The Washington Huskies swing in to Rice-Eccles Stadium to play the Utah Utes on Saturday, October 29th at 3:30 p.m. ET. The match-up will take place on the Fox Sports 1 channel for your viewing entertainment. The Huskies enter the contest as -10 point favorites and the over/under is placed at 52.5.
The Huskies have gotten the better of the Utes, owning a 8-1 advantage in the all-time series. The one and only victory for the Utes was in Washington last season, where they defeated the Huskies 34-23. In that game, Utah put 24 points on the board in the second quarter and never looked back.
#4 Washington (7-0):
Washington’s quarterback Jake Browning has come into his own in only his second year as the Huskies signal-caller. He’s become one of the most accurate riflemen in the country and has the records to back it up. Through seven games, Browning has completed almost 120 passes for over 1,700 yards with 26 touchdowns and only two interceptions.
Myles Gaskin is Washington’s first option out of the back field. He has responded putting up some impressive numbers. This year, he has 116 carries for 727 yards and six scores. His running-mate Lavon Coleman has also pitched-in over 400 yards with an average yards per carry of 8.3.
Three wide receivers all see plenty of action from quarterback Jake Browning. Together, they have 78 catches for over 1,200 yards and a gaudy 21 touchdowns. Receiver john Ross leads this productive group with 34 grabs for almost 500 yards and nine trips to the back of the end zone.
The Huskies’ defense has brought their A game to the field since the first time the ball was kicked-off on opening day. As a result, Washington is #6 in the nation in scoring defense, giving way to only 14 points a ball game. Furthermore, Washington is strong against the pass, ranking 11th in the country, allowing opposing quarterbacks only 173 yards per contest.
#16 Utah (7-1):
The Utes began the season hot, reeling off four straight wins and ranking inside the top 20. Unfortunately, they lost a shoot-out to Davis Webb and the Cal Bears and sort of fell off the radar. Since, Utah has responded with three straight triumphs over Arizona, Oregon State and UCLA. Last week, Utah went on the road and out-scored the UCLA Bruins 52-45.
The Ute’s quarterback Troy Williams is improving as the season moves forward. When needed late in games, he has been money. So far this season, the signal-caller has thrown for over 1,700 yards on almost 130 completions with seven touchdowns and five picks. The one problem is, he has had problems with turnovers so he will need to shore-up the ball against an aggressive Washington front.
Utah running back Joe Williams decided to hang up his cleats for the rest of the 2016 because of injuries. Nevertheless, he changed his mind and got back on the field last week against the Bruins. Can anyone say game ball please?
Amazingly, the rusty runner went off scampering for 332 yards and four scores on 29 carries. All totaled, Joe Williams has collected 586 yards on 85 hand-offs and reached the promised land on five different occasions.
Utah is a running team first but when called upon, five Utah receivers pitch-in to get the chains moved through the air. Collectively, they have snatched up 86 throws from Joe Williams for over 1,300 yards and seven scores.
This year, the Ute’s defense is down a little compared to the last few campaigns. That being said, they are still a force to reckon with if schools hope to move the ball via the ground. The front seven is ranked 21st in the country, holding teams to only 119 yards a game. Also, they tighten things up in the red zone, allowing only 21 points a contest.
Trends and Notes:
The Huskies are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
The Utes are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games following a ATS win.
The Over is 4-0 in the Huskies last 4 road games.
The Under is 9-4 in the Utes last 13 home games.
Game Predictions:
Utah knows that points could be at a premium this weekend when they square off against the Huskies. Washington is stout against the run and that is exactly what the Utes like to do. Another big game from returning tail back Joe Williams would be huge.
Washington has the luxury of a more balanced offense. Jake Browning has been solid, guiding the offense with limited mistakes. He will need to do just that to keep an opportunistic Utah defense from gaining any momentum and keeping this game tight through four quarters.
The Huskies are the best overall team in the PAC-12 in 2016, and road wins like this is what they need to keep their chances alive for a national championship. Las Vegas has this game’s over/under set at 52. If both teams can keep the others defense honest, that is a playable number.
Washington will score and Utah plays extremely well in Salt Lake so I expect a closer ball game than most people think. The Utes will be pumped-up for this one and that means the 10 point underdog is also tempting.
Were going out on a limb at Get More Sports for this one, and suggest you take the Utes to keep it close while both teams score in the mid to high 20’s. Take Utah to cover and the over 52.
