Silver Linings: Three Utah Utes That Shined Despite Arizona Loss
Sep 30, 2024, 4:50 PM
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH- The Utah Utes suffered their first loss of the season last Saturday night against the Arizona Wildcats by a score of 23-10. Noah Fifita was able to do enough on offense with 197 yards and two touchdowns, giving his defense a cushion, which held Isaac Wilson to 50% passing and two interceptions. The Utes will now enter the bye week, hopefully giving veteran quarterback Cam Rising enough time to recover and return for the second half of the season.
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While dark clouds and questions still loom from the disappointing loss, there were some bright spots on both sides of the ball, that can give Utah fans something to hope for as Utes faithful will have to wait two more weeks to watch their team play. In the face of calamity, these three Utes had standout performances versus Arizona.
Saturday’s Standouts For The Utah Utes
Dorian Singer
Dorian Singer had a chip on his shoulder as he faced his former team. The senior wideout nearly set a new career mark as he tied his all-time high with nine receptions, going for 155 yards. Singer averaged 17.2 yards per reception with a long of 37 yards. Saturday also marked Singer’s fourth 150+ yard game of his career. Dorian is still looking to catch his first touchdown of 2024, but with numbers like these and the trust of his quarterback, he shouldn’t have to wait too much longer.
Dorian Singer & Caleb Lohner Combine for a Quick TD Drive for the Utes during the 4th Quarter #Big12FB | #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/rBSv8LexxD
— Big 12 Studios (@big12studios) September 29, 2024
Caleb Lohner
Caleb Lohner, who started his college athletics journey as a power forward on the BYU basketball team in 2021, has become a prolific red zone threat for the Utah Utes in 2024. Lohner has three catches on the year, all of them for touchdowns. Lohner’s hot start to his college football career has him sitting in second place on the team in receiving touchdowns, only one behind fellow tight end Brant Kuithe, who has caught four.
3 career catches, 3 career TDs for @caleblohner 👊
📺: @espn #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/wVXp8pKac6
— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) September 29, 2024
Tao Johnson
The sophomore from Idaho Falls hit a few milestones in his young career on Saturday. Tao recorded a new personal high with nine total tackles, six of them solo against the Wildcats. Johnson also recorded his first collegiate interception, picking off Noah Fifita in the end zone.
First career INT for @thatboytao 🙌
📺: @espn #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/De7Q0AS6af
— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) September 29, 2024
What’s Next For The Utah Utes?
After the bye week, the Utes will travel to Tempe to take on Arizona State in a late-night matchup that kicks off at 8:30 p.m. MT.
Tanner Tripp is a sports writer for KSL Sports covering all teams across the state of Utah. Follow him on X @tanner_tripp and Instagram @tanner.tripp here.
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