Kyle Whittingham details why Cam Rising wasn’t able to play vs. Oklahoma State and what lies ahead for veteran QB

As Cam Rising warmed up ahead of Utah’s marquee matchup at Oklahoma State, he had lots of eyes on him.
Everyone was locked onto Rising during pregame warmups, from fans in the crowd at Boone Pickens Stadium to media members to, most importantly, Utah’s coaches.
Utah’s veteran quarterback, who is recovering from a right ring finger injury suffered in the Utes’ Week 2 victory over Baylor, went through early warmups about 90 minutes before the game with a glove on his throwing hand. He looked relatively good throwing the ball, even from distances of more than 40 yards, and 40 minutes prior to kickoff, took snaps in padded warmups from starting center Jaren Kump.
Rising was seemingly on track to see his first action in six quarters, but during those final warmups, Utah’s coaches didn’t see what they needed to from Rising, with his finger injury impacting how much velocity he could put on the ball.
“Not enough velocity on the ball. Plain and simple, just not able to spin it like he needs to and just didn’t have that zip on the ball,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said.
Even though Rising was cleared by doctors to play on Saturday, as they huddled about 20 minutes before kickoff, Utah’s coaching staff decided that a fully healthy Wilson would give the Utes the best chance to win over Rising, who couldn’t throw the ball like his usual self.
That speaks a lot to how much trust that this coaching staff has in Wilson. Had this scenario occurred last year, I think Utah would have rolled with Rising, even though his velocity wasn’t where it needed to be.
Rising got the majority of the first-team snaps during the beginning of the week, with Wilson taking some as well, but by the midpoint of the week, as the issues with Rising throwing the ball crept up, the plan switched to have Wilson take the majority of the first-team reps.
“Gave Cam some time off later in the week to see if we can get him feeling better and then test him pregame,” Whittingham said.
When Rising didn’t pass those tests pregame, it was on Wilson’s shoulders — on short notice — to lead Utah in its biggest game thus far, a pivotal Big 12 opener that could have an impact on the conference title race.
In Utah’s 22-19 win, its first-ever in the Big 12 Conference, Wilson threw for 207 yards and a touchdown, completing 17 of 29 passes while getting picked off two times.
There was the bad — Utah needed to finish more drives with touchdowns, Wilson had some missed reads and errant throws, and of course, the two interceptions — but the positives outweighed the negatives, especially when you consider the situation he was thrown in.
The touchdown to Kuithe was a bright spot, and just like he did against Utah State, Wilson settled in during the second quarter and completed 9 of 10 passes during a stretch. He’s shown the ability to make high-level throws above his experience level, and despite the interceptions, Wilson never looked rattled at any point in the game.
That confidence and ability to shake off bad plays is an intangible that is extremely important.
“He’s got the ‘it’ factor. For a quarterback, that’s so critical. You got to have the guy that has that ‘it’ factor, that leadership and the players really sense it. They love playing for him. I mean they got a ton of confidence in him and he’s fearless,” Whittingham said.
Wilson’s best plays on Saturday came on the ground, where he converted three third- or fourth-down tries with his legs, including a 48-yard scramble on third-and-11 that showed his quickness.
“He’s excellent runner,” Whittingham said.
Though he only led one touchdown drive, Wilson put the Utes in position to kick field goals, and on a day where the Utes’ defense was mostly dominant, that was good enough for Utah to win.
Going forward, however, more drives have to finish in the end zone.
“Red zone production, not enough. Offensively, we left points out there again and that’s going to catch up with us as well if we don’t get that corrected and become better in the red zone,” Whittingham said.
As the 4-0 and No. 10 Utes host Arizona this Saturday in a “Big 12 After Dark” matchup, the question that has lingered over the program, and the fanbase, is once again relevant.
Who’s going to start at quarterback on Saturday?
Rising is cleared to play by doctors and wants to play. If Rising is able to throw the ball well enough in practice and warmups and Utah’s coaches feel like he’s healed enough to play at the level that they expect from him, it’ll be Rising returning to the field.
“I think we’re past that point where you have to worry about reinjury or anything like that,” Whittingham said, pausing for a moment, then saying, “Hopefully. Knock on wood.”
While Utah is obviously hoping Rising is back under center this week, if he isn’t, Wilson has progressed enough that Whittingham is comfortable starting the true freshman. The full menu of plays is pretty much available to Wilson, and while Rising has more command over the playbook thanks to his experience, Whittingham said the game plan will be similar regardless of who starts.
Though the offensive game plan would probably lean a little more pass-heavy in the event that Rising plays, Whittingham and Ludwig have given Wilson plenty of opportunities to throw the ball in the last two games.
“There’s not really, a lot, as much difference as you’d think in the play-calling or the game plan based on who’s at quarterback. Now, there was three weeks ago, but this week it was very similar, not exact, but very close to what Cam would have at his disposal,” Whittingham said.
Whether it’s Wilson or Rising at quarterback against Arizona on Saturday, the Utes just hope it’s not a game-time decision again.
“Hopefully he’s further ahead, and if so, then maybe that clears the picture up sooner. So can’t give you an answer right now until, again, we see him throw,” Whittingham said.