This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utah freshman quarterback Travis Wilson rebounded Saturday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium, even if the Utes didn't.
After struggling during a loss at Washington last week — everyone admitted it — Wilson was mostly effective during the Utes' 34-24 loss to Arizona.
"Travis bounced back and played much, much better," coach Kyle Whittingham said. "That was good to see. His completion percentage was much higher and threw for a bunch of yards. He took a step forward."
Although Wilson was unable to rally Utah in the fourth quarter, he ended up completing 28 of 40 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. He did not throw an interception.
On Utah's first scoring drive, Wilson completed 4 of 5 passes for 57 yards. He also ran for 9 yards on the first play, setting the table for what turned out to be an 87-yard march.
The biggest play came off a flea-flicker, when Wilson handed to John White, who looked like he was headed up the middle.
White suddenly stopped, however, and flipped the ball back to Wilson. He calmly stepped into a 42-yard pass completion to DeVonte Christopher, who was wide open over the middle.
Wilson's low point came on Utah's next possession, when he dropped the ball while attempting to pass.
Arizona recovered at the Utes' 27 and scored five plays later to take a 17-7 lead.
Wilson quickly made amends, though, when he drove Utah 70 yards in nine plays for a touchdown that kept the game close.
He completed 4 of 5 passes for 58 yards on the drive, including a 13-yarder to Dres Anderson on third-and-8 and a 34-yarder for a touchdown to Jake Murphy on third-and-3. —
Getting better
Utah quarterback Travis Wilson's passing statistics in the last two weeks:
Opp Comp-Att Yards TDs Int
Washington 8-23 55 0 1
Arizona 28-40 311 2 0