaylon Glover and quarterback-turned-running back Ja’Quinden Jackson that could be leaned on against the Wildcats.

Last week against Washington State Glover 20 carries for 76 yards and one touchdown. He was averaging about 3.8 yards per carry. Jackson had 10 carries for 43 yards and a touchdown while averaging 4.3 yards per carry.