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SALT LAKE CITY — Continuing on with the college football preview weekly themes, it is now time to pick my three favorite games on the Utes schedule.
USC
This is always a favorite. The Utes are 0-2 vs. USC since joining the conference, but the games against the Trojans have been fairly close.
It took a blocked field goal the first game, and after a wonderful start the second game, Utah unraveled with dumb mistakes against USC in 2012.
Realistically, this might be a year the Trojans could get beat. They are without Matt Barkley for the first year, which simply brings questions to the most important position on a football team.
I don't know if the Utes have the team to beat USC this year, but Kyle Whittingham's teams have been right there the last two years; perhaps this is the year Utah gets the best of USC.
Stanford
For the first time since joining the conference, the Utes receive the schedule change, and with that, two Top 10 teams.
Stanford has grown to one of the premier programs in the country, with David Shaw at the helm. The Cardinal is big and physical, and they do not beat themselves.
This game with thankfully be at home in Rice-Eccles Stadium, which will help the situation immensely. This is a gauge game for Utah to see how they can compete with the best in the country.
Oregon
The other gauge game on the schedule has to be the other team that was added to the Pac-12 schedule: the Oregon Ducks.
Utah will have a good idea of who and where they are in the college landscape after playing Oregon and Stanford. They are a couple of the best programs in the country, and we will know quickly if Utah is up to the challenge.
The Utes will travel to Eugene, which is one of the best college atmospheres in the nation at Autzen Stadium. Autzen is about half the size of Alabama's and Michigan's stadiums, but just as daunting.
It will be fun to see where the Utes stack up in these three games.
