Editor's note: Read the schedule preview of UCLA and Cal Poly in Part 1 here, Wyoming and Texas Tech in Part 2 here, West Virginia and Arizona State in Part 3 here, and BYU and Colorado in Part 4 here.
SALT LAKE CITY — As the season continues for Utah football, the final four games could be the most difficult stretch of the schedule.
All the preseason expectations about Utah and the next two teams they'll be playing — Cincinnati and Baylor — will be thrown out the window, as each team will have a good idea about each other at this final run of the schedule.
Utah welcomes Cincinnati to town to kick off the November slate in the first-ever meeting between the two programs before a second bye of the season a week before traveling to Waco, Texas, to take on arguably one of the best teams in the Big 12 this season in Baylor.
Cincinnati has far more questions that need to be answered about the team, but there's definite potential for the Bearcats to be a solid team come November if everything comes together.
And then there's a Baylor team that returns essentially everybody in what could be a special season for the Bears. Was the momentum from the end of last season fool's gold or was it a prediction for things to come this season?
As a reminder, ESPN's Bill Connelly, who recently updated his SP+ rankings after spring, sees Utah as the 31st best team in the country with the 55th hardest schedule.
Let's jump into the next two games ...
Cincinnati Bearcats
Date: Saturday, Nov. 1 (TBA)
Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium; Salt Lake City, UT
2024 record: 5-7 (3-6 Big 12)
Final AP ranking: N/A
Last meeting: None
Preseason win projection: 6.5 wins
Known for their smothering defenses over the last few years, Cincinnati is still in the acclimation period of its transition to the Big 12, but this season feels like a make-or-break year for head coach Scott Satterfield. It's not easy to make the jump to the power level, but the transfer portal has made it easier for teams.
Cincinnati will be dipping heavily into the transfer portal to turn around a 5-7 season. The Bearcats only added 16 players from the transfer portal, but approximately 12 of those additions are expected to be in a starter capacity on both sides of the ball.
There's holdover from last season, which adds to some consistency and progress, but Cincinnati will still have several questions going into this season. Will those be answered by the time the Bearcats come to Salt Lake City as the calendar changes to November?
For all the questions surrounding the team, Cincinnati welcomes back starting quarterback Brendan Sorsby, who threw for 2,813 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions on 64% passing. He added 447 rushing yards and nine touchdowns as the team's second-leading rusher.
Sorsby can be a great asset — a QB with a high ceiling — but also one that can limit the team with turnovers. But there's plenty of reasons to believe his junior season could be an even better year.
Part of that reason is the receivers Cincinnati brought in to help Sorsby. With a rebuilt room, the Bearcats welcomed Colorado State's leading receiver Caleb Goodie (436 yards, 4 TDs) and FCS Lindenwood's leading receiver Jeff Caldwell (1,032 yards, 11 TDs), as well as Texas A&M veteran receiver Cyrus Allen (269 yards, 1 TD).
The trio has the potential to do some damage and could help a Cincinnati comeback. And then add in returning tight end Joe Royer, who finished the season with 521 yards and three touchdowns as the second-leading receiver, and Sorsby has plenty around him to work with in a pivotal season.
In the backfield, Cincinnati pulled Wisconsin's leading rusher Tawee Walker (864 yards, 10 TDs) out of the portal to be the team's starter. He'll be joined by returning senior Evan Pryor, who finished with 418 yards and six touchdowns as the Bearcats' third-leading rusher.
Up front, though, Cincinnati only returns center Gavin Gerhardt and will rely mostly on transfers to upgrade the line. The trio of transfers — Joe Cotton (South Dakota), Taran Tyo (Ball State) and Nolan Latulippe (Albany) — are experienced lineman with several D-I snaps under the belt, which should help the transition.
Defensive tackle Dontay Corleone and linebacker Jake Golday highlight the stars of the defense as proven players in Cincinnati's system. Corleone is a force on the line and had a team-high 27 pressures, while Golday graded out as the second-best player on defense (80.9).
They'll get help from defensive end transfer Jaylon White-McClain (Old Dominion), corner Matthew McDoom (Coastal Carolina), and safeties Christian Harrison (Tennessee) and Xavier Williams (Middle Tennessee).
Will it be enough, though, to bring Cincinnati back to its dominant era of defense? Probably not, but there's hope for progress. The defense isn't that far off — at least from last season's numbers — but it takes time to gel with so many new faces.
With so much perceived parity in the Big 12 this season, the biggest question surrounding Cincinnati is whether they've done enough to keep up with their peers. The safe bet is there's still some work to do.
Baylor Bears
Date: Saturday, Nov. 15 (TBA)
Location: McLane Stadium; Waco, TX
2024 record: 8-5 (6-3 Big 12)
Final AP ranking: N/A
Last meeting: Sept. 7, 2024, Salt Lake City; Utah won 23-12
Preseason win projection: 7.5 wins
For a brief moment last season, Utah looked like it would run away with a dominant victory over the visiting Bears in a nonconference game at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Cam Rising was in fine form, slinging the ball around the field as the Utes put up points with ease — backing up what was projected to be a playoff-bound season.
But in an instant — and not in the hyperbolic sense — the entire trajectory of the season changed on one play for Utah. Rising, hoping to extend a play, ran to the sideline while looking downfield. As he reached the sideline, he was pushed out of bounds, but the momentum of the hit carried him into a nearby hydration station.
The hit damaged his throwing hand and ultimately forced the veteran quarterback to retire from the game. Utah went on to (barely) win the game, but the remainder of the season was a massive disappointment — especially given the hyped up expectations in Rising's last hurrah.
Baylor, on the other hand, took some early lumps — losing four of the team's first six games — before flipping a switch and reeling off six straight wins to closeout the regular season. The Bears became one of the hottest teams in the Big 12.
Baylor now returns a majority of last year's starting roster and will be an early favorite — or the favorite if you believe Phil Steele's prediction — to win the Big 12, with quarterback Sawyer Robertson leading the charge.
The senior QB became the undisputed starter and threw for 3,071 yards, 28 touchdowns and eight interceptions on 62.2% passing, which ranked Robertson 21st in the country. He added a bit on the ground — 230 yards and four touchdowns — but did the bulk of his work in the pocket.
This season, he's expected to be one of the top QB's in the Big 12 — assuming he continues last season's level of play.
But with another season in the offense, four of his five starting offensive linemen back, and his top two targets returning for another season, the odds of a similar season remain strong.
Senior receiver Josh Cameron returns as the leading receiver with 754 yards and 10 touchdowns, and will be joined by second-leading receiver Ashtyn Hawkins, who finished with 567 yards and five touchdowns.
The duo will be paired with returning tight end Michael Trigg, who had 395 yards and three touchdowns last season, and Alabama transfer Kobe Prentice for a solid frontline of weapons for Robertson to target this season.
As if that wasn't enough, dynamic back Bryson Washington returns after a standout freshman season in which he rushed for 1,028 yards and 12 touchdowns. Washington has the potential to be one of the best in the Big 12 and will be a major asset to Baylor's offensive game plan.
Behind Washington is returner Dawson Pendergrass, who added 671 yards and six touchdowns last season.
The defensive side of the ball is a bit of a different story following a good but not great last season. For all the success the offense had last season, Baylor's defense struggled to do their part at times last season.
There remain several returning stars — defensive end Jackie Marshall and linebacker Keaton Thomas, among others — but Dave Aranda has, who will continue to call plays on defense, seemingly upgraded from the transfer portal.
Most notably, Baylor added Texas A&M defensive lineman Samu Taumanupepe — a rising young talent who graded out high in Pro Football Focus in just a few snaps with the Aggies last season — linebackers Travion Barnes (FIU) and Emar'rion Winston (Oregon), as well as corner Calvin Simpson-Hunt (Ohio State) and safety Devin Turner (Northwestern).
Turner was Northwestern's fifth-best defender in PFF grades where he lead with an 83.1 grade in pass rushing on 521 snaps.
On paper, the defense has potential to be better this upcoming season, but how much remains to be seen. The defense has been fairly similar each season over the last five years and finished last year ranked 87th in total defense.
The saving grace from last season is that the defensive unit did well when it mattered most — namely on third-down stops (35th), fourth-down stop (11th) and red zone defense (36th).
Both Baylor and Utah get a bye week before this matchup, so prepare for well-rested teams eager to get back to action. Depending on how the two teams are doing this late in the season, this game could have major Big 12 title implications — at least that's the hope for both teams.
Just make sure to keep the hydration stations far enough away from the sidelines.
