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1973 Utah Utes football team

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American college football season

1973 Utah Utes football
ConferenceWestern Athletic Conference
Record7–5 (4–2 WAC)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorJim LaRue (6th season)
Home stadiumRobert Rice Stadium
Seasons← 19721974 →
1973 Western Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 9 Arizona State + 6 – 1 – 0 11 – 1 – 0
Arizona + 6 – 1 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
Utah 4 – 2 – 0 7 – 5 – 0
BYU 3 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
New Mexico 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Wyoming 3 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Colorado State 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
UTEP 0 – 7 – 0 0 – 11 – 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 Utah Utes football team was an American football team that represented the University of Utah as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. In their sixth and final season under head coach Bill Meek, the Utes compiled an overall record of 7–5 with a mark of 4–2 against conference opponents, placing third in the WAC. Home games were played on campus at Robert Rice Stadium in Salt Lake City.

Five weeks after the season ended, in early 1974, Meek resigned. Defensive line coach Tom Lovat, a 35-year-old alumnus from Bingham, was retained for the interim for recruiting continuation and was promoted later that month.

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 15at No. 20 Texas Tech*L 22–2938,554
September 22UTEPW 82–627,103
September 29at Oregon*W 35–1731,500
October 6at No. 16 UCLA*L 16–6632,697
October 13Wyoming
  • Robert Rice Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 50–1630,244
October 20at San Jose State*W 28–2112,100
October 27at ArizonaL 21–4234,219
November 3No. 8 Arizona State
  • Robert Rice Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT
W 36–3122,135
November 10at New MexicoW 36–3510,757
November 17Utah State*
  • Robert Rice Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT (rivalry)
W 31–2827,842
November 24BYU
  • Robert Rice Stadium
  • Salt Lake City, UT (rivalry)
L 22–4618,243
December 1at No. 11 (small) Hawaii*L 6–715,662
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1973 Utah Utes football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB 19 Don Van Galder Sr
RB 22 Ike Spencer Jr
FL 25 Steve Odom Sr
TE 45 Willie Armstead Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DT 72 Gary Keller Sr
DT 79 Ron Rydalch Sr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

NFL draft

Four Utes were selected in the 1974 NFL draft, which lasted 17 rounds (442 selections).

Player Position Round Pick NFL team
Steve Odom Wide receiver 5 116 Green Bay Packers
Ron Rydalch Defensive tackle 8 197 New York Jets
Gary Keller Defensive tackle 13 337 Minnesota Vikings
Don Van Galder Quarterback 14 361 Washington Redskins

References

  1. ^ Miller, Hack (January 5, 1974). "Search on for U. coach". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. 6A.
  2. "Ute brass braced for applications". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). January 7, 1974. p. B9.
  3. Ferguson, George (January 25, 1974). "Lovat, Riehlman top Ute list". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D1.
  4. "Lovat gets Utah's grid post". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). January 26, 1974. p. 6A.
  5. Rock, Brad (January 24, 1997). "Lovat, like U. football, moved to better days". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). p. D1.
  6. "Raiders ax Utah, 29–22". Bryan-College Station Eagle. September 16, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Utes rout UTEP, 82–6". The Daily Herald. September 23, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Utah gives Ducks 35–17 shellacking". The Arizona Republic. September 30, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "UCLA on 66–16 tear of Utah". Oakland Tribune. October 7, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Utes shatter Pokes, 50–16". Casper Star-Tribune. October 14, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Utes stop San Jose". The Salt Lake Tribune. October 21, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Arizona charges to 42–21 victory over Redskins". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. October 28, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Arizona State errors aid 36–31 Utah upset". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 4, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "Utah prevails on PAT pass by Van Galder". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 11, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Utah escapes with 31–28 victory over Utah State". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. November 18, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. "BYU gives Utes 46–22 snow job". The El Paso Times. November 25, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Rainbows surprise Utah in the slop, 7–6". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. December 2, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Ute Record Book" (PDF). University of Utah. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 13, 2011. Retrieved October 21, 2009.
  19. "1973 NCAA Football Statistics (Utah)". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  20. "Oregon-Utah lineups". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). September 29, 1973. p. 4B.
  21. "Odom goes in 5th round". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). UPI. January 30, 1974. p. D1.
  22. "Several area stars taken in grid draft". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). Associated Press. January 31, 1974. p. 2D.
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