Thursday Night Lights: Questions aplenty as Utes open at Oregon State tonight

CORVALLIS, Ore. — Utah offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig knows what the Utes are facing in tonight's season opener at Oregon State.

From 2002-04, he directed Oregon's offense — coaching the Ducks in three "Civil Wars" against the Beavers.

"The biggest thing is the great homefield advantage it is," said Ludwig, who acknowledged the Utes will have to overcome the crowd noise and adversity they'll face at newly expanded Reser Stadium. "Provo was loud a couple of years ago, but these fans are right on top of you."

That part of Utah's third consecutive opener against a Pac-10 opponent is known. The Utes prepared for it by practicing with crowd noise blaring over speakers near the field.

Just about everything else, though, is more of an educated guess.

Questions abound on both sides.

• How will Utah quarterback Brian Johnson fare in his first game since suffering a serious injury in 2005?

• What about Oregon State's plan to let sophomore quarterbacks Sean Canfield and Lyle Moevao start the first and second quarters, respectively?

• Will the Utes get a ground game established with Matt Asiata, Ray Stowers and Darryl Poston auditioning for the most carries at tailback?

• Can Oregon State prevail without All-American receiver Sammie Stroughter, who isn't expected to play after dealing with grief issues? Is running back Yvenson Bernard the real deal?

"There's so many unknowns in an opener," said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham.

Oregon State coach Mike Riley acknowledged there's a lot of things to do.

"In our preparation, we have to be ready for quite a large variety of stuff," he said. "And we have to be able to block it, and protect it and be efficient in reading the defenses and throwing the football and catching it."

The first meeting between the Utes and Beavers since 1992 is laced with intrigue.

"The season opener is always exciting, and playing a team the caliber of Oregon State right out of the gate tends to get players and fans alike even more charged up," Whittingham said. "Playing a Pac-10 school is always a challenge, but one that our players and coaches look forward to."