Utah Survives Late Scare to Reach Milestone Not Seen in 18 Years

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Utah escaped Arizona with a 40-39 victory, reaching 10-0 for the first time since 2008 and keeping its perfect season alive.

Utah’s perfect season was slipping away in the closing minutes Saturday night.

The quarterback connected with Creed Whittemore for a 70-yard touchdown, lifting the Utes to a 40-39 victory at Arizona and their first 10-0 start since 2008. That Utah team finished 13-0, giving this year’s unbeaten run a familiar and significant benchmark.

Utah entered Saturday ranked No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings and improved to 7-0 in Big 12 play. The victory extended the program’s nation-leading winning streak to 16 games and kept the Utes positioned for a conference championship push.

Arizona took a 39-33 lead with just over three minutes remaining, putting Utah’s unbeaten record in immediate danger. Dampier responded by finding Whittemore for the decisive score, and the Utes’ defense stopped the Wildcats on their final possession. Jackson Bennee broke up a fourth-and-2 pass to end the threat.

The finish capped a night that tested Utah long before the final drive.

The Utes fell behind 14-3, their largest deficit of the season. Dampier helped erase it with two second-quarter rushing touchdowns, sending Utah into halftime ahead 17-14. Arizona continued answering, forcing the visitors to overcome three separate second-half deficits.

Dampier finished with 204 passing yards and two touchdown passes, adding 100 rushing yards and two more scores. Running back Daniel Bray supplied a career-high 197 rushing yards and a touchdown as Utah piled up 500 yards of total offense.

The performance also added another milestone to Morgan Scalley’s first full season as head coach.

Scalley improved to 11-0 overall, including last season’s Las Vegas Bowl, and became the first coach in program history to begin his first full season 10-0. Utah has reached that record just three times in school history.

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