LAS VEGAS — If you like monster truck pulls; if you would rather play rugby than tennis; if your idea of great food includes bean dip, this game was for you.
The Utes logged an unglamorous 10-6 win over Southern California, Tuesday, in the Las Vegas Bowl. Ten-to-six? Is that the score or the time of day?
They scored only one touchdown, passed for a meager 136 yards. They did rush for 222 yards, but that's like driving to Barstow in a pickup rather than a Ferrari.
They scored their only touchdown on their second possession, added a field goal, then closed up shop. They allowed USC just one yard rushing.
Unofficial team slogan: "This Ain't No Ballet."
"Beautiful," said defensive end Jason Kaufusi. "Sweet."
Pay no attention to the grass in their teeth.
"Pure football guys love a low-scoring game," defensive coordinator Kyle Whittingham said dreamily.
Pardon the Utes if they love their ugly football. The win put a cap on a surprising, then disappointing, but ultimately successful season. The two losses at the end of conference play were finally put to rest. The win was their first over USC since Nelson H. Norgren coached them to victory in 1916. After that came six straight losses to the Trojans, the latest occurring in the 1993 Freedom Bowl.
This was a season in which the Utes surprised the experts with a quick start, then blew their chance to win the conference championship, then (lip-sync along with me, here) capped it off with a respectable finish. They were ultimately the sort of team Utah fans have come to expect: less than great, more than mediocre. They never fully learned how to deliver the knockout punch, yet never sulked, either.
By the time the Christmas Day game rolled around, they were in a relatively foul mood. They had grown tired of playing Captain to USC's Tennille. All week the players fielded questions on USC's history, tradition and momentum.
It was Tailback U. vs. the U. of Who?
Perhaps the ultimate slight, though, came prior to the game when a Ute official noticed the winner's trophy sitting in the USC locker room. Never one to miss a teaching moment, Whittingham told several players of the snub before kickoff.
"Yeah, well, it's in our locker room now," said safety Arnold Parker, after the game.
The Utes began working on their game-day grudge at a Monday kickoff luncheon. Included in the festivities was an eating contest, one the Utes felt they easily won. But USC was declared the winner.
Soon taunts turned to threats. Next thing you know, players were being separated and sent to their (hotel) rooms.
But the rough stuff didn't start until the game. That's when Utah's Sheldon Deckart separated USC's Carson Palmer from his numbers. Two plays later, Antwoine Sanders leveled Carson for a 10-yard loss. The mood was rough, fast and snarling.
"We punished them," said Whittingham.
Whenever the defense wasn't on the field, the offense was chewing up the time. The Utes controlled the time of possession (38 minutes to 22), ran 24 more plays and generally acted like they owned the ball.
Which, eventually, they did.
In the end, it probably wasn't the game ABC had expected. There were no long plays and few thrills. Fine by the Utes.
"We are a very physical football team. We didn't change what we do. We did what we always do," said Ute coach Ron McBride.
Which brings us back to the legacy of the 2001 Utes. Which is this: It's not about ballet. It's about attitude.
E-MAIL: rock@desnews.com