Utah Utes at Washington Huskies Odds & Game Pick (2019 College Football)

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What had originally been pegged as a “Game of the Year” kicks off Saturday afternoon when the 10th-ranked Utah Utes head to Seattle to take on the now unranked Washington Huskies. While the Utes are tied for the lead in the PAC-12 South and in the College Football Playoff discussion, the Huskies haven’t lived up to their end of the bargain, sitting at 5-3 on the season and in the bottom half of the PAC-12 North. In what will be a rematch of last season’s PAC-12 title game, let’s take a deeper look at a contest between two programs who know each other well.

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Utah Utes at Washington Huskies

Saturday, November 2nd, 2019 – 4:00 pm EST
Washington +3, O/U 47.5 (via PointsBet)

Coming into the 2019 season, junior quarterback Jacob Eason’s transfer from Georgia was billed as a key piece of taking Washington to the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2016. Through eight games, Eason has certainly been effective throwing for 16 touchdowns and just three interceptions but has lacked the eye-popping stats, largely providing value by minimizing mistakes. Paired with junior running back Salvan Ahmed, the Huskies offense hasn’t nearly been the issue that the defense has to this point in the season.

Ranking 55th in FBS in yards allowed per game at 376.6, this Huskies’ defense has regressed significantly from last season when they allowed just 306.2 yards per game as one of the top defenses in college football. Prior to last week’s bye, Washington was last on the field at home against Oregon, a 31-35 loss that was their second in three weeks. After leading by two touchdowns early in the second half, the Huskies got outscored 21-3 over the last 27 minutes of play.

Another season has brought another tough Kyle Wittingham coached Utah team who finds themselves off to one of their best starts in recent memory currently sitting at 7-1. While the one-two punch at quarterback and running back in Tyler Huntley and Zack Moss continues to be sufficient, accounting for a combined 26 touchdowns on the season, the defense has stolen the headlines for the Utes this season. Through eight games, this defensive unit is allowing just 10.2 points per game and is second only to Wisconsin in defensive third-down percentage at 26.3%.

The Utes defense’s ability to get offenses off the field early and often has allowed their offense to lead the country in time of possession at over 35 minutes per game. In their most recent game last week at home against Cal, the Utes pitched their second shutout of the season and limited a team to under seven points for the fourth time this season. Over their current four-game winning streak, the Utes have a +123 point differential and have given up just one non-garbage-time touchdown. The Utes are also on a four-game cover streak over that span, covering all four games by a combined 66 points.

Bottom Line?

Washington came into the season expecting to be competing for a spot in the College Football Playoff and it became clear very early on that wasn’t going to be a possibility. Even off of a bye, two losses in three weeks of football isn’t something most of these players and coaches could’ve ever imagined and the signs of mailing it in are starting to appear all over this program. In what is a double-revenge spot for Utah after losing in both of last season’s contests, the Huskies limited this offense to just 10 points in two games, but now lack any resemblance to that 2018 Washington defense. In a series between familiar foes that Washington has long dominated, I see the tides starting to turn and expect a statement performance from the Utes.

Pick: Utah -3

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