Week 11 of the college football season saved the game of the week for last, as Utah and Arizona played an absolute epic deep into the night in Tucson. At the end of the back-and-forth affair, the No. 2-ranked Utes escaped with a 40-39 win over the No. 23 Wildcats.
Utah overcame a lot on the field to get the win in this game, including a barrage of big plays from star Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita. But the Utes also had to get past some adversity off the field centered around their travel situation.
Friday's FAA ground stoppage impacted the travel plans of a number of schools around the country, and Utah was among them. The Utes were slated to fly to Tucson on Friday afternoon, but were stranded by the grounding of flights. By the time the flight ban was lifted, Utah had already headed home to sleep in their own beds before flying out on Saturday morning.
According to star quarterback Devon Dampier and wide receiver Creed Whittemore, staying at home on Friday night may have actually helped the Utes out, per Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports.
“I got good sleep,” said Dampier.
“Some of those hotel pillows are crazy!” Whittemore added.
It gave the Utes kind of a high-school feel. Whittemore's dad, a high school football coach, acknowledged that to his son on Saturday. Even despite the game getting moved back three hours to 10:30 p.m. EST, Utah was ready to play and put on one of their best offensive performances of the entire season.
Article Continues Below“Taking it back to high school!” Whittemore laughed, per Dellenger.
Dampier didn't have his best day statistically, finishing 14-of-25 with 204 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. He also ran for 100 yards and two scores, and his playmaking ability in the pocket was one of the differences in the game in the end.
Whittemore led Utah in receiving, finishing this game with five catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. His 70-yard score on a perfect pass from Dampier with under three minutes left proved to be the difference that got Utah to 10-0.