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SALT LAKE CITY ? Hall of Fame football coach George Allen is widely recognized as the "Father of Special Teams." Allen, while a defensive football coach at heart, emphasized special teams play and is the first NFL head coach to hire an assistant coach dedicated to special teams. I'm guessing that if Allen is watching the University of Utah football team play from that big sideline in the sky this season, he is probably smiling.
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham's team has been explosive and dominant in the area of special teams this year. Credit goes to special teams coach Jay Hill and the guys on the various units for their ability to change the momentum and field position in just about every game Utah has played so far this season. I asked Whittingham what makes a great special teams unit, and he told me it's getting guys who don't always play a ton to buy in and make it their priority. That is exactly what's happened for the Utes. When you look at the Utah special teams unit, the first thing that jumps out at you is Shaky Smithson ? and with good reason. The senior from Baltimore has become one of the most dangerous return men in all of college football. Smithson is third in the NCAA in punt returns, averaging 23.4 yards per return with one touchdown, and he ranks third in the Mountain West in kickoff returns, averaging 28.6 yards per return. Smithson is also the only NCAA player with three 70-plus yard punt returns this season and has already been named the Mountain West Conference special teams player of the week three times this year. Then you throw in newcomer Reggie Dunn and his 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown last week in Ames, Iowa, and the Utes have more speed and weapons than they've had in a long time in the return game. As a team, the Utes lead the nation in kick-return average and rank third in the country in punt return yardage. You get the sense that any time and every time the ball is kicked to Utah this season, a big play is on the horizon. Smithson and Dunn are the headline guys, but there are a number of Utes who have contributed to the special teams' dominance. Junior Greg Bird has delivered a number of huge blocks to spring Smithson, and freshman Mike Honeycutt has blocked a punt and made a touchdown-saving tackle on a kick return against San Jose State. In both 2004 and 2008, Utah was outstanding in the area of special teams, and we know how those seasons worked out for the Utes. I'm not saying that 2010 will have the same conclusion as '04 and '08, because there is still a ton of football to be played. But as good as those teams were, they weren't as explosive or as talented in the kicking and return games as this edition of the Utes. Utah heads to Laramie this weekend for a final time as a member of the Mountain West Conference. I'm not sure they will need a huge day from the special teams to beat this version of the 'Pokes. Wyoming is coming off a 45-0 loss to TCU last weekend. Oftentimes we use the phrase "stranger things have happened" when talking about potential upsets. Well, Laramie is known for "stranger things" when it comes to Utah-Wyoming matchups, but I'm not sure things can get strange enough for the Cowboys to beat the Utes this time around. I'll talk to you on the radio Saturday afternoon from War Memorial Stadium. Bill Riley can be heard as the radio voice of the University of Utah on gamedays and also on weekdays from 2-6 p.m. on the "Bill and Spence Show" on ESPN Radio 700 AM. TWITTER: espn700bill
