Utah football players would just as soon forget about last year's excruciating last-second loss to BYU at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
But they will talk about it anyway.
Five Utes from this year's defense, including injured Kyle Brady, were on the field during the final play when John Beck hit Johnny Harline with the winning touchdown pass, and each has his own unique memory of the final play.
Steve Tate said the Utes were playing a zone defense, but that he locked onto BYU senior Zac Collie early in the play.
"I was guarding him for about 15 minutes, I swear," Tate said. "I started in the middle and went from the west side of the end zone to the east side of the end zone, back to the west side and we ended up right in the middle."
Tate continued: "I was with him the whole time and I just kept thinking, 'Don't throw to him.' I had good position, but when a quarterback has that much time, you never know what's going to happen. When the ball was caught, I didn't even know which fans were cheering because I had my back to the play."
Cornerback Brice McCain called it "the longest play of my life."
Unfortunately, unlike Tate, McCain saw the catch that won the game.
"I looked around and saw somebody wide open in the end zone."
Martail Burnett was one of two linemen in the middle trying to contain Beck.
"It went on forever, it seemed like," he said. "When you lose, there's always things you would do differently. We don't want to make the same mistakes this year."
Brady, who is out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon, is the player, No. 14, you see on the video going left as Harline crosses behind him.
Brady said he's been bugged by people for a year who thought Harline was his man, but he says he was just staying in his zone and happened to be the player closest to Harline.
"I was looking for someone to cover and didn't have anyone to lock up with," he said. "(Harline) happened to be in the area, and I didn't even see him. They just made a good play."
Joe Jiannoni was the guy you see sprinting toward Beck, just before he got off the winning throw. In fact, Jiannoni said he was very close to sacking Beck.
"I was a late contain rusher, and on that play I did everything I was supposed to do," he said. "I almost had him there with my left hand. He scrambled back into the three offensive linemen, and each one of those hit me. By the time I tried to get back to him, he just chucked it over his head and it just landed in his arms. It was terrible."
MOVING INDOORS: Sure, the temperature has dropped about 25 degrees over the past couple of days, but that's not the reason the Utes practiced inside the Spence Eccles Field House Wednesday afternoon.
It was sunny and crisp Wednesday, but the Utes wanted to get ready for the noise they'll experience Saturday in Provo.
"We can pipe the crowd noise in here and be more realistic and get a better feel for that," coach Kyle Whittingham said.
Whittingham said the loudest crowd he's ever heard was the one in Provo in 2001.
D RANKS HIGH: The Ute defense has been moving up in the national statistics and now ranks in the top five nationally in two categories and in the top 11 in five.
The Utes are third in pass efficiency defense, and fifth in scoring defense (15.5 ppg). They also rank No. 6 in third-down percentage (28.8 percent), No. 9 in sacks (35) and No. 11 in pass defense (180.7).
Over the past five games, the Utes have allowed just three offensive touchdowns and an average of 8.0 points per game.
UTE NOTES: The Utes will practice this morning, but the practice is closed with no interviews afterward. The team will enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner together afterward ... Whittingham said he would prefer not to play the Utah-BYU game after Thanksgiving, but that it will probably keep happening because of the 12-game schedule ... Louie Sakoda ranks eighth in the nation in punting average (44.8), while Derrek Richards is 11th in punt return average (15.5) ... The Utes will head down to Provo Friday night after eating dinner in Salt Lake, just in time to go to sleep. With a noon kickoff, the Utes will have to eat breakfast by 8:30 a.m.
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