Three Storylines That Could Determine Winner Of Utah/Arizona Game

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The long awaited season opener for Utah football is almost here.

After a tumultuous off-season that was a roller coaster ride to say the least, Utah will finally be playing some Pac-12 football.

On the Crimson Corner podcast, three storylines were given that could determine the winner of Utah’s season opener against Arizona.

1. Arizona WR’s vs. Utah’s CB’s

Utah’s entire defensive secondary has 0 combined starts in their college football careers. Arizona’s wide receiver group features a sophomore, redshirt sophomore, redshirt junior and a senior tight end.

The Utes will be tested with Grant Gunnell at quarterback for the Wildcats. Gunnell is a pocket passer that could provide problem’s for Utah’s secondary if they can’t make plays in the back end and not get a pass rush going up front.

Take a look at Utah's opponent. https://t.co/WkZR5c8F3A

— Trevor Allen (@TrevorASports) November 3, 2020

2. Battle In The Trenches

Utah has a very talented defensive line. Their ability to get pressure on Arizona’s quarterback could be depended on the center/defensive tackle battle with Viane Moala pegged as one of the best DT’s in the Pac-12 going up against a potential backup center, according to Arizona beat writer Michael Lev of the Arizona Daily Star.

“I think the worrisome area for Arizona is its center, which normally wouldn’t be the case because Josh McCauley has been a solid a starter at that position as anyone has in the Pac-12 for the last two years, however, he hurt his knee early in training camp, and in the practices that I got to see, I didn’t spot him with his position group, which is not a good sign,” Lev told the Crimson Corner. “So his status for the Utah game is up in the air at best. They do have a veteran backup option in Steven Bailey, fifth year senior junior college transfer who has played in games, but it’s a drop off, no question.”

Mika Tafua and Maxs Tupai should be able to get pressure from the outside. If they are able to get that, it will make the young cornerbacks’ job much easier.

3. Shaking Off Rust Fast

When Utah takes the field on Saturday, it will have been 312 days since their last game, which was the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 31, 2019. Normally, Utah will have played a spring football game as well. In a normal season, Utah would be entering the final 3 or 4 games of the regular season rather than just starting their campaign.

It will take some time early on to get things going on both sides of the ball with a young and inexperienced defense along with a new quarterback and running back group on offense. The faster Utah shakes off the rust, the better off they will be in the game.

Utah and Arizona will kickoff on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN2.

Trevor Allen is a Utah Utes Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Crimson Corner podcast. Follow him on Twitter: @TrevorASports. You can download and listen to the podcast, here.