Game week has arrived

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham held his first weekly press conference of the season Monday afternoon at the Smith Center. He was joined at the gathering by team captains Brian Johnson, Robert Conley, Brice McCain and Stevenson Sylvester.
It was a routine start to a regular game-week routine for the Utes. They’ll practice four days in Salt Lake before departing for Michigan on Friday morning.
The season opener against the Wolverines is set for 1:30 p.m., MT, Saturday.
“The level of commitment and the attitude of our players has been very good throughout the entire year in preparation for the upcoming season,” Whittingham said in this week’s football notes. “Although we have a tough challenge ahead of us in our opening game against Michigan, our players and coaches are excited to make the trip to Ann Arbor. Playing in the Big House will be a great experience for everyone involved in our program and the national television exposure should be a positive for us in recruiting”
EXTRA POINTS: Whittingham said that sophomore Caleb Schlauderaff will start at left guard, winning a camp-long battle over senior Corey Seiuli for the starting job . . . Senior Aaron Tonga, who was sidelined for much of camp with an MCL strain, returned to practice Monday. Tonga is expected to be in the rotation at defensive tackle . . . According to Whittingham, junior running back Matt Asiata should play 50 percent of the snaps against Michigan — sharing time with senior starter Darrell Mack . . . The Utes have instituted a new policy this season. Practices will be closed to the media after Wednesday.