2015 Las Vegas Bowl Preview: BYU Cougars vs. No. 22 Utah Utes

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

When Utah squares off against BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday, few surprises will be had between Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham and Cougars head coach Bronco Mendenhall. Whittingham, a former BYU linebacker, is well aware of Mendenhall and the Cougars having lined up against the in-state rivals nine times in 11 years. The tenth will be the last in the Utah in-state series with Mendenhall heading to Virginia for the 2016 season as their new head coach.

Both coaches enter the game without some of their star talent. Utah lost senior tailback Devontae Booker in the Arizona game (Nov. 14) due to a “minor meniscus” knee injury that required surgery. Booker is hoping to be back in time for the Senior Bowl on Jan. 24 after rushing for 1,261 yards and 11 touchdowns off 268 carries. BYU got one game out of Taysom Hill before injury cut his season short for a second consecutive year. Tanner Mangum stepped in throwing for 3,062 yards and 21 touchdowns against seven picks guiding BYU through some early season heroics.

Utah finished the year 9-3, 6-3 in the Pac-12, after jumping out to a 6-0 record looking like the team to beat in the Pac-12. The Utes got impressive wins over Michigan (24-17), then- No. 13 Oregon (62-20), and No. 23 Cal (30-24). After Booker’s injury, Utah struggled to a 1-2 record.

BYU also posted a 9-3 record with some amazing wins and tough losses. Mangum, a freshman, got college football’s attention with a Hail Mary touchdown pass against Nebraska in Week 1 to pull off a 33-28 road win. The following week BYU beat then- No. 20 Boise State (35-24). In two common opponents, BYU was not as successful against Michigan losing 31-0 and both lost to UCLA. The Cougars went 7-1 down the backside of their schedule netting wins over Connecticut (30-13), East Carolina (45-38), and Cincinnati (38-24).

Key Matchups

BYU’s Passing Game vs. Utah’s Pass Defense

The clash between the two Utah programs brings up the distinct difference in football styles. The Cougars are set-up to get the ball down field averaging 295 passing yards per game. Utah has a tough and rugged defense but their weakness has been pass defense. The Utes are allowing 253 yards per game but that stat might not tell the tale. Utah has faced the No. 5 passing offense in the nation, Cal at 369 yards per game, the No. 22 passing offense, Arizona State at 289 yards per, and the nation’s No. 25 passing offense, UCLA 286 yards. The Utes are 2-1 against the up-tempo passing offenses this year.

Despite the heavy leaning offenses in the Pac-12, Utah was among the better defenses adopting the bend but don’t break philosophy only giving up 22 points per game, oddly enough, the same amount as BYU.

Utah Finding Their Passing Offense

The Utes were never a big offensive machine, even with Booker in the lineup. Booker was a workhorse shortening the game by running out the clock. In the two full games without Booker, Utah scored nine points against UCLA and 20 against Colorado. Utah starting quarterback Travis Wilson threw for just 110 yards against UCLA but did rush for 67 yards. Joe Williams, a junior college transfer who took over for Booker, sliced through UCLA’s defense for 121 yards on 26 carries but could not find the end zone.

Wilson had another bad game against Colorado only completing 10 of 26 passes for 108 yards with one touchdown and one pick. Williams proved to be the difference maker rushing 34 times for 187 yards with a touchdown in the 20-14 win over the Buffaloes.

BYU finished the season with as one of the better total defenses in the nation ranked No. 36 allowing 358 yards per game. The Cougars have been tested against offensive teams like Cincinnati, Boise State and UCLA but have not faced a run-heavy team like Utah so far this season. Can Wilson come up with enough yards to keep BYU honest and help move the chains on big third-down plays?

Final Analysis

If strength of schedule rankings mean anything, Utah has the upper-hand finishing with the nation’s 26th toughest lineup. BYU on the other hand had the 68th rated schedule.

BYU had the nation’s No. 42 rush defense only allowing 145 yards per game, 464 attempts, 1,744 yards. The Cougars pass defense was average allowing 213 a game, but that is not Utah’s style and not a concern for Mendenhall and company. The question for the Cougars defense is staying fresh in the second half against Utah’s big uglies up front? Against a somewhat similar team, BYU lost 20-16 to Missouri. The Cougars were held to 290 yards of total offense but the trouble was allowing the Tigers anemic offense to produce 434 total yards. Drew Lock threw for 244 yards and Russell Hansbrough rushed for 117 on 26 carries.

Utah does not need Travis Wilson to be great but just decent. Williams looks up to the task. Can Utah find enough offense to keep up with BYU?

The Utes struggled towards the end of the season, can that be fixed during bowl preparations? If not, BYU could run away with the game thanks to their offense.

Game Notes

Whittingham holds the all-time record between the two coaches with a 6-3 record against Mendenhall.

Utah won the Vegas Bowl a year ago beating Colorado State 45-10.

BYU lost their bowl game in 2014 falling to Memphis 55-48 in double-overtime.

Prediction: Utah 23, BYU 17

Game Info

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada

Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. ET

Coverage: ABC

Line: Utah -2.5

Photo credit: Rick Bowmer; No. 28 Joe Williams takes a handoff from No. 7 Travis Wilson verses Colorado.