Did you notice that Utah's seasons in the years they lost their starter turned into pretty ho-hum years? It's no surprise that Utah's two magical seasons involved a QB staying healthy all year long.
That's why when Utah fans respond with "well yeah, we've had injuries too" I just think, yeah, thanks for proving the point. Yeah, Utah almost made the Pac-12 championship in the year you're taking about, but that had more to do with USC being ineligible and the rest of the South being awful. I don't think anyone would consider that year a "special" year.
The point remains that Utah is a TW injury this year away from their special season being ruined.