Everything Kyle Whittingham and Ryan Day said at their final pre-Rose Bowl press conference
On Friday, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham and Ohio State head coach Ryan Day met with reporters one final time before their teams square off against each other.
On Saturday, the Rose Bowl trophy is on the line.
The 11th-ranked Utes (10-3) will battle the 6th-ranked Buckeyes (10-2) in a matchup that’ll feature some of the game’s best players. On the Utah side, linebacker Devin Lloyd has stolen the spotlight during the run up to the game. For Ohio State, there will be players missing due to opt-outs, but the deadly freshmen backfield of quarterback CJ Stroud and running back TreVeyon Henderson should make for great theater when the Utes have their defense on the field.
Strength on strength. There are intriguing matchups all over the field.
And, fortunately, it seems we’re on pace to see them no problems. While COVID-19 issues have derailed other bowl games across the country this postseason, both coaches expressed confidence on Friday that they’ll be fully ready to roll when kickoff draws near on Saturday.
Here’s everything else that was said:
Kyle Whittingham: "We've been working a long time to get here. It's been a long, hard journey, but our guys got it done this year."
— Josh Newman (@Joshua_Newman) December 31, 2021
Kyle Whittingham on Covey:"One of the best leaders that's ever come through the University of Utah."
Dryly slid a joke in about Covey being n college for 12 years, so good, we got that done.
— Josh Newman (@Joshua_Newman) December 31, 2021
Ryan Day says Utah is similar to some Big Ten teams.
Run the ball, control the clock, etc.
— Josh Newman (@Joshua_Newman) December 31, 2021
Whittingham on the Moment of Loudness: "To be able to honor the two players we lost in that fashion has been terrific. I get choked up every time I experience it.
"It's a great way to keep their memory alive."
— Josh Newman (@Joshua_Newman) December 31, 2021
On what concerns him about Ohio State, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham says "everything. … no weakness."
— Griffin Strom (@GriffinStrom3) December 31, 2021
On the absence of Sevyn Banks, Cody Simon, Antwuan Jackson and Marcus Williamson in practice, Day says there are a "few guys in there" that are game-time decisions.
— Griffin Strom (@GriffinStrom3) December 31, 2021
Kyle Whittingham says he has "all the respect in the world" for Urban Meyer, and that "it just seemed to snowball and kind of get away from him" in the NFL.
— Griffin Strom (@GriffinStrom3) December 31, 2021
On COVID-19, Day says there's been "a few isolated incidents," but that he's confident the Buckeyes will have a full roster available.
— Griffin Strom (@GriffinStrom3) December 31, 2021
Ryan Day reiterated Ohio State has only had a few isolated COVID-19 cases ahead of the Rose Bowl and expects to have a "full roster." On Monday, he said none had impacted key personnel.
Kyle Whittingham said Utah hasn't had virus issues. "Knock on wood."
— Joey Kaufman (@joeyrkaufman) December 31, 2021
Whittingham asked about the moment of loudness at the Rose Bowl. "To be able to honor our two players that we've lost in that fashion is terrific. I get choked up every time we go through it. … Thankful we're able to implement that one more time this season."
— Josh Furlong (@JFurKSL) December 31, 2021
"The way they have played down the stretch. Tremendous amount of respect for Coach Whittingham and his program." – Ryan Day on Utah#GoUtes #RoseBowl
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) December 31, 2021