GAME PREVIEW: Utah vs. Colorado

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah and Colorado haven’t played each other since 1962, yet they are being called rivals as the get set to square off Friday 1:30 p.m. None of the players on either team were alive and Utes’ head coach Kyle Whittingham was celebrating his third birthday around the time these two teams last played each other.

It will be impossible for the players or coaches to capture the feeling of the rivalry, but here’s what to expect when the Utes welcome in the modern-day Buffs.

What did we learn about the Utes from last week’s game at Washington State?

• The Utes can play in the snow. In fact, Utah quarterback Jon Hays may play better in the snow. After the halftime blizzard, Hays looked crisp and the Utes’ offense got on track. It’s likely the game on Friday will be played on dry ground.

1. John White may be having the most impressive individual performance in the history of Utah football. To rely on a running back as much as Utah did at Washington State (42 carries), is unheard of. The fact that every team the Utes play knows they need to run it makes the season White is having incredible. What lingering questions do we still have about the Utes? - Can Hays get it done when the run game is being stopped? The first half looked like the Cal game all over again for the offense. White wasn’t on track yet and Hays could not get the offense even close to moving.

   • When will Coleman Peterson get the due he deserves? Sure, Peterson was named the Pac-12 Special Teams Player of the Week, but he is getting justifiably and unfortunately overshadowed by White. Peterson has made more field goals (17) than any other kicker in the conference and has been a huge part of a few Ute wins this season.
   What can the Utes expect from Colorado? - Colorado is one of the more balanced offenses in the Pac-12. The Buffs throw it 53 percent of the time and run it the other 47 percent of the time. Look for Colorado to throw it a little bit more than normal, but the Buffaloes will try to stay balanced as much as possible.

1. The Utes may be on par with Stanford as one of the most physical teams in the conference. Stanford has more skill players than the Utes do, but the Utes are just as physical. The Utes may meet a team on Friday which compares in the physicality department. What can Colorado expect from the Utes on Friday? - The Utes’ strength is clearly their running game. I know, you can call me John Madden. As we’ve said before, they don’t like to let other teams dictate their offensive game plan. This week they won’t need to. The Colorado defense is the worst in the conference at stopping the run. Expect the Utes to take advantage of that.

   • Colorado gives up a lot of sacks and the Ute front seven have been getting better at putting pressure on the quarterback as the year has gone on.
   • The Colorado secondary is also a weak spot and one that the Utes will likely exploit after they lull the already unfocused Buffalo defense to sleep with the run game. Look for a couple big plays downfield at key points in the game.
   Miscellaneous- Colorado leads the all-time series, 30-24-3.
   • The Utes lead the series in Salt Lake, 14- 13-2.
   • Utah has played Colorado more times than any other Pac-12 team.
   • The last time Utah played anyone other than BYU on the last game of the regular season was in 2001 when the Air Force game was postponed due to the Sept. 11 attacks.
   • Fan input from both schools led to the new name of this rivalry: The Rumble in the Rockies.
   • For the Utes to play in the conference title game next week, three things must happen: Utah must beat Colorado, Cal must beat Arizona State Friday night, and USC must beat UCLA Saturday.
   • The game will be televised on ROOT Sports at 1:30 p.m. MT and heard on ESPN700.
   The Utes should handle this game pretty easily, but the Buffs have quality athletes and have competed against fairly decent teams like Cal and they beat Arizona a few weeks ago, 48-29. Expect White to break the school record with 150-plus yards against a weak run defense. Expect Colorado to put up a fight and try to play spoiler against their new rivals, but the Utes should run away with it in the second half.

Trevor Amicone is the sports director at 88.1 Weber FM "Ogden's Radio Station" and host of the sports talk radio show, "Fully Loaded Sports with Trevor Amicone". Find more of his blogs at TrevorsTopTens.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TrevorAmicone

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