Utah’s speed spins Colorado State around in Las Vegas Bowl blowout

By Case Keefer (contact)

Saturday, Dec. 20, 2014 | 7:45 p.m.

The entire Colorado State sideline vacated to the locker room before any Utah players started to make their way toward the end zone for the trophy presentation.

The end of the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl was the first time all afternoon the Rams moved quicker than the Utes. Utah zoomed past Colorado State at Sam Boyd Stadium in the 23rd annual local bowl game Saturday, using sheer speed to race to a 45-10 blowout victory.

“They were faster than us,” said Colorado State interim coach Dave Baldwin.

Way faster. For most of the game, Utah’s offense glided like greyhounds while Colorado State’s defense slogged like sloths.

The discrepancy wasn’t much better on the other side of the ball, helping to explain a 347-yard rushing differential. Utah tore through 359 yards on the ground. Colorado State managed 12 rushing yards.

“We figured their defense would give in if we just ran the ball and executed all day,” said junior running back Devontae Booker, who led Utah’s attack with 162 yards on 26 carries.

But they started through the air. On the Utes’ first play from scrimmage, they called a double-reverse lateral pass.

In an omen for the rest of the afternoon, no Rams defender was within 15 yards of senior receiver Kaelin Clay when junior quarterback Travis Wilson planted his feet to throw. Clay caught the high spiral for a 36-yard completion at Colorado State’s 17-yard line.

“Ball was a little underthrown, or else it would have been a touchdown,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “But we’re not going to complain. It was a big chunk of yards.”

Wilson compensated two plays later, running in an 8-yard touchdown for the game’s first points, and continued to distance himself from the minor mistake for the rest of the afternoon.

He directed a seven-play scoring drive two minutes later that culminated with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Delshawn McClellon. Wilson completed 17 of 26 passes on the day for 158 yards but mostly clipped the Rams with his rushing ability.

He had 11 carries for 91 yards and three touchdowns, winning the game’s MVP award.

“He’s deceptive,” Whittingham said. “He’s moving a lot faster and gaining a lot more ground than it looks when he’s running the ball.”

Colorado State sliced into the 14-0 lead with a trick play of its own when senior quarterback Garrett Grayson took a throwback from senior receiver Charles Lovett for a 39-yard first-quarter touchdown. The Rams cut it to a single-possession game for all of 12 seconds.

Booker guaranteed the margin was never that close again, booking his way through a wide-open hole on the next play for a 60-yard touchdown.

“I almost forgot that play,” Booker said after the game. “What was the play? I don’t even know.”

The Las Vegas Bowl was that type of game: Where one side had so many big plays that they blended together — including for those making them. The Utes' 21 points in the first quarter set a Las Vegas Bowl record. Their 35-point margin of victory was the second-largest ever in the game, behind Oregon State's 55-14 win over New Mexico in 2003.

Utah unveiled a somewhat secret weapon in freshman running back Troy McCormick, who set up a pair of touchdowns and tallied 86 yards on five carries. Local product Bubba Poole joined in the action, scoring the Utes’ final touchdown with a 10-yard run.

The display was enough to confuse anyone about which team came in with an offense ranked in the country’s top 20. Even when Colorado State caught some breaks to halt Utah, which added only a field goal during a 25-minute stretch in the middle of the game, its offense couldn’t capitalize.

Grayson, the nation’s second-most-efficient passer coming into the game, never found time to operate. Utah padded its national sacks lead with three more — from senior Nate Orchard, junior Jason Fanaika and senior Sese Ianu — but hurried Grayson far more often.

The defensive front caused two turnovers, the first when freshman Filipo Mokofisi recovered a fumble in the backfield and the second when sophomore Stevie Tu’ikolovatu leveled Grayson to force an interception by senior Jacoby Hale.

“I don’t think we knew their backs were that fast,” Baldwin said. “But we knew their D-line was going to put pressure on us.”

Case Keefer can be reached at 948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.