Cam Rising looked nearly perfect, but Utes coach Kyle Whittingham still had concerns after opener

Cam Rising surveyed the defense while 52,210 fans jumped to their feet and roared around him in Rice-Eccles Stadium.

After snapping the ball, the seventh-year quarterback shuffled backward while a Southern Utah defender split through the offensive line. Rising then zipped a pass forward, absorbed a hit and toppled to the ground with 11:52 remaining in the first quarter.

After spending nearly two years rehabbing from an ACL, MCL, meniscus and MPFL tears, Rising’s first play back ended with an incomplete pass to senior wide receiver Dorian Singer. But, from that point on, the Ventura, Calif., native knocked off the rust and caught fire.

Rising finished the contest 10-of-15 for 254 passing yards and a career-high five passing touchdowns, leading the No. 12 Utes (1-0) to a 49-0 shutout win over Southern Utah (0-1) on Thursday night in Salt Lake City. Alongside the win, he made history moving into fourth all-time on Utah’s career passing touchdown list (50 career passing touchdowns), eclipsing former Utah quarterbacks Alex Smith and Mike McCoy.

“It was special,” Rising said of returning to the field. “All that focus kind of goes out of the way once I said ‘set go’ and really got the game going. So yeah, I’m just focused on winning.”

His performance wasn’t without its imperfections, however. After Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham spent all of fall camp stressing the importance of Rising’s health, the seventh-year quarterback was hit three times while scrambling in the final 5:25 in the first half.

“It’s football, you got to do stuff,” Rising said, when asked about his quarterback runs.

On ESPN 700, he later described how it felt to absorb contact while on the run.

“Those hits are called Scooby Snacks,” Rising said on ESPN 700. “I eat those. It’s just nice and easy. It’s football, you got to get hit and that kind of just gets that adrenaline going that much more.”

Whittingham, on the other hand, said that Rising absorbed too much contact on Thursday.

“It was good to see him moving quickly and being able to cut and do his thing, but there was little too much contact tonight,” Whittingham said. “We’ll try to reinforce that more if we possibly can. But, he’s so competitive and that’s just his nature. But, there was a little more contact than we would have liked.

“Sliding is a good idea or stepping out of bounds if it’s in the vicinity. (We want him) to try to avoid those direct shots. There were probably two or three times where he could have done a little better job of getting out of harm’s way.”

As Utah looks to make a run at a Big 12 Championship and a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff, Rising’s ability to stay healthy will be a deciding factor for its success.

Isaac Wilson struggles in debut

Following a strong fall camp, which earned him the backup gig behind Rising, Isaac Wilson struggled in his debut with the Utes.

The freshman quarterback saw his first action with 21 seconds remaining in the second quarter. In his first play, Wilson was sacked for a 5-yard liss. Two plays later, the former four-star recruit threw an interception.

“Maybe it was a little bit unfair to put him in that spot, but better safe than sorry,” Whittingham said. “Cam played enough. I didn’t want any fluke accident to happen to him.”

Wilson threw another interception early in the fourth quarter but recovered when he fired a 20-yard touchdown pass to tight end Caleb Lohner with 11:05 remaining in the period.

Wilson finished the game with seven completions for 74 passing yards, two picks and one touchdown. Despite his struggles, Utah’s head coach was impressed with his ability to bounce back.

“I thought Isaac came back in the second half and did some much better things,” Whittingham said. “He’ll learn from it. He’ll grow. He’s got all the tools. He has a strong arm. He’s very mobile, as you saw, he made some nice runs for us, but that’s a part of the process.”

Potentially long-term injuries

Following a 2023 season plagued by injuries, Utah saw two of its key defensive playmakers suffer serious injuries on Thursday.

Senior cornerback and Georgia Tech transfer Kenan Johnson was helped off the field and couldn’t put any weight on his left leg after suffering an injury in the first half. He was later seen on the sideline out of uniform wearing a knee brace and using crutches.

Backup senior defensive tackle Aliki Vimahi also suffered a leg injury. Whittingham said both of their injuries “don’t look good.”

“We’ll defer till tomorrow, but it doesn’t look good for either of them,” Utah’s head coach said. “We’ll see what the test results are when they get those scans tomorrow.”

Sophomore cornerback Elijah Davis stepped up in Johnson’s place, nabbing an interception and one solo tackle.

With Utah’s defensive backs room lacking solidified depth and experience, Whittingham said the Utes will have to take a “hard look” to see who will be starting opposite to senior corner Zemaiah Vaughn.

Pulling sophomore safety Tao Johnson to the cornerback position is a possibility, but Whittingham is skeptical of that scenario.

“If it is in fact severe and long-term injury (for Kenan), Tao Johnson would be the first answer,” Whittingham said. “We could pull him back from safety and to the corner position. He’s got experience there. He can do it. We don’t want to have to do that. We’ll see. But if we have to do that’s one answer, right there.”

Alex Smith inducted into Utah’s Ring of Honor

When Smith received a call from Utah athletic director Mark Harlan earlier this year, he did not expect to be inducted into the Utah Football Ring of Honor.

“I thought he was calling for money, asking me for a donation,” Smith said.

Utah’s former quarterback couldn’t help but tear up after finding out what the phone call was for.

“I’m so incredibly grateful for it,” Smith said. “When I found out that we were having a Ring of Honor — and that I was part of it — I felt so much pride.”

Smith finished his career with the Utes with 389 completions for 5,203 passing yards and 47 touchdowns, adding 286 rushes for 1,072 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground. He also led the Utes to an undefeated season and a 35-7 win over Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl in 2004.

Smith was later drafted No.1 overall by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2005 NFL Draft and finished his career with Washington, where he suffered an open fracture of his tibia and fibula, which almost had to be amputated due to an infection.

In 2021, Smith retired from the NFL following a 16-year career that spanned with three franchises. When looking back on his career with the Utes, Smith finds it hard not to get emotional.

“It’s overwhelming,” he said. “I’ve been emotional since I found out. I’m so honored and just so proud of the school.”

After opening the season with a win and honoring Smith, Utah will pivot its focus. Next up the Utes take on Baylor at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7, in Salt Lake City.