Devon Dampier of Utah against Cincinnati (Photo by Utah Athletics)
A big week of wins raises the stakes for all the teams in Utah!
#5 BYU 7-1 (4-1 in the Big 12)
An ugly win is still a win. I would have given anything for my Ohio State Buckeyes to have won ugly on Halloween the way my BYU Cougars did. The biggest takeaway from this game for BYU is that many of the things that went wrong against UCF were clearly worked on against Arizona State. They weren’t completely erased, but you could tell they were attempting to learn from those mistakes. Again, as an Ohio State fan, I wish I could see that from them as much as I do from BYU when the Cougars stumble. BYU addressed problems on both the offense and the defense, and it was enough to win 27-20 against a scrappy program that has given them tough games recently. Next is the Cougars’ biggest game of the year. All respect to Notre Dame, but the Holy War will always be the biggest game of the regular season for BYU and Utah.
#2 Utah 8-0 (5-0 in the Big 12)
Utah demolished Cincy a week after UC had done the same thing to Texas Tech in the same building in Cincinnati, Ohio. Morgan Scalley’s team led 42-6 at the half and cruised to a 49-25 victory in which they took their foot off the gas in the second half. This is a legit team that no one should be underestimating right now. The Holy War is up next. Until BYU was upset by UCF, I thought there would be two parts to this matchup this year. The regular season matchup in Salt Lake City, and then the Big 12 Championship in Arlington, Texas. That’s still possible but less likely now. I love BYU, but Utah has to be the favorite for the rivalry game this year. They’re also the current favorite Big 12 team to make the College Football Playoff.
Utah State 3-5 (2-2 in the Pac-12)
Utah State won their third game of their last five. After a 0-3 start, things looked bad for USU, but if nothing else, Bronco Mendenhall’s team is showing they won’t quit and will keep fighting. They went up against another team in the Pac-12 that’s struggling this season, Colorado State. The Rams came to Logan also looking for their second Pac-12 win of the season. USU started strong out of the gate and never looked back. Utah State led 17-0 at halftime. The teams would both get 14 in the second half, and Utah State would win 31-14 behind a huge game from McCae Hillstead. More on his heroics in a moment. USU stays at home but welcomes a Fresno State team to Logan that is hitting its stride.
#22 Weber State 6-4 (5-2 in the Big Sky)
The Wildcats are off to a great start of the Eric Kjar Era in Ogden. The only downside is that, like Jay Hill before him, bigger FBS teams will want him for the success he’s having. They welcomed #20 UC Davis to Stewart Stadium this week. With two top 25 teams battling in the Big Sky, you might have expected a close game. Weber State went with my mantra, ‘No one said this game had to be close.’ The Wildcats took a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and never worked back. Quarterback Nate Dahle had a great game (more on him in a bit), but so did running back Seth Rigtrup. Rigtrup had 16 carries for 74 yards, and he also had two catches for 55 yards and a touchdown. Weber State will be off on November 7th, and back in action on the road at a top-ten team in Northern Arizona on November 14th.
Utah Tech 1-8 (1-5 in the Big Sky)
After starting 0-7, Utah Tech looked like they were going to get back-to-back wins. They jumped out to a 14-0 lead over #23 Idaho State in St. George. ISU would fight back, but Tech seemed to answer every time the Bengals would get momentum. The Trailblazers would take a 24-20 lead into the fourth quarter and get a field goal to make it a 27-20 game. That’s when Tech had a fourth quarter worse than any nightmare Halloween can dream up. The Trailblazer would take a terrible sack, and the ball would come loose. ISU would scoop and score to tie the game. Utah Tech wouldn’t panic; they’d move the ball and go on a 52-yard drive to retake the lead but would miss a 41-yard field goal. Again, they’d respond to the pressure well, forcing a three-and-out from Idaho State. With less than 90 seconds to go, Utah Tech had the ball and was trying to move into position to break the tie. Two plays into this drive, Tech would throw a pick-six that would give ISU a 34-27 lead that Tech couldn’t overcome. Utah Tech’s loss would be their eighth of the year. They have to go on the road this week to UC Davis.
Southern Utah 3-6 (2-4 in the Big Sky)
SUU would get off to a great start against #7 Northern Arizona at home in Cedar City. The Thunderbirds would lead 10-0 after the first quarter. Then the wheels came off. Northern Arizona would score 27 unanswered in the second and third quarters. SUU would begin a fourth-quarter rally, though. They’d score a touchdown to cut the lead to 27-17, but Northern Arizona would score one in response. The Thunderbirds kept fighting, scoring 10 more points, but finally ran out of clock and fell at home 34-27. This team is talented and better than their record indicates. With the teeth of their schedule behind them, they should be able to avoid a losing season. They host Northern Colorado in Cedar City this week and then are at Portland State and will be at home against Chicago State for the final game of the season.
Roberts-Hall Award Players of the Week
Utah State quarterback McCae Hillstead had a career game for the Aggies this week. Hillstead did it all for USU. The junior was 17 of 22 for 173 yards and a touchdown. He had 11 carries for 79 yards and a touchdown rushing, too. Hillstead also caught a 44-yard pass from wide receiver Anthony Garcia. Hillstead had 296 yards of offense and two touchdowns in Utah State’s 31-14 win.
Weber State’s Nate Dahle was just as hot in their win over UC Davis. Dahle was 21 of 40 for 309 yards and three touchdowns. He added 79 yards on seven carries on the ground with another touchdown for Weber State in their dominant victory.
Play of the Week
Writer’s Note: All FBS team rankings referenced are from the College Football Power Rankings here at TheForkball.com. All FCS rankings are from the FCS STATS poll.
