Am I going to circle him in the broadcast and say, ‘Look where he’s lined up’? I think I’d start with Brant, but man, would I love to do it to a receiver. I’ve been a fan of Devaughn Vele becoming a truly impact player. I really think Ja’Quinden Jackson has a chance to be one of the more elite backs in this league this year, if not bigger. Roth: Let’s just start with Brant Kuithe. Because with the quarterbacks returning, it could be anybody that I’m picking as the favorite after September. I can’t say who’s going to be in that championship game until I’m through September and kind of see what everybody looks like. We don’t really know who is going to stretch the field make those big plays that are really important when you’re playing against quality defenses on a week-to-week basis. Neuheisel: I guess I would answer by saying we got to know who their big-play players are. I picked them to win based on the defensive side of the football and what the expectation is for Utah’s defense. I was one of the six media members who picked them to win, and the reason I picked them to win wasn’t Cam Rising - certainly he’s part of it. They bring back as many starters as anybody. If we’re going in assuming that you’re going to have Cam Rising when the conference season begins, I believe that’s the case. If someone other than Utah is going to win this conference, someone’s gonna have to knock off Utah first, and that hasn’t happened much the last couple of years. Any of those could win and I wouldn’t be stunned. Coming into the season in a vacuum, I wouldn’t say that just because I think there’s so many good teams. Vannini: When you’re the two time defending champ, I think you can say that. But to me, it’s Utah’s league until somebody takes it from them. And I get we’re in an era with free agency and you can flip your roster and all those things. Roth: I might be old school in that regard. Is the Pac-12 Conference title Utah’s to lose? So Kyle wants to do the right thing by him and make sure that he’s fully prepared and ready to go. He’s got a chance to be a quarterback after his time at Utah. Rick Neuheisel, CBS Sports analyst: Waiting on Cam Rising to be 100% is the wise thing to do because Cam’s got a career. I think you have to rely on the other pieces more than you would if Cam was playing. I don’t think you have quite the margin for error because you don’t have the experience and overall skill set at quarterback that you would have. It really would depend on what you get out of the quarterback. I think Utah’s overall talent is better than both Baylor and Florida’s. I think it’s just a little bit tougher to win those games. If he doesn’t play in the first game or the second game, per se, I still think you can win those games. If we’re playing the what-if game, if he plays against Florida, then you’ve got your starting quarterback and your chance to win the conference championship and maybe keep your hopes alive for a College Football Playoff opportunity are all there. It certainly doesn’t take away the hopes of a Pac-12 championship, assuming he’s not out for that long.īill Riley, ESPN 700: I think the trajectory is about the same. So if he’s not ready, dropping one feels likely. A lot of these difficult games are in the first five weeks of the season. Even Weber State was a Top 10 FCS team last year, even if they have a coaching change. Obviously if it was an expanded playoff, they’re in it.Ĭhris Vannini, The Athletic senior writer: Without him, man, it’s hard to see the team getting through those first five games unscathed. We’ve seen that and they were the hottest team in this league at the end of the year, and I thought that they had a chance to be a playoff team. We’ve seen this story before two years ago with him not being the starter and then coming in and then them going on a run after those two non-conference losses. For the Playoff, for sure, I think it can affect it. Yogi Roth, Pac-12 Network analyst: For the Pac-12, not as much because of the non-conference slate. If Cam Rising is limited to start the season, how does that affect Utah’s ceiling? The following panel discussion has been edited for length and clarity. The Salt Lake Tribune spoke to four college football experts for their takes on what Utah can do this season.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |