With the images of two of his fallen teammates painted on his helmet, their numbers forming a heart on the back, Cam Rising rose up to honor his brothers, Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe, and his teammates, too, the best way he could — with a stirring 43-42 victory over USC.
The Utah quarterback wore that helmet like a crown.
Rising, indeed, was king on Saturday night.
As the final seconds slid off the clock, the monarch gave his football consort, Dalton Kincaid, a hug and, his substantial work done, went about congratulating and celebrating with the rest of his court.
Where exactly would the Utes be without Rising. There’s no question mark at the end of that sentence because it’s not a question, it’s a statement.
As were his numbers: 29 completions in 43 throws for 415 yards, two touchdowns, 60 rushing yards, three more touchdowns and a 2-point conversion for the triumph.
It’s good to be king. It’s even better to win.
How to best describe what happened at Rice-Eccles Stadium on this ridiculously wonderful occasion? Hmm … well, it was ridiculous and wonderful for the Utes and their fans, near and far, a royal flush, a gutsy comeback that saw Utah trail for nearly the entire affair, except for when it mattered most — in the game’s final minute and then, with double-zeros on the clock.
The Utes fell behind inside the first two minutes by seven, fell behind more, by 14, climbed back within seven, fell behind by 14, climbed back, fell back, climbed back, fell back, climbed back … and so it went.
The constant for the Utes through all the competitive undulations was Rising. With the defense struggling, demonstrating some of the same vulnerabilities that had vexed them last week, it was the quarterback who kept his team calm, confident and close, close enough.
When the thing had ended, with the win in hand, Kyle Whittingham used a single word to describe the game … “Incredible.” But, in truth, this kind of football is his worst nightmare. Score, score, chase, chase, score, score, chase, chase. Defenses on both sides collapsing, offenses flying up and down the field, the scoreboard ringing up like a register at Costco.
He hates that stuff.
It was Nick Saban who a couple of years back, after seasons of trying to build dominant defenses, said under the game’s current rules, explosive offense is the key to winning. (Noted: Alabama lost to Tennessee on Saturday, 52-49.) And those attacks commence with a quality quarterback.
Enter Rising.
He’s the one who held the line against the Trojans, kept his teammates believing when their daubers could otherwise have been down. If Utah had to simply outscore USC, so let it be realized, so let it be done.
Nothing is done single-handedly in the complexity of modern college football, but what was achieved by Rising, in a game against the undefeated Trojans, a game to resuscitate — or ruin — Utah’s season after last Saturday’s defeat, was nigh unto it.
Not only did Rising lead the Utes down the field to score their final touchdown, he slammed the lid on victory with that successful 2-point conversion.
In the aftermath, Whittingham was asked why he risked the outcome by going for two in the final minute instead of resorting to and relying on overtime, leaving as he did the result in the hands and on the feet of his savvy quarterback. His response: “He’s a playmaker. He always gets it done.”
Said Kincaid, who had 16 catches for 234 yards himself: “He’s a warrior.”
So, he is.
And he faced another warrior in SC quarterback Caleb Williams.
What we had here, then, was a good ol’ fashioned quarterback battle.
Williams versus Rising.
Both were spectacular. Both were mostly unstoppable — on the ground and through the air. Both made huge plays. Both gave the opposing defense problems it could not solve. Both were leaders of their individual offenses, pumping hope and delivering touchdowns for their teams, Williams from the front, Rising from the back.
Who felt more pressure?
Neither seemed particularly fazed from start to finish in a game that mattered in every way a conference game possibly could for each side. USC rolled in ranked No. 7, looking not just to swing a club on the Pac-12′s defending champion, but to restore a storied program to its proper place atop a league it has ruled for most of its football-playing decades, a league it will shortly abandon for the Big 10.
Nothing like kicking an entire conference to the side on your way out, Utah foremost among those requiring kicking.
And kicked it looked to be for most of the night.
You saw it. It was a freaking circus out there. Explosive plays, broken plays, reverses, methodical runs, creative play-calling, quick scoring drives, extended marches, passes — deep and short and in-between — galore.
Quarterbacks to the left, quarterbacks to the right, moments of brilliance all around.
Rising put up his numbers, Williams hit on 25 of 42 passes for 381 yards and five touchdowns. He also ran for 57 yards.
Defense wins championships? Ha.
Quarterbacks win championships.
And on Saturday night, those QBs had their way.
Until the defenses stiffened late in the third quarter and through the fourth, Williams was the one making the Utes’ resistance look silly. He mixed imagination with his leg and arm talents, dancing around, avoiding would-be sackers, hitting targets all over the field. Those rushing yards set up Trojan touchdowns, again and again.
Staring into the eyes of deep deficits and pending defeat, Rising did similar things for the Utes, pulling them forward. He churned out rugged runs and he made accurate throws. Just as importantly, he got the ball to the right receiver at the right time for the right reasons.
He also absorbed a couple of roughing-the-passer penalties, one that erased an interception he threw in the USC end zone, and one that boosted a drive early in the fourth quarter, a march that helped the Utes level the count at 35.
Looking at it objectively and saying it the way it is, both were bad calls. On the first, Rising was pushed down after throwing when approaching defenders had no clue whether he was actually going to be able to release the ball, the second was a violent-but-legitimate hit.
Hate harping on officials and their sometimes misguided judgments, but those were helpful to Utah but harmful to the game of tackle football. But that seems to be catching among refs at all levels these days.
Back to Rising, as the game wore on, he owned the SC defense, recognizing where those defenders were, where his receivers were, and putting the opponent on the business end of a veteran quarterback in his chosen time and place.
His scoring QB keeper, a show of strength, from the Trojan 1-yard line with 10 minutes left tied the score at 35, and Rising went to the bench looking as though he was taking a seat after leisurely walking his dog around the block.
That left Williams with a chance to answer back, which he did. Again, scrambles and throws, scrambles and throws. Completed throws.
Even without star receiver Jordan Addison, who had limped to the locker room earlier, Williams spotted and found his targets up, down and all around. He got a nice lift from USC’s run game, as well. All told, the Trojans gained 556 yards to Utah’s 562.
Williams’ TD throw to Michael Jackson III, with 6:15 remaining, giving the lead back to SC, 42-35, and everything that led up to it over the covered 90 yards, was another example of his unique ability.
Rising’s answer was rocksteady, including a few third-down conversions, passes and runs en route to one last opportunity to tie the score. It came down to a fourth-and-goal with 48 seconds left, Rising powering through the pack into the end zone.
And then, that memorable two-point attempt at a win: Rising … with … the … carry … through … defenders ….across … the … line … and … boom … victory.
Asked what the win meant for the Utes, Whittingham said, “This keeps us alive.”
More to the point, the Quarterback King kept them alive.
