SALT LAKE CITY – No. 13 Utah used a dominant defense and a punishing ground game to roll to a season-opening win over Brigham Young. Now, the Utes come home to Salt Lake City and entertain Northern Illinois on Saturday in their home opener.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network. LINE: Utah -21.5
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In the 30-12 win over rival BYU – Utah's ninth straight triumph in the Holy War series – the Utes' defense scored twice as many touchdowns (two) than it allowed, scoring on a pair of pick-six returns. Leading only 9-6 at halftime, Utah held the host Cougars to just 104 yards over the final 30 minutes. "We heard all the time about how they had a great offense," said Utah safety Julian Blackmon, whose 39-yard interception-return TD put the Utes ahead 30-6 in the fourth quarter. "They have a great team for sure, but we know that man-for-man, we're the better team. So at the end of the day, we just wanted to come out and prove that." Northern Illinois also opened with a rivalry win, downing visiting FCS member Illinois State 24-10 on Saturday to give new head coach Thomas Hammock a victory in his debut at his alma mater.
ABOUT NORTHERN ILLINOIS (1-0)
Quarterback Ross Bowers, a senior transfer from California, completed 20-of-33 passes in the opener for 299 yards and two TDs in the opening win. His favorite target was wideout Tyrice Richie, a junior-college transfer who reeled three passes for 102 yards and both scores. Cornerback Jaten McKie had four total tackles and a 32-yard interception return for a TD for the Huskies' defense, which held Illinois State to 238 total yards, including 51 rushing on 28 carries, and allowed only one third-down conversion in 14 attempts.
ABOUT UTAH (1-0)
While the Utes' defense was dominating its matchup, senior tailback Zack Moss was doing the same in his, rushing for 187 yards and a TD on 29 carries. Moss wore a protective splint on his hand due to an injury in fall camp but didn't seem hindered in the least as he closed to within 381 rushing yards of Eddie Johnson's career school record of 3,219. Dual-threat quarterback Tyler Huntley was Utah's second-leading rusher in the opener with 39 yards on eight attempts and had an efficient aerial day, completing 13-of-16 attempts for 106 yards.
EXTRA POINTS
1. The contest marks the second meeting between the programs following Utah's 17-6 road win a season ago. The game was a defensive slugfest featuring one offensive TD and was decided on a 40-yard pick-six with 2:36 remaining.
2. The Utes have won 11 straight home openers and are 24-1 in regular-season non-conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, losing only to Utah State in 2012.
3. The game is the first of three straight non-conference road dates against Power Five conference foes for Northern Illinois, and the Huskies are also seeking their first win over a ranked non-conference opponent since a 21-16 upset of then-No. 21 Alabama on Sept. 20, 2003.
PREDICTION: Utah 33, Northern Illinois 10