If a student at the University of Utah is to be taken seriously on social media, the Utes’ football team prevented a nuclear disaster on Saturday with a 35-7 victory over San Diego State. In all likelihood, however, it probably wasn’t such a close call.
Police arrested a 21-year-old Utah student Wednesday for an alleged bomb threat on social media. She was booked in Salt Lake County Jail and released later that day. Police claim that on Saturday, the student posted that she would detonate the nuclear reactor on campus if the Utes didn’t win.
Though he recognized that it was likely a joke, Utah Police Chief Jason Hinojosa also defended the police’s no-nonsense attitude toward terroristic threats in a statement.
“We have a zero-tolerance policy for these kinds of threats,” Hinojosa said.
Police also said that officers took the threat more seriously because the student had access to the reactor and knew where it was, having taken classes in the same building. It is unclear how the student’s post came to the attention of police.
In what was likely the best case scenario for everyone, the Utes followed up on a 73-7 blowout against Southern Utah in Week 2 and easily handled the Aztecs to earn a 2-1 record this season. Utes quarterback Cameron Rising threw for 224 yards and four touchdowns while the team’s defense held San Diego State quarterback Kyle Crum to just five completions for 53 yards.
If Utah victories are the only thing keeping civilization from entering a nuclear winter, then the world appears to be safe for at least a few more weeks. The Utes, currently ranked 13th in the Associated Press poll, will play against Oregon State and UCLA next, both underdogs. They don’t play another ranked opponent until Week 6, when they face off against #7 USC at home on Oct. 15.
