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Tucson, Ariz. • This is exactly what the Utah Utes want from quarterback Jon Hays.
In Saturday's 34-21 defeat of Arizona, Hays delivered just the kind of downfield passes that the Utes needed, burning the Wildcats for two long touchdowns.
Hays' touchdown passes of 65 yards to DeVonte Christopher and 44 yards to Reggie Dunn accounted for more than half of his 199 yards. Those throws not only provided critical points, but they also forced Arizona to honor him and create more running room for John White.
The receivers "just burned 'em off the line, really," Hays said. "They're great playmakers. I mean, [those were] some easy throws for touchdowns."
After a rough night against California two weeks ago, when he was briefly benched, Hays has recovered nicely with four touchdowns and — perhaps more importantly — no interceptions in two games. After six starts in place of the injured Jordan Wynn, Hays is showing signs of dependability.
"He's more confident, he's making better decisions, he's not forcing the ball into coverage," said Ute coach Kyle Whittingham.
Hays' teammates are impressed with his growth, how he's studying his opponents during the week and continuing to improve. "The more he plays, the better he gets, in my opinion," Christopher said.
With more production from the passing game, the Utes are becoming more balanced and White is finding more space to run. As Hays said, "We've got to take advantage of those one-on-one matchups when they give it to us."
The progress is incremental, statistically. Having entered the game with a 306-yard average, ranking 112th in the country in total offense, the Utes gained 332 yards Saturday.
But they have lost only one turnover in two games, and the offense is turning the defense's takeaways into points.
Arizona's Nick Foles is another of the Pac-12's elite quarterbacks the Utes are facing this season, while countering with a player who was overlooked by schools at this level. Yet for much of Saturday's game, Foles was the quarterback who was struggling and Hays was the one gaining confidence and making proper reads and throws.
Foles finished 25 of 43 for 326 yards and two touchdowns, but each of his two interceptions led to a Utah touchdown and he was sacked twice on big third-down plays. Hays was 12 of 21 for 199 yards.
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