Oregon State wide receiver Silas Bolden dodges Utah cornerback JaTravis Broughton during a game Sept. 29, 2023.
Oregon State wide receiver Silas Bolden (7) dodges Utah cornerback JaTravis Broughton (4) during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Amanda Loman, Associated Press
Kelsey Dallas
By Kelsey Dallas
Kelsey is an assistant managing editor for the Deseret News. She covers religion, sports and the Supreme Court.

Utah has lost its first game of the season. The Utes fell to fellow Pac-12 school Oregon State on Friday night, 21-7.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

The defense is great, but they can’t do it alone

In a by now familiar nightmare, the Utah offense struggled to move the ball throughout the night.

Quarterbacks Nate Johnson and Bryson Barnes combined for just 141 passing yards. Believe it or not — and you should probably believe it by now — the Utes hadn’t scored an offensive touchdown in five quarters before tight end Thomas Yassmin’s fourth-quarter touchdown.

Amid the offense’s struggles, the defense worked hard to keep the Utes in the game. After allowing Oregon State’s star running back Damien Martinez to score in the first quarter, defenders locked things down and held the Beavers scoreless for the second quarter.

But in the second half, Utah made some costly mistakes. As the FS1 commentators pointed out, it’s nearly impossible to continue performing at a high level when you have few chances to get off the field and rest.

Related
Highlights, key plays and photos from No. 10 Utah’s loss to No. 19 Oregon State

Utah needs Cam

At this point, it feels as if the Utah offense’s only hope for improvement rests on Cam Rising’s surgically repaired knee. The former starter has been stuck on the sideline so far this season as he awaits his doctor’s clearance to play.

On Friday, Utah’s quarterback struggles were about more than just the passes and handoffs being made.

1 of 17
Utah tight end Thomas Yassmin (87) rushes for a touchdown against Oregon State during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
2 of 17
Utah quarterback Nate Johnson (13) drops back to pass against Oregon State during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
3 of 17
Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei (5) dodges Utah cornerback Tao Johnson (15) during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
4 of 17
Oregon State wide receiver Silas Bolden (7) dodges Utah cornerback JaTravis Broughton (4) during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
5 of 17
Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei (5) drops back to pass against Utah during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
6 of 17
Oregon State wide receiver Anthony Gould (2) is brought down by Utah cornerback Zemaiah Vaughn, back, during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
7 of 17
Oregon State running back Damien Martinez (6) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against Utah during the first half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
8 of 17
Oregon State wide receiver Silas Bolden (7) scores a touchdown against Utah during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
9 of 17
Utah tight end Thomas Yassmin (87) celebrates his touchdown against Oregon State with Luca Caldarella (19) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
10 of 17
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham walks along the sideline during the second half of the team's NCAA college football game against Oregon State on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
11 of 17
Oregon State running back Damien Martinez (6) is brought down by Utah safety Sione Vaki (28) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
12 of 17
Utah tight end Thomas Yassmin (87) runs past Oregon State linebacker Andrew Chatfield Jr. (10) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
13 of 17
Oregon State wide receiver Silas Bolden (7) slips a tackle by Utah cornerback JaTravis Broughton (4) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
14 of 17
Utah quarterback Bryson Barnes (16) looks for a receiver during the second half of the team's NCAA college football game against Oregon State on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
15 of 17
Utah wide receiver Devaughn Vele (17) is tackled by Oregon State linebacker Melvin Jordan IV (44) and defensive back Noble Thomas (21) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
16 of 17
Oregon State coach Jonathan Smith walks the sideline during the second half of the team's NCAA college football game against Utah on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. Oregon State won 21-7. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press
17 of 17
Oregon State quarterback Aidan Chiles (0) and running back Damien Martinez (6) celebrate the team's 21-7 win over Utah with fans following an NCAA college football game Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in Corvallis, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) | Amanda Loman, Associated Press

Barnes and Johnson were both dealing with injuries. Late in the game, Johnson had to keep playing while heavily limping since Barnes had gone down on a dirty tackle earlier in the game.

View Comments

The good news for Utah is that Rising likely will be available Oct. 14, which is the next time the team will take the field for a game. Rising is already splitting practice reps with Johnson, as the Deseret News previously reported, and the FS1 commentators said he could be cleared by his doctor as soon as this coming week.

Things could get worse before they get better

Even if Rising comes back and leads Utah to a relatively easy win against unranked California on Oct. 14, the Utes’ October outlook is challenging.

That’s because Utah’s upcoming schedule includes No. 8 USC (Oct. 21) and No. 9 Oregon (Oct. 28), two teams that will be very hard to defeat.

At 4-1, Utah can still make it a great season. But to do so, they’ll have to get the offense in gear and the defense more rest.

Join the Conversation
Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.