Utah Utes 2008 Season Review

Mitchell Rose
SJHS Staff Writer

The Utah Utes went to a 13-0 season after playing in and beating the SEC powerhouse Alabama in the Sugar Bowl on January 2, 2009. The 31-17 victory over the Crimson Tide raised eyebrows to other BCS schools who don’t even know where Utah is because nobody expected them to win. The Utes also finished as the only undefeated team in the country, and some ask “Why aren’t they in the national championship game?” In the final AP poll, Utah finished at number 2 in the nation, behind Florida, who won the national championship game against Oklahoma.

Though Utah did not finish as the number one team in the country, Utah fans were excited about this season because of the National exposure and beating a team that had only one loss that was against Florida.

Utah has won fourteen games in a row, which is the longest winning streak in the nation, and they have the longest bowl streak in the nation at eight. Utah is 11-3 in all-time bowl games which is the best percentage in the nation by teams that have played in at least 10 bowls.

Fans have games that excited them the most. Zach Nemelka, a ninth grader at SJHS, said that his favorite game to watch was the comeback game against Oregon State. Brian Johnson led the runnin’ Utes down the field and scored a critical two point conversion, after doing nothing all game long. Louie Sakoda then kicked a field goal as time expired to win the game. Alex Creer, an eighth grader at SJHS, said that his favorite game this season was the BYU win 48-24.

Jeremy Schanderl, an eighth grader at SJHS, said that his favorite player is Louie Sakoda (“King Louie”). He is one of the top kickers and punters in the NCAA. He has made 22-24 of his field goals and has punted for 2357 yards this season. He is a secret weapon for Utah and could be one of the biggest losses this season because he is a senior.

Alex Creer’s favorite player is Brian Johnson, Utah’s Quarterback. In his final year at Utah he had to make sure that he made it meaningful, and he did. 68% of his passes were complete and he threw 27 touchdowns. He has also won more games as a starting quarterback then anybody that has ever played for the University of Utah.