Cam Rising throws 5 TDs in return from injury as No. 12 Utah beats Southern Utah 49-0
SALT LAKE CITY — Cam Rising returned with a career-high five touchdown passes — three to Brant Kuithe — to power 12th-ranked Utah to a 49-0 victory over Southern Utah on Thursday night.
Rising, a seventh-year senior quarterback, shined in his first game since tearing multiple knee ligaments in the Utes’ Rose Bowl loss to Penn State on Jan. 2, 2023, completing 10 of 15 passes for 254 yards and 25 rushing yards as the sellout crowd for the 84th straight time at Rice-Eccles Stadium held its breath with every carry. He left the game in the second quarter with Utah leading 35-0.
Kuithe, who also missed last season and most of the 2022 campaign, caught three touchdown passes, all in the second quarter. He caught a 29-yard TD pass on the first play of the quarter before an 18-yard pass three minutes later. With 1:08 left in the half, Kuithe fended off three defenders en route to the end zone on an 11-yard catch.
Rising’s barrage marked the first time Utah had five passing TDs in a half since Brian Johnson against San Diego State in 2008, the last season Utah went undefeated.
In their first game as a member of the Big 12 Conference, the Utes rushed for 513 yards of total offense in their 15th straight win over FCS opponents. Utah has only reached the 500-yard mark once in 2023, against Arizona State.
Kuithe entered the Big 12 record books by becoming the first tight end to receive three touchdowns in a half.
The Utes have started the year at home 15 times under coach Kyle Whittingham and are 14-1 in those games. They left no doubt in this game, as Rising found Dijon Stanley on a wheel route for a 64-yard touchdown on Utah’s first possession.
Stanley outran the defense on a similar play for a 79-yard TD reception in the second quarter and finished with 150 yards on three receptions while leading the team in rushing with 34 yards.
Starting cornerback Kenan Johnson, a transfer from Georgia Tech, left the field in the first quarter with an apparent leg injury. Cornerback is Utah’s most restricted position, according to coaches entering the season.
TAKE AWAY
Southern Utah: While outmatched by size and speed, the Thunderbirds were able to get some nice runs and QB scrambles in. But their defense seemed unprepared for the wheel routes and some of the multiple tight end positions the Utes showed and couldn’t withstand Utah’s push at the line of scrimmage.
Utah: In addition to the welcome return of Kuithe and Rising, Utah may have found another playmaking threat in Stanley. He rarely played last season, but the coaches promised a “special package” of plays for the sprinter despite being listed as the fourth running back. Utah’s defense was as stifling as usual, with Van Fillinger having two sacks and Elijah Davis having an interception.
CONSEQUENCES OF THE SURVEY
Utah could rise if more surprises occur in the top 10 during the first full weekend of college football.
FOLLOWING
Southern Utah plays at UTEP on Sept. 7.
Utah hosts Baylor on Sept. 7 in a non-conference game that was scheduled before Utah joined the Big 12.
___
Receive poll alerts and AP Top 25 updates throughout the season. Sign up here. AP College Football: And
