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SALT LAKE CITY — As the summer months begin to roll in, the lusciously green Wasatch Front is becoming more so as the last vestige of snow melts from the rocky peaks.
More than anything, the green serves as a reminder that fall will eventually come, and with it will come a sport that has taken over Utah — college football. Every single NCAA program in the state, both FBS and FCS, has a story line that will be interesting to watch: do the Utes make a bowl game; will the recent allegations against BYU affect the Cougars on the field; can Utah State win a nearly unprecedented third consecutive bowl game; can first-time coach Jay Hill turn around a floundering Weber State program; and how will Gary Crowton’s offense perform at Southern Utah?
Again, the storylines are many, and if the offseason is an indicator, the season will be as drama-filled as any in the state’s history. Specifically, the FBS schools all have a similar agenda of items that need to be accomplished, but to varying degrees. For instance, each team must reach a bowl game (especially the Utes); each team must win the winnable games (especially the Cougars); and each team must win a notable game against a Power Five conference opponent (especially the Aggies).
With that in mind, it’s time to identify the game that will prove to be a turning point for each FBS program in Utah. For each team, this game could be either the launch pad for success, or it could be a sign of disappointments to come.
Utah
Sept. 27 vs. Washington State
Some might identify the previous week’s game at Michigan as the turning point of the season for Utah. However, the reason the Utes didn’t make a bowl game last season was they couldn’t finish off games against conference opponents at home. In the game of woulda-coulda- shoulda, the Utes should have beaten Oregon State, UCLA and Arizona State at home, which would have given them a bowl berth and a record that could have placed Utah in a higher-tier bowl at that.
It’s no secret that expectations at Utah are that the program will return to a bowl game this season, and with a recruiting class that is finally made up entirely of PAC-12 recruits, it’s time for Utah to deliver against an opponent that is in a similar state. Sure, the Washington State Cougars appeared in a bowl game last season, and yes, Mike Leach is rapidly rebuilding the program. The Cougars were fourth in the nation last season in passing (368 yards per game), and return starting quarterback Connor Halliday, who threw for 34 touchdowns last season. Offense isn’t the problem in Pullman; defense is. Last season, Washington State gave opponents 32.5 points a game and struggled even more on the road, giving up 50 points or more in a game twice.
#FBS
For Kyle Whittingham’s Utes, the best way to get to a bowl game is to accomplish three things: win home games, win conference games and win “winnable” games. Beating the Cougars would give the Utes a checkmark in all three categories. A victory over Washington State would also give Utah the necessary momentum to confidently head into a critical two- game conference road stretch, with games against UCLA and Oregon State — two opponents the Utes had on the ropes at home last season. However, a loss in this game could be hard to overcome, as Utah would have little room for error over the remainder of the season, with games against Oregon and Stanford looming in the distance.
BYU
Sept. 6 at Texas
For a moment, let’s forget all of the questions that have to be answered regarding BYU’s offseason issues. Instead, let's remember that in 2014, BYU has a schedule that gives the Cougars a legitimate chance to have at least 10 wins. In the inaugural season of the College Football Playoff, however, it will take an undefeated season and a big win over every marquee opponent on the schedule to give BYU a shot at making it into the conversation. Thus, it will take a big road win at Texas for BYU to stay in the national conversation.
The 2014 BYU schedule is an example of why being an independent is a year- by-year, and game-by-game, situation; simply put, one loss and BYU’s chance at gaining widespread national attention is over. A win over Texas, as it did in 2013, will give the Cougars some national play in the headlines, and coupled with an undefeated season after, would give them an argument to potentially earn a playoff spot. Reality is, even with an undefeated season, BYU is unlikely to earn a spot, but being in the conversation would give the Cougars an even higher profile to get bigger name opponents through their ESPN contract.
This year’s game against Texas will be interesting, as the Longhorns have a new head coach. It’s important to note that Texas’ talent has taken a sharp dip, as no 2013 Longhorns were drafted into the NFL. However, coach Charlie Strong has a solid history as a head coach while at Louisville, building a Cardinals team that was 26th in scoring points (35.2 points per game) and second in points allowed (12.2 points per game). Will the rebuild happen quickly at Texas? It won’t be immediate, but the school’s immense draw, and strong home field advantage, will make this game a tough task for BYU.
Utah State
Aug. 31 at Tennessee
It is no longer a rare statement to say that Utah State has high expectations for the upcoming season. After two consecutive bowl victories, the Aggies are finally in the position where they can make some widespread national noise. But, how do they make the noise? How do they go from now being a good football program to a team that is talked about like Boise State or Fresno State? Simply put, Utah State has to win marquee games against big-time opponents, and they have to do that on the road.
The Aggies had their chances in 2011 against Auburn, almost upset Wisconsin in 2012 and could have walked away with a win last year at Utah, had it not been for a timely onside kick call. Victories in those games would have put the Aggies in the same conversation as their conference mates, and Utah State has a chance to make a name for itself in 2014, when the Aggies open the season at Southeastern Conference member Tennessee. Sure, Tennessee isn’t the name it once was, but the Volunteers still are in the SEC, and they still have gone toe-to-toe with opponents like Alabama and Florida over the last few years. If Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keeton can finish rehabbing his knee injury successfully, there stands to be a good chance that the Aggies will have a shot to win this game and earn that national respect.
Again, Utah State is catching Tennessee at a good time. The Volunteers had an anemic offense last season, scoring 23.8 points a game. Also, their defense struggled as well, scoring only 29 points a game. If Utah State can maintain its averages from last season, when it scored 31.8 points a season while giving up only 17.1 points a game, the Aggies will finally have a legitimate shot at getting the national attention that they’ve been waiting for these past two seasons.
