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Utah Football’s Isaac Wilson and Caleb Lohner connect for the first TD

Utah Football’s Isaac Wilson and Caleb Lohner connect for the first TD

Vaseline 1 week ago

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Football tight end Caleb Lohner hauled in his third touchdown catch of the year, putting the Utes within striking distance of Arizona in the fourth quarter.

The scoring drive was set up by a Tao Johnson interception on the first play of the fourth.

RELATED: Tao Johnson Picks Noah Fifita to Give Utah Fourth Quarter Spark

After having just 46 yards of total offense in the third quarter, freshman QB Isaac Wilson led Utah on a 6-play, 80-yard drive before finding Lohner.

After switching from college basketball with Baylor and BYU to football, the 6-foot-4 tight end has a pretty clear role in Salt Lake City.

He has three catches so far in his Utes career and all three were for touchdowns.

The score left Utah only six points behind,

However, they couldn’t build on that momentum and the Wildcats quickly extended their lead to 13.

Three game day thoughts from Utes Insider Steve Bartle

1. Night game at Rice-Eccles Stadium

Utah has really leaned into the Dark Mode theme this season. As they should. There is something very special about Rice-Eccles at night.

“I don’t know what it is, but there’s something magical about Rice-Eccles and night games,” head coach Kyle Whittingham said during last week’s press conference.

The atmosphere in the stadium tonight should be quite electric. It’s been a while since the last home evening game for the Utes, there were none last season.

RELATED: Utah Football Vs. Fan guide to Arizona: TV info, what to wear, top storylines

Utah is also coming off a rather memorable road win at Oklahoma State, a fairly ideal scenario for homecoming week. This weekend was all about the throwback uniforms, which now also feature an all-black set to match the Dark Mode theme.

There is certainly a lot of excitement heading into this game, defensive tackle Junior Tafuna summed it up best earlier this week.

“Rice-Eccles is always louder in the dark,” he said. “Rice-Eccles is going to pop, it’s going to be loud and I’m excited, we’re all excited.”

2. A chance at 5-0 with all the context surrounding the start of this season

Utah football has a chance to do something big this weekend in the Big 12 Conference.

But first, consider that Utah has seen their star quarterback in action in four quarters this season.

Not only that, but they also lost their No. 2 cornerback in the first few series of the season. Then their veteran defensive leader and top pass rusher have each missed the last two games.

Still, Utah has a chance tonight to improve to 5-0 and solidify their position atop the Big 12. Something many only thought possible if Cam Rising was healthy, let alone Kenan Johnson, Karene Reid and Connor O’Toole.

Regardless of what happens tonight, Utah has positioned themselves favorably with their best ball in front of them.

3. Curious about the new concession process

The fan experience is an important dynamic in football matches. The experience in the previous two home games was not ideal.

Due to significant traffic congestion at the concourse, Utah Athletics and Rice-Eccles Stadium have changed the process surrounding their concessions.

These problems centered around empty soda cups at purchase and long lines at refill stations, exacerbating long-standing congestion problems.

Utah fans will now receive a full soda cup with their first purchase. That eliminates the primary problem of having to wait in an extra line to fill the cup with soda, both initially and as a refill. Additional soft drink vending machines have been installed to speed up the entire process for fans as well.

Curious to hear how much these changes help the fan experience tonight.

Follow Utah insider Steve Bartle for the biggest Utah Football storylines or check out his coverage at KSLSports.com.

Chandler Holt is co-host of the Jazz Notes podcasta Locals In The NFL Insider and a digital sports producer for KSLSports.com. To follow Chandler on X for Utah Jazz and Locals In The NFL updates.

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