Utah’s Kyle Whittingham provides injury update on QB Devon Dampier after blowout win over Baylor

Devon Dampier wasn’t at full strength during Utah’s 55-28 win over Baylor on Saturday, according to head coach Kyle Whittingham.

In fact, if the Utes (8-2, 5-2 Big 12) were scheduled to play last week, their dual-threat quarterback wouldn’t have been able to go.

“Devon’s a little beat up, but he’s a warrior, he’s tough,” Whittingham said after his team’s impressive outing against the Bears. “He wants to be out there. No doubt about that.”

Dampier didn’t appear on any of Utah’s availability reports leading up to Saturday’s contest from McLane Stadium. He started and finished the Nov. 1 game against Cincinnati after missing the previous week due to injury.

“If we had to play last week, Devon would not have been available to play, Whittingham said.”

Dampier toughed it out for the Utes in their Week 12 bout in Waco, Texas, though he had to make a brief locker room visit in the second quarter following Utah’s second scoring drive of the night. He returned for the Utes’ ensuing drive off the Bears’ first touchdown, but wasn’t heavily featured in the pass or run game during the second half.

Dampier’s status gave backup quarterback Byrd Ficklin a chance to lead the offense. The true freshman seized his opportunities from the get-go, providing the Utes a much-needed spark with a 67-yard rushing touchdown to make it a 21-7 game, followed by an electric 74-yard score in the third quarter to extend his team’s lead to 15 points after Baylor trimmed its deficit to eight with a field goal on the previous drive.

Ficklin was also 2-of-3 through the air for 23 passing yards. Utah leaned heavily on the run, though, especially in the second half, with only five pass attempts between Ficklin and Dampier after halftime.

Ficklin accounted for 166 of the Utes’ 380 rush yards on the night, marking their fifth consecutive game with over 200 rushing yards. That’s the program’s longest such streak since 2018.

Ficklin helped extend the streak three weeks earlier, when he tallied 151 yards on the ground in his first career start against Colorado on Oct. 25.

Time will tell whether the Muskogee, Oklahoma, product makes his second career start next Saturday for Utah’s home tilt against Kansas State. The Utes will look to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive when they host the Wildcats (5-5, 4-3 Big 12) at Rice Eccles-Stadium.

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