The lights were bright in Salt Lake City, but not too bright for the Utah Utes.

Utah (8-3, 7-1) played their best game of the season on Saturday night, knocking Oregon (9-2, 6-2) out of the college football playoff in stunning fashion. The stunning part wasn’t that the Utes won, as they were favorites in Vegas and by ESPN’s Football Power Index. No, the stunning part is that they won by 31 points.

How it Happened 

The Utes took the lead using the legs of RB Tavion Thomas, who finished off a 13-play 63-yard drive with a ten-yard rush. Then, the Utah defense held Oregon on 3rd and 19, leading to a field goal attempt, which was blocked.

Utah put together another touchdown drive, this time ending with a Cam Rising 9-yard pass to WR Britain Covey. On Oregon’s next possession, they missed the field goal, which could be considered an upgrade over the blocked field goal, but either way, they left without points.

Where the game was won, though, was in the last minutes of the second half. Utah went down the field and scored with just 27 seconds remaining on the clock, kicked the ball off, and forced Oregon to punt by using a timeout before the half ended.

Then, Britain Covey worked his magic. The long-time Ute received the punt and took off, racing up the sideline, dodging tacklers and following blockers until bursting free of the crowd to finish off a 73-yard touchdown return.

The last-minute heroics of the Utah offense to score quickly enough before half, combined with Coach Whittingham’s perfect use of a timeout and Covey’s punt return gave Utah a 28-0 lead going into the half.

The second half was all about possession. The Utes had the ball for 17 minutes in quarters three and four, while the Ducks offense, despite finally scoring after the half, barely had it for 12 minutes. It also helped that the Utes were able to tack on ten more points in the second half to the Ducks’ seven.

What The Utes Did Right

Whenever a mid-major team like Utah beats up on a national title contender, there are always comments like “Oregon lost the game, Utah didn’t win it”, and “Oregon’s mistakes were greater than Utah’s successes”.

In some cases, I agree with those statements, but not about this game. Utah dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the field, which, to me, was the key in this game. The defensive line of Utah forced Oregon QB Anthony Brown to make difficult throws under pressure on third downs time and time again.

Safeties Vonte Davis and Cole Bishop had seven tackles each, partially due to being able to read the defense well, and also because Utah’s front seven were able to take on Oregon’s blockers without giving up ground. Star LB Devin Lloyd had one of the best tackles of the game, dropping Oregon RB Travis Dye for a loss on third down. Lloyd finished the game with six total tackles, four solo and one for a loss.

Offensively, it seemed like every player both knew and performed their roles perfectly. The offensive line negated Oregon’s star defensive players, specifically linebackers Kayvon Thibodeaux and Noah Sewell. Such excellent play from the line made it possible for Tavion Thomas to run for 94 yards and three touchdowns, as well as protect Cam Rising, who was only sacked once.

Cam Rising specifically understood his role- don’t throw an interception. Turnovers can kill a team, especially when facing a talented team like Oregon. Utah’s game plan was to pound Oregon in the face over and over, and asking Rising to keep the secondary honest with a few big throws. Rising did just that, converting the ball on long-distance downs and making some simple play-action throws.

Coach Whittingham Earns his 142nd Win

Kyle Whittingham, who has been in charge of the Utes since 2004, is now the Utah coach with the most wins in program history. He passes legendary coach and administrator Ike Armstrong, who served as the Athletic Director, football coach, and basketball coach at Utah. He was head football coach from 1925-1949.

Whittingham has been a large part of Utah’s growth as a program, specifically as the Utes entered the Pac-12. After last night, he clinched his fourth Pac-12 South championship, and has a chance to go to the first Rose Bowl in program history, so long as the Utes win in the Pac-12 championship game.

What This Victory Means Moving Forward

This game garnered more than its fair share of national media attention, as Oregon is now out of the College Football Playoff and has dropped from the top ten nationally ranked teams in the AP Poll. Oregon falls from No. 4 to No. 11, while Utah made the jump from No. 23 to No. 16.

As mentioned previously, Utah has clinched the Pac-12 South and has the best in-conference record. Meanwhile, Oregon has opened the door wide open for who Utah will face in the Pac-12 Championship game. The Ducks host the Oregon State Beavers on Saturday, and if the Ducks lose, then Oregon State could win the North – depending on if Washington State beats Washington. If Oregon State wins and Washington State wins, there would be a three-way tie for first in the north, which Washington State would win, as they’d have the best record in the division.

Alternatively, if Oregon wins, they win the division. If Oregon State wins, and Washington State loses, then Oregon State will win. The most likely outcome seems to be Oregon beating Oregon State and moving on to the Pac-12 Championship game in a rematch against Utah.

Honestly, Utah fans may want to face Oregon again, rather than Oregon State, as Oregon State matches up so well against Utah, and Oregon went down rather easily. Washington State would be preferred over Oregon, but they have the least control over their destiny.

Checking on the Crystal Ball

You know, for supposedly knowing the future, this crystal ball is really bad at making predictions. I want to say it’s been inconsistent, but really it just had one good week amidst several bad ones.

  • Utah rushes for over 200 yards. This one is correct, Utah had 208 yards.
  • Oregon sacks Rising five times. This one didn’t happen, as Rising was only sacked once, thanks to Utah’s offensive line.
  • Cam Rising throws a late interception. Cam Rising actually did not throw a late interception, or any interception, for that matter.
  • Utah forces a single turnover. Actually, they forced two turnovers on downs. We will count it.
  • Oregon wins by 7. If you’ve read this article, or even the headline, or even heard about the game, you should be able to fact-check the ball here.

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