‘It’s kind of our Super Bowl this year’: Utah will play rare spoiler role against undefeated BYU

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham talks to another coach during a game against TCU at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. The Utes are riding a four-game losing streak into Saturday’s rivalry game against No. 9 BYU. | Brice Tucker, Deseret News

It’s not a situation Utah has been in much during the last two decades of the Utah-BYU rivalry game. For the first time since 2012, the Utes are a home underdog as BYU rolls into Rice-Eccles Stadium as a three-point favorite.

Basically everything written preseason about Utah should have been written about BYU. It’s the Cougars, not the Utes, who are having a storybook season so far, with a No. 9 national ranking, a spot atop the Big 12 standings and a perfect 8-0 record. After failing to make a bowl game in their first year of Big 12 membership, BYU has undergone a stunning transformation.

Meanwhile, Utah is reeling. The Utes, who lost starting quarterback Cam Rising to a season-ending injury, have lost four straight games as offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig resigned in the midst of a string of unproductive performances from the offensive side of the ball.

To say the least, the season has not gone as planned for Utah, and this year it’s the team fighting for bowl eligibility.

“Obviously I would prefer to have that record, but to be on that side where you can ruin their season and kind of have that ‘nothing to lose’ edge, hungry mentality, it’s dangerous.”

Utah linebacker Karene Reid

“All the talk that they talk about how it’s kind of their Super Bowl, it’s kind of our Super Bowl this year. We’re 4-4, they’re undefeated and what better way to ruin their zero than take it away from them,” Utah tight end Brant Kuithe said.

Since the two programs met in September for a decade with Utah in the Pac-12, it’s been quite a while since…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/kind-super-bowl-utah-play-223000872.html

Author : Deseret News

Publish date : 2024-11-08 22:30:00

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