Upcoming Event: Football at Wyoming on September 13, 2025 at 6 p.m.
6 p.m.
Football
at Wyoming
Postgame Quotes: Utah vs. Baylor
9/7/2024 5:56 PM | Football
UTAH QUOTES
Head Coach Kyle Whittingham Postgame Press Conference
Opening Statement
"It's good to get the win. As the college football world found out today, it's hard to get wins. We didn't play perfectly, we had a lot that we left on the table. Started out, I thought we were going to win by 40. We got up 17-0 fairly early and we just lost our momentum. Credit Baylor, they hung in there, made some plays, kept fighting. Certainly when Cam left the game, that was a downer for us, but the world can't stop turning when Cam exits the game. We've got to keep playing, which we did, but we have to be productive, which we were not real productive after that. We'll continue to figure that out. Isaac, I thought, did a nice job, didn't turn the ball over, completed some balls. That second-to-last drive we converted three or four first downs. That was really the key to putting the game away was to burn those six or seven minutes off the clock that we did."
"But the real key to the game, the reason we won the football game was our defense. Our defense played lights out. They only got 223 yards, a total of 12 first downs. In this day and age of college football, that's outstanding defense. Blocked a field goal with our defensive block unit, returned it for a touchdown, so they not only kept Baylor in check, they scored and helped our cause in that regard. Still not running the ball as well as we need to, as well as we can. About like last week, just under five yards a carry, somewhere in the 175-yard range. Still need to try to get more takeaways, we did get the strip sack, which set the offense up and was a big play, so really, between that and the blocked field goal for a touchdown, the defense really was responsible for 14 points. They were the player of the game; we have a player of the game after each game and the defense collectively was our player of the game. We have to do a little better job spreading the ball around, getting the ball to our play makers, Dorian Singer is a heck of a receiver, Brant Kuithe is one of the top receiving tight ends in the country, we have to feature him a little bit more. There's things we want to work on if we want to get to where we want to be."
On helping Isaac Wilson get ready to play…
"Today's experience, as well as last week's, was really good for him. To me, he looked much more comfortable, much more in charge today than he did last week, at least his first series or two and that's to be expected. It was his first college experience last week, but threw some good balls, threw a real nice ball to Money and didn't turn the ball over like I said. If he is going to be our quarterback, he has an outstanding ability to run the ball, so we have to look at maximizing that, but for him, he just has to accrue reps. He's getting all the two reps in practice, so he is taking steps forward. He's our guy, he's the No. 2 guy clearly right now."
On the pass rush…
"Connor O'Toole is a tremendous athlete. He came to us as a receiver. I think he was the state high-hurdle champion in New Mexico. He's a great athlete and we recruited him with the intention that he would grow into a tight end or defensive end. He gained 40 pounds, moved to defensive end. He has explosive get-off. As an edge player, your No. 1 asset is your get-off. That's the No. 1 thing you look for in an edge player. He's explosive, he's a relentless player, his motor never stops and he's going to fight you the whole 60 minutes. I thought Van Fillinger played really well and one of the big plays when he hauled that quarterback down, when the quarterback kept and he found a gear that I didn't think he had and got that guy down and that was a huge play there."
On Tao Johnson's performance…
"Tao Johnson is a big play guy. He's the one who returned the blocked field goal for a touchdown. He's got great speed. We don't want to have to move him from safety to nickel or corner because that reduces his freedom and what he and do for us. [Elijah] Davis did a really nice job in Kenan Johnson's absence. If he continues to play like that, we're going to be in good shape. That'll allow us to continue to leave Tao at safety and do what you saw him do today. He's all over the place. He's really tough and we're excited about that."
Freshman Quarterback Isaac Wilson
On his emotions coming in for Rising during the game…
"I've got to stay calm, cool and collected. I have to trust in my teammates, my teammates have to trust in me and, like coach [Ludwig] always says, take care of the ball and great things will happen."
On what he would need to do in the event he has to start next week…
"Be ready. I came into that situation out of nowhere, but I have to be ready. I have to be there for my teammates. There's a lot of plays I could've had back and we're going to go into the film room and evaluate that, but just going through the motions, easy completions, moving the ball. I think I could've helped the defense personally by getting the ball moving just a little bit more, so it didn't put so much pressure on them, but come next week, I'll be ready."
Sophomore Safety Tao Johnson
On his blocked field goal return for a touchdown…
"It happened so fast, I can't even really talk about it. I was debating on getting out of the way or catching it and I was like, screw it, I'm going to catch this. So I caught it and I just took off and it was just green grass. I saw my dog [Zemaiah Vaughn] running up the sideline and just gave him a high-five."
On what changed in the second half…
"I don't think anything changed. Obviously, they have a talented quarterback who can run the ball. They started running the ball a lot more. They started running the ball a lot more on long yardages when we were guarding for the pass and they were just running counters and stuff, catching us off guard. They're a power four team, they're going to make plays. I don't think we played horrible."
On the secondary play…
"We got dogs ready, just waiting to get a chance and get on the field. I believe in every last one of them. I know how hard they prepare. I'm with them when they're doing it and grinding, so I believe in every last one of them."
Â
Senior Defensive End Connor O'Toole
On the message within the defense…
"I think its just doing the same thing every play. In the first half, we were pretty stout and I think it was the first play in that first series, they had that long run. After that, we had to regroup a little bit. They were going fast, so they kept us on our heels a little bit, but it was the same for us. Just do our job and make plays."
On the pressure the defense generated…
"It was a great scheme. I saw the tight end coming away and they ran a little RPO and I just got a clean shot on him there. It was great job by the linebackers echoing those calls and letting us know where those tight ends are in space and being able to see it."
Â
Senior Wide Receiver Money Parks
On the offense in the first half…
"I just felt like we were clicking on all cylinders. We got a little discombobulated at the end, but at the end of the day, we're still clicking, we're still making plays."
BAYLOR QUOTES
Baylor Head Coach Dave Aranda
Opening Statement…
"I think there were just multiple errors through basic fundamental and execution things throughout the week, like in walk-throughs throughout the week 'hey we're going right' and come game day we're going left. I put too much emotion into this, I really wanted this to be a statement game, but I think I probably overdid that. Our guys were fighting and trying to do that and playing too many things. When we got to play the guy right in front of us, we started to play a lot better and that for sure set the tone for the game. I thought the guys continued to fight and play hard with great effort. There is a lot to improve upon and I've got to get better and the team has got to get better."
Â
On the blocked field goal…
"I think the whole thing was kind of deflating, losing is not what we are about and not what we want and not what we want to be associated with so you fight against that. I thought there was resolve on our sideline. I thought let's come back out and get a stop and control what we can control on our sideline."
Â
On what he can point to that was causing those issues in the first quarter…
"I think I put too much emotion into this game. We wanted to play physical, we wanted to play our best ball, we wanted to make a statement, and the guys still do want to do that, but I think it be came too much about that. When it got back to just football and we settled down things started to get better."
Â
On how hard is it when the defense plays so well and the offense doesn't play so well…
"We just want to win. It has been too long, it has been too much of this and we just need to win. However we do win, we will take it."
Keaton Thomas, Linebacker
On how he is feeling after a game like that...
"It is a whole team effort, but we shouldn't have given up that many points in the first quarter. Some guys, myself included were a little anxious, excited for the opportunity in front of us and I think some of us were making some mistakes we usually don't make and it cost us."
Â
On if the Utah offense changed after Rising went out...
"He knows what he is doing, making the checks, he knows what he is doing, has been playing college ball for seven years. The young buck they brought in, he definitely didn't always know what they were doing."
Â
On what the energy was like on the sideline...
"We were good. I feel like we were super energetic, I was making sure nobody was down and everyone was talking. Anybody who was bringing that negative energy we pressed them a little bit and told them we can't have that right now, this is the opportunity you dream about when you are a little kid."
Â
Josh Cameron, Wide Receiver
On the game as a whole...
"I think as a team, playing on the road we had to settle down and find that groove. The defense found that groove toward the end, the first quarter, second quarter and then the rest of the game continued to get better. We [offense]settled down a little bit too, but we just have to finish drives."
Â
Â
Head Coach Kyle Whittingham Postgame Press Conference
Opening Statement
"It's good to get the win. As the college football world found out today, it's hard to get wins. We didn't play perfectly, we had a lot that we left on the table. Started out, I thought we were going to win by 40. We got up 17-0 fairly early and we just lost our momentum. Credit Baylor, they hung in there, made some plays, kept fighting. Certainly when Cam left the game, that was a downer for us, but the world can't stop turning when Cam exits the game. We've got to keep playing, which we did, but we have to be productive, which we were not real productive after that. We'll continue to figure that out. Isaac, I thought, did a nice job, didn't turn the ball over, completed some balls. That second-to-last drive we converted three or four first downs. That was really the key to putting the game away was to burn those six or seven minutes off the clock that we did."
"But the real key to the game, the reason we won the football game was our defense. Our defense played lights out. They only got 223 yards, a total of 12 first downs. In this day and age of college football, that's outstanding defense. Blocked a field goal with our defensive block unit, returned it for a touchdown, so they not only kept Baylor in check, they scored and helped our cause in that regard. Still not running the ball as well as we need to, as well as we can. About like last week, just under five yards a carry, somewhere in the 175-yard range. Still need to try to get more takeaways, we did get the strip sack, which set the offense up and was a big play, so really, between that and the blocked field goal for a touchdown, the defense really was responsible for 14 points. They were the player of the game; we have a player of the game after each game and the defense collectively was our player of the game. We have to do a little better job spreading the ball around, getting the ball to our play makers, Dorian Singer is a heck of a receiver, Brant Kuithe is one of the top receiving tight ends in the country, we have to feature him a little bit more. There's things we want to work on if we want to get to where we want to be."
On helping Isaac Wilson get ready to play…
"Today's experience, as well as last week's, was really good for him. To me, he looked much more comfortable, much more in charge today than he did last week, at least his first series or two and that's to be expected. It was his first college experience last week, but threw some good balls, threw a real nice ball to Money and didn't turn the ball over like I said. If he is going to be our quarterback, he has an outstanding ability to run the ball, so we have to look at maximizing that, but for him, he just has to accrue reps. He's getting all the two reps in practice, so he is taking steps forward. He's our guy, he's the No. 2 guy clearly right now."
On the pass rush…
"Connor O'Toole is a tremendous athlete. He came to us as a receiver. I think he was the state high-hurdle champion in New Mexico. He's a great athlete and we recruited him with the intention that he would grow into a tight end or defensive end. He gained 40 pounds, moved to defensive end. He has explosive get-off. As an edge player, your No. 1 asset is your get-off. That's the No. 1 thing you look for in an edge player. He's explosive, he's a relentless player, his motor never stops and he's going to fight you the whole 60 minutes. I thought Van Fillinger played really well and one of the big plays when he hauled that quarterback down, when the quarterback kept and he found a gear that I didn't think he had and got that guy down and that was a huge play there."
On Tao Johnson's performance…
"Tao Johnson is a big play guy. He's the one who returned the blocked field goal for a touchdown. He's got great speed. We don't want to have to move him from safety to nickel or corner because that reduces his freedom and what he and do for us. [Elijah] Davis did a really nice job in Kenan Johnson's absence. If he continues to play like that, we're going to be in good shape. That'll allow us to continue to leave Tao at safety and do what you saw him do today. He's all over the place. He's really tough and we're excited about that."
Freshman Quarterback Isaac Wilson
On his emotions coming in for Rising during the game…
"I've got to stay calm, cool and collected. I have to trust in my teammates, my teammates have to trust in me and, like coach [Ludwig] always says, take care of the ball and great things will happen."
On what he would need to do in the event he has to start next week…
"Be ready. I came into that situation out of nowhere, but I have to be ready. I have to be there for my teammates. There's a lot of plays I could've had back and we're going to go into the film room and evaluate that, but just going through the motions, easy completions, moving the ball. I think I could've helped the defense personally by getting the ball moving just a little bit more, so it didn't put so much pressure on them, but come next week, I'll be ready."
Sophomore Safety Tao Johnson
On his blocked field goal return for a touchdown…
"It happened so fast, I can't even really talk about it. I was debating on getting out of the way or catching it and I was like, screw it, I'm going to catch this. So I caught it and I just took off and it was just green grass. I saw my dog [Zemaiah Vaughn] running up the sideline and just gave him a high-five."
On what changed in the second half…
"I don't think anything changed. Obviously, they have a talented quarterback who can run the ball. They started running the ball a lot more. They started running the ball a lot more on long yardages when we were guarding for the pass and they were just running counters and stuff, catching us off guard. They're a power four team, they're going to make plays. I don't think we played horrible."
On the secondary play…
"We got dogs ready, just waiting to get a chance and get on the field. I believe in every last one of them. I know how hard they prepare. I'm with them when they're doing it and grinding, so I believe in every last one of them."
Â
Senior Defensive End Connor O'Toole
On the message within the defense…
"I think its just doing the same thing every play. In the first half, we were pretty stout and I think it was the first play in that first series, they had that long run. After that, we had to regroup a little bit. They were going fast, so they kept us on our heels a little bit, but it was the same for us. Just do our job and make plays."
On the pressure the defense generated…
"It was a great scheme. I saw the tight end coming away and they ran a little RPO and I just got a clean shot on him there. It was great job by the linebackers echoing those calls and letting us know where those tight ends are in space and being able to see it."
Â
Senior Wide Receiver Money Parks
On the offense in the first half…
"I just felt like we were clicking on all cylinders. We got a little discombobulated at the end, but at the end of the day, we're still clicking, we're still making plays."
BAYLOR QUOTES
Baylor Head Coach Dave Aranda
Opening Statement…
"I think there were just multiple errors through basic fundamental and execution things throughout the week, like in walk-throughs throughout the week 'hey we're going right' and come game day we're going left. I put too much emotion into this, I really wanted this to be a statement game, but I think I probably overdid that. Our guys were fighting and trying to do that and playing too many things. When we got to play the guy right in front of us, we started to play a lot better and that for sure set the tone for the game. I thought the guys continued to fight and play hard with great effort. There is a lot to improve upon and I've got to get better and the team has got to get better."
Â
On the blocked field goal…
"I think the whole thing was kind of deflating, losing is not what we are about and not what we want and not what we want to be associated with so you fight against that. I thought there was resolve on our sideline. I thought let's come back out and get a stop and control what we can control on our sideline."
Â
On what he can point to that was causing those issues in the first quarter…
"I think I put too much emotion into this game. We wanted to play physical, we wanted to play our best ball, we wanted to make a statement, and the guys still do want to do that, but I think it be came too much about that. When it got back to just football and we settled down things started to get better."
Â
On how hard is it when the defense plays so well and the offense doesn't play so well…
"We just want to win. It has been too long, it has been too much of this and we just need to win. However we do win, we will take it."
Keaton Thomas, Linebacker
On how he is feeling after a game like that...
"It is a whole team effort, but we shouldn't have given up that many points in the first quarter. Some guys, myself included were a little anxious, excited for the opportunity in front of us and I think some of us were making some mistakes we usually don't make and it cost us."
Â
On if the Utah offense changed after Rising went out...
"He knows what he is doing, making the checks, he knows what he is doing, has been playing college ball for seven years. The young buck they brought in, he definitely didn't always know what they were doing."
Â
On what the energy was like on the sideline...
"We were good. I feel like we were super energetic, I was making sure nobody was down and everyone was talking. Anybody who was bringing that negative energy we pressed them a little bit and told them we can't have that right now, this is the opportunity you dream about when you are a little kid."
Â
Josh Cameron, Wide Receiver
On the game as a whole...
"I think as a team, playing on the road we had to settle down and find that groove. The defense found that groove toward the end, the first quarter, second quarter and then the rest of the game continued to get better. We [offense]settled down a little bit too, but we just have to finish drives."
Â
Â
Players Mentioned
DE
/ Football
CB
/ Football
S
/ Football
TE
/ Football
DE
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
CB
/ Football
QB
/ FootballCrimson Corner with Bill Riley - Keith Kelley, voice of the Wyoming Cowboys
Tuesday, September 09
Ute greats Ron McBride and Roy Jefferson Ring of Honor Induction
Monday, September 08
Utah: 63, Cal Poly: 9 | POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE
Saturday, September 06
Crimson Corner with Bill Riley - Ron McBride
Wednesday, September 03