My spring prediction

ALUF,
I think you’ve captured the floor – 7-5 is possible. I have a hard time believing Utah loses five road games. Defense travels and we’ll have a strong defense this season. I’m also sold on Dampier after watching him and talking to a few insiders about him. If he stays healthy, the offense can be special.

I like the U in the opener against UCLA and I feel like the other four losses you predict could go either way. Do we get two of those and end up 10-2 or 9-3? That’s where I’m hoping the U ends up.

Thanks for the discussion – I am pretty optimistic and see this season as being a great bounce back

UCLA – win – they haven’t proven that they can compete against teams that punch them in the mouth. Lots of new components – the team that gels first wins – I’m betting on our defense winning this one.

Cal-Poly – if we don’t win this one – well then – we suck

Wyoming – win – this is a terrible game to have on the schedule – it’s basically a no-win for us – but i predict a win

Texas Tech – win – They have the NIL and the hype but I think we win this one

West Virginia – loss – Rich Rod is such a blow hard – I hope we win but could be a tough one especially at night

ASU – win – Revenge game – hope we are more hyped up than our revenge game against UofA last year – still thinking win

BYU-P – Win – these guys were not great last year but got every bounce they needed – I don’t see that happening again – I think we win this by at least one TD

Colorado – win – Deion will wish he left with the kids – tough year coming for the Buffs

Cinny – win – not a good team –

Baylor – Win – the Cam Rising revenge game – not a chance we lose to these guys –

KSU – win – these guys are not good

Kansas – likely a toss up – we still win – I think their QB will be injured by now and they will be a shell of how they start the season.

Book it – we are in the Big 12 championship game this year

I’m optimistic this Utah team will be in the thick of contention come November.

Utah has a good defense … and the strength of the offense is the O line. The rushing offense will be very fun to watch and the good news about that is Defense and Rushing Offense typically travel well in college football.

Utah will lose a few games but 5 losses isn’t happening in my opinion.

Utah will beat ucla. They are a complete mess. They have a QB and literally nothing else.

New Coach any player with talent transferred and the biggest prima Donna in CFB at QB.

Utah by 14

@byu-provo-loss

Such a nightmare place first of all. Probably at night and they’re unreal at home. It’s close, wish this was in slc this year as I think we would win. They return just about everyone and added some studs. They make the big xii championship and cfp imo unfortunately. Ready for the hate incoming

Do you hangout at Cougarboard? Just kidding.

While I don’t want to discount byu since they have a lot of players returning, I think they are still byu – meaning last year was their best team in 25+ years, and they couldn’t beat Kansas at home to secure a conference championship appearance. And in the rivalry game anything can happen. But byu lost some key players to the portal, and the players they obtained puts their portal ranking at dead last in the conference. So, perhaps the portal was a net loss for them? I think so.

Byu won a lot of games last year by “luck” – yes I know that the word “luck” is extremely unpopular for some people given that byu won games and that luck doesn’t matter. Win or lose, luck or no luck, the team has to execute. However, the amount of positive improbable outcomes and plays (especially late in the game) that byu had in their favor was pretty much off the charts. That isn’t sustainable.

However, look at last year’s rivalry game. I know what happened last year doesn’t dictate what happens this year. However, byu beat Utah by one point – ONE. It was Utah’s worst team in 25+ years, and byu’s best team in 25+ years. With Utah’s 3rd string QB. In his first start ever. With an injured foot the whole second half. With a penalty called against Utah that 95 times out of 100 won’t be called that gave byu the opportunity to win (yes Scalley’s D should have stopped them, I know.)

Given those parameters, byu had the opportunity to squash Utah by 30. But they only won by ONE. ONE – that is the number just after ZERO. That is telling to me. And what it tells me is that Utah – if relatively healthy (meaning Utah isn’t playing QB 3 or 4) – Utah wins. In convincing fashion. Whittingham isn’t going to make this his last season (assuming that is the case), without beating byu. I suspect he has been studying byu and preparing all off season. Just a hunch. Utah 35, byu 13.

7-5 sounds reasonable to me. While we might be better, I think it’s also possible we could be even worse than that. Last year was abysmal, and I’m still not convinced the changes we made will actually make us a better team this year. Beck and Dampier both have potential, but let’s be honest, stealing the best of New Mexico is far from a sure thing for success.

I don’t think I know enough about this year’s team to make a prediction so I’m staying out of that game.

I do wonder why people think that the number of transfers Utah will be counting on this season to make big impacts is a positive but then use the reliance on transfers as a reason why other schools will lose to Utah. Haven’t we all convinced ourselves that development is the Utah strength instead of having systems that kids can come in and be immediately successful?

7-5 seems reasonable at this point. KW over the past 13 seasons (minus covid) averages roughly 5 loses a season. After the past two seasons of a 7-11 conference record and all of the coach and player turnover on O, man, I have no idea what to expect. Factor in the annual 1-2 WTF losses and 2-3 road losses, 7-5 record should be about right.

Here is my prediction:

It’s opening night, the team trots out on the field against UCLA. We get the ball first, and the kickoff is sent through the back of the endzone. Out trotts… ISAAC WILSON, is it? Yes, it appears to be Isaac alright. But wait! Just before the first snap of the game. He rips off his jersey Hulk Hogan Style, and reveals that he is wearing another jersey inside the jersey he just ripped off. As the name on the back of his jersey becomes clear, the crowd gasps in shock. It is none other than #7, Cam Rising himself! The game proceeds as a normal UofU football game, lots of handoffs (Cam can’t throw the ball because of his still mangled hand), modest gains on the ground, zero touchdowns on either side… But then comes the fourth quarter. As the UCLA coach is being interviewed by a sideline reporter, Cam trotts up (his mustache now a glorious fu manchu), and yanks the microphone out of the reporter’s hands. Incredulous, the UCLA coach asks, “Cam, what are you doing here? I thought you medically retired? You can’t even throw with your right hand anymore.” Cam looks straight at the camera and says, in his best Dread PIrate Roberts voice, “I am not right handed!”

The Utes get the ball to start the 4th quarter. Rising lines up in the shotgun, the ball is snapped, and he scrambles around eventually rolling to his left. As he is running out of bounds He throws a left handed bomb down the sideline to Merriweather, our new far-left-tackle, tragically, Merriweather has spent so much time over the summer doing nothing but blocking that he forgot how to catch and he just stares at the ball in disbelief as it sails toward him. He turns his head in horror at the last moment and the ball bounces off the back of his helmet into the arms of a defender, who runs it back for a game winning pick 6.

Meanwhile, Cam Rising is down, having been late hit (of course the refs didn’t see it) into a pit of various venomous snakes that UCLA had prepared just in case something like this happened. Cam eventually climbed out of the pit, but appeared to keel over in agony from the dozens of snake bites.

Following the game, in Whitt’s press conference a reporter says, “Cam Rising appeared to be very much dead on the sideline there, can you tell us what his timetable for return is?” To which Whitt replies, “we’ll have to have El Doctoro numero uno take a look, but I think he’ll be a game time decision next week.”

The following week what appears to be the corpse of Cam Risings fully uniformed corps is carted onto the field for warm ups. The corpse of Rising is wheeled out to the field for the first snap of the game. At the last second before the play clock expires Whitt calls timeout and subs the corpse of Cam Rising out for Dampier, finally ending Cam Rising’s journey as the starting quarterback for the Utah Utes.

If Utah loses to fUCLA I think it just continues the rest of the season and Scalley isn’t the guy.
fUCLA is dogs**t.

I think we hammer UCLA. Our team is more motivated after going through last season, and wants to prove a point.

I think WVU and BYU are toss-ups. I probably like our chances against BYU more, since we’ll be fired up, have better depth, and I just don’t think BYU will get the bounces that they did last year.

ASU, I think we drop that game. That team is still pretty loaded, and RB production is usually replaceable.

Baylor and Kansas are tough. I could see us dropping one of those two.

If we drop ASU, and 2 of the 4 WVU/BYU/Baylor/Kansas, I think that’s still a successful season all things considered. 9-3 with a decent bowl and a mid 20’s final ranking.

Next season will answer a question. Was the two Pac championships by Utah an aberration and the progress Utah made in a decade less than what we saw? Or was the two seasons without the expected QB1 and injuries or shortcomings of backup QBs an aberration and the progress Utah made in a decade real? Something like trying to understand the specific changes last year to this year in personnel or understanding the big picture of what Utah built as individual players come and go.

My feeling is the loss of the planned QB1 along with the under development of the remaining QB room had a greater negative impact on the team than the positive impact of the arrival of a star QB would have. I don’t think Whitt is trying to build a team that can compete in a top conference, rather I think he is trying to fix the problem of the missing QB1. The fix includes a new OC who does bring a new offense but also an offense that may be easier for backup QBs to master and run. The OC has a second year QB and new personnel at RB and WR, however, it will enjoy a very good OL. The key, I believe, will be the ability of the offense to be difficult to predict play by play. I think the OC can get that done.

I expect the defense to be just fine. The key for the defense is to be freed from carrying the game when the offense struggles. I expect the defense to seem more effective as this pressure is reduced.

I expect the QB remedy to restore Utah to the previous level of football enjoyed in the Pac which would put us at the top of the Big-12. As an example, ASU last year would likely finish 4th or 5th in a mythical 2024 Pac-12. Utah, without the QB issue, would have been a contender above ASU. I don’t see games on the schedule Utah can’t win so I will begin my expectation for 10 wins. But note I am an optimist.

Why do people think the WVU game will be at night Week 5? There is BYU @ CU (late, late game?), Baylor @ Ok St. and a few other games that might be the late game.

Week 7 ASU @ Utah might be night. There is KU @ TT, TCU @ KSU, but that seems like a good one to put at night.

Now, Utah @ BYU Week 8 certainly is a possible night game, but hoping it’s afternoon. TT @ ASU might be a good game that day as well.

Later in the season there is more flex. So it depends how the conference is playing out.

@UCLA – W
Cal Poly – W
Wyoming – W
TT – last second loss
@WVU – going with a W
ASU – tougher game but last minute win
@BYU – 70-7. No 3-peat for them. Souls are crushed.
CU – W
Cinci – W
@Baylor – L
KSU/@KU – 1W/1L

9-3. A few things go our way, we are 11-1 and in CCG and potentially CFP. A few injuries to key positions, we are 7-5. All games winnable. 6 games losable.

The BIG12 is a snowglobe of unpredictability after last year. My two silver linings are: if you’re going to pick positions to return besides QB, the entire offensive line and the defensive captain are a pretty good place to start, and the offense will have some consistency throughout the spring to fall in practice. Imagine this:

Cam is good through the offseason
Cam is hurt, Isaac is up
Cam is back
Cam is gone
Isaac performs about as well as an 18 year old in front of 60,000 people.
Brandon Rose is up
Brandon Rose is down
(Sam Huard is also down)
Isaac is back
Isaac is benched
Now it’s Bottari

Seems like it would be hard on the offense.

Dampier, the most important player on our offense, already knows Beck’s offense. Nico just transferred to UCLA and has to learn a whole new offense before the fall… This is a huge advantage for us over UCLA.

As a Utah fan… Even if you believe BYU will beat Utah… you don’t say it out loud.

11-1 – Amazing season
10-2 – Great season
9-3 – Expectation
8-4 – Slight disappointment
7-5 – Big disappointment
6-6 – Horrible

Considering that Dampier already knows this offense, I expect to be able to catch teams early on our schedule and I also think UCLA will be hot garbage.

We go 3-0 in non conference. I’m not afraid of this team having to play TDS in Provo and I think Whitt will have this team READY to leave Provo with a W.

A lot of newness to this team, but Whitt and Scalley haven’t suddenly forgot how to lead a college football team and as bad as last season was, damn near every single loss was a 1 score game. We were so unbelievably snake but last season. Usually, when you see that with a team, a pretty big bounce back usually follows the next season. I think we’re in contention for the B12 title game the entire season and I wouldn’t be shocked at all to see us make it there.