Utah football: Utes plan to stripe their stadium against USU

Utah fans who can't decide what to wear to Utah's opener Thursday can get a little guidance from their tickets.

The Utes are holding a promotion to "Stripe the Stadium," in which fans are asked to wear red or white, depending on which section they sit. The information is located on the school website, www.UtahUtes.com.

Jennifer White, Utah's Director of Marketing, said the Utes decided to give the promotion a go due to the popularity of Utah's "blackout games," in which fans are asked to wear all black.

After seeing such programs as Oklahoma, Ohio State, Illinois, Arkansas and West Virginia successfully stripe their stadiums, the Utes decided to join the trend.

"Whenever we call on fans to participate in something like this, it always takes the game up a notch," she said.

Plans are to take a 360 degree, gigapixel image of Rice-Eccles Stadium during the third quarter break to commemorate the event. The image will be uploaded on line, allowing fans to tag people in the picture.

In honor of

The Utes are honoring signee Gaius Vaenuku, who died in a car accident on July 30, by wearing his No. 95 on their helmets. Stickers will also be distributed at the gates for fans. There will also be a pre-game ceremony and moment of silence for Vaenuku.

No plans to rotate

One of Utah's biggest concerns during fall camp was finding a third receiver. Senior Anthony Denham, who had 11 catches for 135 yards last year, came out of camp having claimed that role while Sean Fitzgerald slides in as the No. 4 option.

However, it doesn't sound like Denham improved enough in camp to warrant much time. Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said during Tuesday's Pac-12 teleconference that juniors Dres Anderson and Kenneth Scott continued to distance themselves from the other receivers in camp and will only come out of games if they need a breather.

"They are two guys who need to be on the field," he said.

Sophomore Geoffrey Norwood and freshman Dominique Hatfield are also listed on the depth charts and junior college transfer Andre Lewis is another option, but it sounds like their time will be limited.

Helping out the receiving situation should be tight ends Jake Murphy and Westlee Tonga, who will be used extensively according to co-coordinator Dennis Erickson.