Coaches' Corner: Sione Po'uha and Freddie Whittingham

SALT LAKE CITY - Coaches' Corner is back again this week as Utah football prepares to open Pac-12 play on Sat., Sept. 25 with a tilt against Washington State inside Rice-Eccles Stadium.

This week, it's defensive tackles coach Sione Po'uha and tight ends coach Freddie Whittingham meeting with the media to assess their respective position groups and look ahead to Saturday's matchup with the Cougars.

Defensive Tackles Coach Sione Po'uha

On losing Viane Moala…
"Viane's physical presence is pretty intimidating, and it is meaningful. You see the impact that he has on our team in the way that our guys rallied at the end [on Saturday]. They did it because of his leadership. Maybe he's not physically here with us, but everybody has purpose through Viane. He's had an influence on us, and will continue to have influence on us."
 
On Junior Tafuna's progress…
"I think all the guys have emerged in their own way. We have that saying, 'next man up.' Well, everybody prepares like they're the next man up. Junior has been one of those guys that has been preparing day in and day out, putting in the work, and when his number is called he's ready to go. That goes for every single guy in the defensive front."
 
On the bye week approaching as a possible chance to reset…
"We're not looking for resting points. We're in the season, and the next game is always the most important game. We don't look for pit stops, or when the next rest area is. Everybody goes. You train the whole year, and you've got 12 opportunities to prove it. It's next game up, and that's what we're getting ready for."
 
On making improvements in the trenches week-to-week…
"Every week, regardless of the opponent, always has to be better. Whether you win or lose, you've always got to make those corrections, continue to get better. I always say 'this week's game cannot live off of last week's preparation.' Every week of preparation is new for [that week's] opponent coming up, so we're always striving to get better."

Tight Ends Coach Freddie Whittingham

On the message and mentality around the team this week…
"The message is that everything is focused on Washington State right now and opening up Pac-12 play. We are 0-0 in conference play, and our goal is to win the Pac-12 South. That's what it's been all about, just getting it done this weekend against Washington State."
 
On the offense finding an identity…
"We've got a lot of playmakers. I think our offense has got to get the ball into the hands of the playmakers. We've got a lot of guys on the offensive side of the ball that can make plays, and if you look at the fourth quarter of the last game, I think that's the offense that we have a good shot of being. Playing fast, playing aggressively, wearing the other team down. That, I think, is going to be our offensive identity. We're not going to change as far our basic philosophy and everything that we do. We've just got to put more points on the board, and that's the focus going through the week."
 
On Dalton Kincaid and strides he's made this season…
"He joined us last summer, before the 2020 season, so he didn't have a bunch of time to get acclimated into the program and into the season. Now with a full cycle in the program, he knows the scheme and his talent can emerge and shine. He can do some things down the field vertically that a lot of tight ends simply aren't able to do. I just think he's a heck of a player and we're blessed to have a bunch of guys in that room that can play at a high level. The more guys that we have in that category, the more we can be diverse and spread the ball around. He's a huge part of that identity of getting the ball into the playmakers' hands."
 
On keeping the offense engaged in-game when the unit is having struggles…
"The first thing you have to do is review what you saw on that last series. We've all got to talk about what we saw, the assignments, were they made or were they not made? Were there things that we need to correct or adjust? That's the first thing you have to do. The second thing in my opinion, as a coach, you have to stay positive, you have to have a lot of energy. [The players] are going to feed off of your direction. I believe you've got to express your belief in them. Especially when you face some adversity, it's more important than ever to believe that you can go back out there and right the ship and get things going. I think that's basically the two things: make the adjustments that you saw from that last series; and stay positive and motivate them to be the type of players that they are, to trust and believe in themselves and in the scheme."

Previous Editions of Coaches' Corner

Sept. 14 - Kiel McDonald (RBs) and Colton Swan (LBs)
Sept. 7 - Andy Ludwig (OC/QBs) and Morgan Scalley (DC/Safeties)