Pac-12: Zack Moss leads Utes in rout

Zack Moss rushed for 150 yards and a touchdown and added a receiving score to power Utah to a 41-10 win over Weber State on Thursday night.

Unexpectedly down 10 to start the game, the Utes responded and tallied 587 yards, and Moss claimed the fourth-longest run from scrimmage in school history when he ran untouched for an 86-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Utah’s Tyler Huntley overcame an early pick to throw for 253 yards and four touchdowns. The Utes showcased a balanced offense of 294 yards on the ground and 293 through the air.

The Wildcats stunned Utah with two quick scores, capitalizing on a muffed punt and an interception and led 10-0 in the first quarter. The Wildcats players danced on the sideline as Utah’s 52nd consecutive sellout crowd went quiet.

“We couldn’t get out of our own way at the start,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “It was a comedy of errors.”

But Weber State couldn’t generate anything after that and Utah scored 41 straight and yielded just 61 yards of total offense, the third lowest mark all-time. The Wildcats’ longest play from scrimmage was 10 yards.

Eventually the Wildcat defense wore down and everything Utah tried -- from jet sweeps to fly patterns to runs up the middle -- looked easy as the Utes pulled away and allowed second- and third-team players plenty of action.

“I thought we were playing dang good defense there for a while and then we went a little haywire there at the end of the second quarter and third quarter,” Weber State coach Jay Hill said.

Utah’s defense had almost as many tackles for loss (11) as Weber State had passing yards (13) to help the Utes overcome a 4-0 turnover deficit.

“We’re not going to win any games in the Pac-12, going minus-4 in turnovers,” Whittingham said.

The Utes have won 11 straight season openers and are now 21-1 in non-conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011.