College GameDay Feels Confident About Utah Heading Into Game Against Oregon
Nov 19, 2022, 11:57 AM
Utah Utes players honor two former players, Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe, just before the start of the fourth quarter as Utah and Oregon State play at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. Utah won 42-16. (Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)
(Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)
EUGENE, OR- It feels like a tide has shifted in favor of the Utes in recent days concerning their impending matchup with Oregon later tonight at Autzen Stadium. ESPN’s College GameDay seems to agree as they all picked No. 10 Utah to win over No. 12 Oregon who had been in the College Football Playoff discussion before suffering a loss against Washington last week.
Utah straight across the board 😱#GoUtes pic.twitter.com/z7Zj6BrpaP
— Michelle Bodkin (@BodkinKSLsports) November 19, 2022
Desmond Howard, Pat McAffe, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and guest picker, Sir Nick Faldo all seemed to agree the Utes are a very well-coached, well-rounded team and until Oregon proves they are a different team than last year, it’s hard to pick against Utah in this matchup.
The Mystery Surrounding Bo Nix
Not helping people’s confidence in the Ducks has been the uncertainly surrounding quarterback Bo Nix and whether or not he will be playing. Rumors started shortly after Oregon’s loss to Washington last weekend that Nix was hurt and may not be able to go against Utah.
Nix clearly went out of the game against the Huskies for several series but did ultimately return to try and stem the bleeding in a game that was coming down to the wire. The move added to the confusion about what will happen this week along with commentary from wide receiver Kris Hutson that Nix was down, and backup Ty Thompson would be starting.
Utah’s Own Injuries
Cam Rising shocked the college football world a few weeks back by opting to sit out of the Washington State game last-minute but has since returned and appears to be looking more and more like his old self.
Tight end Dalton Kincaid didn’t play against Arizona after leaving the Washington State game early with an injury. He returned against Stanford last week, playing limitedly, but the reports coming from head coach Kyle Whittingham earlier in the week seemed to indicate the Utes expect Kincaid to be close to full-strength for the Ducks.
Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram: @BodkinKSLsports
