Utes should knock off Michigan

ANN ARBOR — Perhaps this isn't the best time to bring this up because, it is the Utes we're talking about. Same Utes who in past years tended to seize up when expectations got too high.

But fact is, Utah should win today against Michigan.

Calm down, everyone. Don't get your undies in a knot. College football isn't what it used to be. Scholarship limitations have evened the odds considerably, paving the way for the Hawaiis, Boise States and Utahs to play in BCS bowls.

Consequently, Ute fans shouldn't get too nervous about high expectations, though many believe Utah does better when it's flying under the radar. But that wasn't the case in 2004 when the Utes went undefeated. The radar just made them better.

So I'll say it again: Utah should beat Michigan today in the Big House.

Does this mean my IQ is falling like my 401(k)?

The best or second-best team in the Mountain West should beat the fifth- or sixth-best team in the Big Ten. No apologies necessary.

Utah came close to beating Michigan in 2002 — Michigan 10, Utah 7 — and that wasn't even a very good Utah team. It was so bad, coach Ron McBride got fired at season's end. Michigan was better than this year (ranked 14th, compared to unranked this year in one poll, 24th in another) and Utah was worse (Utah finished that season 5-6, losing six straight at one point).

Utah should win this time because Michigan has only three returning offensive starters. And because its starting quarterback — whoever that will be — hasn't taken a single college snap. It has a new coach with a new offensive scheme — a scheme the Utes should have no trouble recognizing since it's the same as theirs.

Starting offensive lineman Justin Boren transferred to Ohio State, saying Michigan had abandoned its family values. True or not, it doesn't appear everything is harmonious in the Big House.

Meanwhile, Utah has veteran leadership at quarterback, dangerous running backs and several outstanding receivers.

The Utes should win because, heck, Appalachian State beat Michigan here last year, and if Ap State can do it, so can Utah.

This is a different era for the Utes. They're far better established than they were in 2002. Since then they've won four bowl games, one of them being the Fiesta.

"When we go (recruiting) into someone's home now," said coach Kyle Whittingham, "they know who Utah is."

Beyond that, Utah has played other big-time teams and won. Among the BCS teams they've beaten in the last four years: UCLA, Louisville, Georgia Tech, Arizona, Pitt, North Carolina and Texas A&M.

Most of the "gee whiz" factor should be over by now.

That's not to say the Utes could beat such teams every week, but give them one game and they're mean-dog dangerous.