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Making The Rounds: Las Vegas Bowl Edition

question and answer session between SB Nation's Block U and OBNUG and here is one of the questions asked to Block U:

2. If Boise State could pick one player from your team to come play with them, who would it be? If you could pick one Boise State player to go play for your team, who would it be? Explain.

Shaky Smithson. He's really done it all this season. He's thrown a touchdown, returned kicks for touchdowns, caught touchdowns and I'm sure scored with your wife and or life partner. He's just that good. Unfortunately, he's also a senior and that means the Las Vegas Bowl will be his last appearance in a Utah uniform. But it's been one helluva season.

Kellen Moore, without question, is the guy Utah would love to have. Do I really have to explain why the Utes would take him? He's, in my opinion, the best quarterback in the nation.

This has probably already been seen by most, but here ya go from Block U:

Additionkellenmoore_medium

Keys to to victory for Utah and Boise State:

Turn Shaky loose

Did you know that in 9-out-of-12 games this season, Titus Young had at least one 40+ yard reception? There simply haven't been many DBs that can keep up with Young when he's on, and more importantly, when Kellen is. Coach Harsin would do well to test the mettle of the Ute secondary by seeing if they can keep Young in front of them. If they can't...the Bronco offense will make them pay in a hurry. The double-edged sword for the Utes is that if they sell out and double-cover Young to take away the deep ball, Austin Pettis, Tyler Shoemaker, or a slew of tight ends can make them pay anyway. The Broncos have the weapons...and this will be Titus' last game as a Bronco.

Turn the kid loose and see what happens.

If you could point to one glaring weakness on the 2010 Bronco squad, it would be special teams coverage. Game after game, it seemed the Broncos allowed long returns by missing tackles, taking poor angles, or overpursuit. Ute return man Shaky Smithson may be the best punt returner in the nation...better than OSU's James Rogers...and you probably remember what he did to the Broncos in September. Take shots downfield

Actual title from the Salt Lake Tribune: Whittingham gives QB Cain vote of confidence. What other choice does Kyle Whittingham have:

Whittingham believes Utah's bowl practices, along with the knowledge that Cain will start rather than being inserted in a game at a moment's notice, will make a big difference in the way the senior quarterback plays.

"He had a couple of bad series, no doubt about that," Whittingham said. "But this is a whole different situation and we've tailored the game plan to his skill set and he has had all the reps with the ones. I don't draw a comparison to the last game, but expect more of what we saw last year when he was the starter."

What the Mountain West could have been if Utah, BYU and TCU stayed:

"If we had stayed and TCU and with Boise State coming in, I'm not an expert on how that formula all works, but I gotta believe that we would have been a strong, strong candidate to become an AQ conference," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said.

This does not awkward at all!

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