Utah at Air Force

Written by Jack Jones

In what has been a tightly-contested rivalry over the years, the eighth-ranked Utah Utes travel to face the Air Force Falcons Saturday. The Utes have fourth-ranked TCU up next, so they better not be overlooking the Falcons this week. That game against the Horned Frogs will likely decide which of these two teams win the Mountain West, and also which plays in a BCS Bowl. So not looking ahead is easier said than done. College football lines for this game show us odds of Utah -7 over Air Force with a total set of 54.5 points.

The last time these teams met up at the Air Force Academy, Utah needed a touchdown with 58 seconds left to escape with a 30-23 victory. The win was part of the Utes perfect season in 2008 where they went on to beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Last year’s meeting went into overtime, with Utah getting a one-yard touchdown run from Daniel Wide to win it 23-16. In fact, over the last 26 meetings the point differential is 19, and 12 of the last 13 meetings have been decided by single-digits.

Utah is 7-0 this season, but this is by far their toughest challenge since defeating Pittsburgh 27-24 in overtime in their opener. In Saturday’s 59-6 win over Clorado State, Wide rushed for 71 yards and a score while also catching a touchdown pass from quarterback Jordan Wynn. Wide had 121 yards on only 17 carries last year against Air Force, and could be in for another big day against a Falcons defense that is giving up 205.8 rushing yards per contest.

Wynn threw for 321 yards and three touchdowns last week, and he now boasts a MWC-best 168.6 quarterback rating. He’ll be up against an Air Force defense that ranked 12th in the country against the pass, allowing 166.0 yards per game. The Utes balance on offense could be key in this game as Air Force is very one-dimensional.

The Falcons lead the country at 326.5 rushing yards per game. It’s strength vs. strength here as the Utes allow just 87.4 rushing yards and 2.5 yards per carry. The former ranks 6th in the nation while the latter is 3rd in the country. QB Tim Jefferson will face the Utes for the first time in his career, as he leads the team with eight rushing touchdown while also running for 503 yards. That mark of 503 is only the third-best on the team, so the Falcons have several options in the backfield.

Jefferson was held in check by a TCU defense that allowed him to rush for just 39 yards and throw for a season-worst 47 yards in a 38-7 loss to the Horned Frogs. In that game, the Falcons gave up 377 yards on the ground which was their highest total since allowing 382 to Utah back in 2001. Air Force does not want to lose a third consecutive game this week, but the chips are stacked against them as the Falcons have lost 16 straight games against ranked foes. Though Air Force leads the all-time series 14-12, the Falcons have dropped six of their last seven to Utah.

BetUS Projected Score: Utah 31 – Air Force 24

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