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SALT LAKE CITY — After this past weekend, things are looking up for Utah football.
The Pac-12 South has gotten easier with the USC program being thrown into the abyss for the rest of the season, while the back-end of the Utes' conference schedule is looking easier by the week.
However, Thursday night’s matchup against 12th-ranked UCLA is an important measuring stick for the Utah program. The Bruins have once again become one of the better teams in college football, averaging 52.7 points a game and surrendering only 18 points. Both performances are good enough for top-20 status nationally.
Remember, Utah narrowly lost to UCLA at the Rose Bowl last year, falling 21-14.
And, like nearly every other team in the Pac-12, the Bruins have an elite quarterback in Brett Hundley, who is throwing for 330 yards a game. Oregon State’s Sean Mannion, who is also a Pac-12 star, shredded the Utes in Week 3, but Utah’s defense responded well in a 20-13 win over rival Brigham Young.
The easiest way for Utah to win this game will be to stop the Bruins, and this week’s Utah-UCLA matchup features a struggle between Hundley and the Utah defense.
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Why this match-up?
Quite simply, Utah can’t afford for another quarterback to come into Rice-Eccles Stadium and abuse them like Mannion did in the Pac-12 opener. Mannion threw for 443 yards and five touchdowns in an overtime victory over the Utes, dropping Utah to 0-1 in the Pac-12 season.
Utah contained BYU's Taysom Hill fairly well in its win over BYU, and made just enough plays against Utah State's Chuckie Keeton to beat Aggies. Indeed, if there has been one common theme in Utah’s victories over FBS teams, it has been when the Utes limit the opposition’s quarterback, they win.
Hundley is one of the Pac-12’s best, throwing for 848 yards with a 66.3 percent completion rating. He also has rushed for 149 yards and averages 4.9 yards per carry. If Utah can limit Hundley’s effectiveness, they will be able to strike a dagger in UCLA’s game plan.
In last year’s close loss to the Bruins, Utah limited Hundley to only 183 passing yards. If Utah limits Hundley to a similar performance, the odds of victory go up exponentially.
Who wins this match-up?
A lot of how Utah does will depend on how it play UCLA schematically. The Utes were effective in using nickleback Mike Honeycutt as a kind of quarterback-spy on Hill, and it would seem that may be the way Utah plays quarterbacks going forward.
Also, Utah’s defensive line performed better as a whole against BYU, after struggling against Oregon State. If the Utes are to come away with a signature Pac-12 home win, they will need the line to be as active as possible.
If the Utes can win this game, it will further cement defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake as a solid West Coast coaching prospect.
However, it is important to remember Utah still struggles with athletic quarterbacks and even more athletic receivers. The Utes surrendered 399 total yards to Keeton, and then allowed Oregon State’s Brandin Cooks 210 receiving yards.
Simply put, the Utes will put up another valiant effort against a Pac-12 power, but UCLA is the class of the Pac-12 South Division, and the Bruins will showcase it on Thursday night.
