palls | 12:43 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
The revenge factor - Brian Johnson will have over 300 yards passing. Matt Asiata will have over 100 yards rushing. Don�t even get me started on the Utes Defence (They will play huge). I see the UTES with the big W on this one�.

Go UTES!!!!
JD | 3:50 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I really don't think the Utes have been tested this year yet. Johnson is way over rated. I think the defense is solid, but will have problems with the Beavers little scat back. OSU 28 Utah 17.
all about matchup | 5:58 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Utah wins this game because of the matchup of Utah's defense against Oregon's ground attack. Utah can shut down the run better than any defense because of their quickness and agility in the D-tackle and D-ends.
The Ute offense will score some points, so the 2 stats that could turn the game to the Beavers' favor are:

1. Turnovers: If Utah has 3 or more turnovers, they probably won't come out of this game unbeaten; and

2. OSU Passing Efficiency: If OSU starts completing passes against the weaker Utah D-backs, then they have a very good chance of converting 3rd downs and converting TDs. This is the biggest concern I have of this game. Tonight is the time for the Utah D-Backs to step it up a notch or two.

GO UTES!!
Comments continue below
Keys to the game | 7:04 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Turnovers: Utah's offense needs to help their defence by not giving OSU short fields to score on.
Utah +2 - Utah wins
Utah +1 - very good chance Utah wins
Utah -1 to 0 - good chance Utah wins
Utah -2 or more - good bye BCS bowl

Rushing Defense: limit Quizz to less than 100 yards rushings without giving up big passing plays

Finishing Drives: Utah's offense needs to finish drives instead of bogging down and settling for field goals; it's great to have an all-American kicker you can count on; it's not so great if he's kicking 2 to 4 field goals every game because the offense can't finish drives

Utah 38 OSU 14

Good luck Utes!
uteowl | 7:12 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
RE All About Matchup

Point #2: If you read the OSU boards they're hoping that we focus so much on "Quiz" that we forget their passing game. Anderson had better have the boys ready for the play-action pass.

I am anxious, nervous, whatever you want to call it, about our offense. Have Whit and Ludwig beaten discipline into them to where we don't cough up the ball or have drive-killing penalties? Is Johnson going to be allowed to run if he see's the opportunity (that's where I think he's most threatening)? What kind of game is Ludwig going to call?????

I hope we have answers because I'd like to have hair on my head when the game ends.

If we just come out and finally play the first complete game of the season there will be a lot of happy Ute fans from kick-off to final gun. We will also shut up most of the mouths running from the TDS. (At least for a day until they think up more tripe.)

If not, well, the line from "All About Eve" comes to mind, "Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy night!".
first time | 7:29 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
This is the first team we've faced this season that can run and pass. Actually, it's the first team we've faced that can even pass. Let's see what happens.
WhoAmISir | 7:35 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Watched all 5 games this year and I have my fears with Oregon State. Are the Utes going to play a complete game? Is Ludwig going to open it up with his play calling? Will we hang on to the ball? Is Johnson going to get sacked or run it? Are the defensive backs going to stay with their assignments? These are some of the questions that I have and I�m not the only one asking - so are a few other folks:

�There have been too many turnovers, too many sacks and too many stalled drives against inferior competition. In easy wins over Utah State and Weber State. The Utes rank near the bottom in the national stats in sacks allowed at No. 103, are tied for 93rd in turnovers lost and are tied for 69th in turnover margin�. - Mike Sorensen

Oregon State is probably licking their lips with those 2 stats.

�Sometimes we hold the ball too long, sometimes our protection's broken down and sometimes the route structure has been very poor and we're not getting open,� - Kyle Whittingham

Johnson, O-line, Ludwig take notes here � important stuff � the BOSS is seeing these things.
Darrell | 8:11 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Utah's key on defense is to contain OSU's run and force them into long-yardage pass situations. I would much rather see Moreno try to beat us on throws down the field than to see their running backs picking up big chunks of yardage behind their massive offensive line.

Utah's key on offense is efficiency. Possess the ball, finish drives, don't turn it over.

Oh, and special teams needs to avoid any big mistakes.

Should be a Ute win it they can do all of this.
DORA | 8:15 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I dont know why everyone is so worried Oregon St is not that good they played ONE good game against USC the Utes will come out with a solid victory everyone calm down if Oregon St was playin BYU then fans should be worried but not with the UTES
Re WhoAmISir | 8:34 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Seems I've read that before...do you have anything else? Maybe something original?
sob | 8:49 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
i think johnson thinks about last years game every game. he has happy feet and is tentative, or, eats the ball instead of taking off when he could. i dont think he has gotten over losing most of two seasons to being hurt and is playing scared.
Defense | 9:09 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
If Utah's defense can't handle Oregon State's offense, they'll be in big trouble when they face BYU, which has a MUCH better offense than Oregon State.
RE: Defense | 9:49 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Oregon state has beaten a real team unlike BYU who plays community colleges and winless or one win garbage teams. Until BYU goes out there and beats a real team you shouldn't be talking.
re defense | 10:14 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
ummm, is this article about BYU? Maybe we should consider that the two offenses you mentioned are not close to the same. Hrmm?
Yawn | 10:16 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Bury your head in the sand and pretend that BYU's offensive prowess is only the result of playing weak teams.

Knowledgeable football fans know that BYU has an extremely talented and mature offense, much better than Oregon State's. And getting better.

The balanced Beaver offense will give the expected strong Ute defense their first real test. If the Utes struggle against OSU, that's a serious warning sign for the Ute faithful about how Utah will perform against BYU.

As a diehard BYU fan, I'm hoping Utah does well and beats the stuffing out of the Beavers.

We need an undefeated Utah team to face in November to prove that BYU is legitimate to all the naysayers -- at least nationally.

Many of the local haters will never acknowledge BYU having a pretty good team even if the Cougars beat everybody on their schedule 100-0.

Good luck tonight Utes!
re: RE: Defense | 10:19 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I agree with you tons, but now you watch, you'll get byu fans posting about Utah's weak schedule, but don't worry, they are just insecure. It is the truth though!
re:re: RE: Defense | 11:05 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Haha, your right! USU and Weber St. aren't weak schedules. Hahaaaa! I didn't know Weber St. wasn't considered a community college!? Think before you post. The finger can be pointed right back at U!
umm | 11:15 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Is the post at 11:05 directed towards my post at 10:19? If so, I didn't say anything about Utah having a tough schedule, but you did confirm my statement about being insecure. I won't say to anyone that Utah has a better schedule that tds. It might have looked better on paper, but unless Mich keeps winning it won't seem so good. Maybe YOU should think before you post.
13-1 | 11:20 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
"Johnson missed two complete games before returning for the second half of a loss at UNLV. He reclaimed his starting job the next week and Utah has gone 13-1 since."

Wow, 13-1 that's really GREAT! There aren't many teams in the country that can claim a record THAT good! And that includes some big names like Michigan, Louisville, UCLA, and a big bowl win over a very tough and talented Navy team too.

By the way, who did we lose to during that 13-1 streak? I didn't see that part in the article. But that must have been some great team! I'll bet it's got to be a team that's ranked pretty high.
BYU Fans | 11:27 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
stop posting! who cares about BYU vs Oregon State and who has the better offense. Your game is tommarrow and you will not find me posting on it. Your team is good; there is your validation now go away.

Touchdowns not field goals, positive turnover margin and total rushing less than 100 yards for the Beavers = Blowout.
I wish I had more confidence, I think it will be close.
AZ Beaver | 11:28 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Utes are going to win. Why? Because there fans are just so smart. Their posts are so intellectual, so insightful and mean so much, they've just got to win. How could they lose when their fans are sooooooooo incredibly pointent in their love posts about BYU. Wow, you'd think Utah was playing us to make BYU jelous, like a 13 yr old girl!

"BYU has a weak scheudle"
"BYU hasn't beaten a good team"
"BYU is overrated"
"BYU. . . I love you!"

We're going to spank you!
Your too busy trying to impress BYU and those who put them ahead of you, to remember that we thrive on putting people in thier place. Ask USC.
garbage teams?? | 11:32 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
How low has the PAC 10 sunk that teams from the mighty BCS conference are now considered "garbage teams"?

UCLA, a garbage team, knocked off Tennessee, a top 25 team from the mighty SEC, supposedly the premier college football league. Tennessee lost last week to 15th-ranked Auburn by 2, 12-14, at Auburn.

UCLA barely lost to 25th-ranked Fresno State, 31-36, supposedly one of the best teams in the WAC and a preseason favorite to represent the WAC in a BCS bowl.

If UCLA is a garbage team, how much better can Auburn and Fresno State be.
Uh Oh-line | 11:38 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
"The Beavers pose several areas of concern for the Utes, including a massive offensive line..."

Oh, don't worry about that. Remember that other article about utah's small speedy defensive line and all the yoot fans saying what an advantage they have over big slow offensive lines? I mean, all really big offensive lines must be very slow and clumsy, right?

I'm sure they'll be fine.

(*snicker*)
Victory Bell | 11:40 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
If OSU wins tonight, they can come down to BYU and use our victory bell if they want...
Running for his life | 11:45 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Johnson has a long memory and he is still seeing Beavers everywhere. With his weak O-line, the Beavers will be waiting for him when he drops back.
re:13-1 | 11:43 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
actually....tommy grady was the starter against ucla last year...and utah lost to byu last year? had no i idea
re: umm | 11:46 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
4-0 is insecure, right?! And all your security comes from smack talk eh, even to a Ute fan? "The truth is tough", what does that mean actually? I'm perfectly happy at this point in the season, why can't you?
re:garbage teams | 11:50 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
you can make the statement for utah even more than byu. michigan beat #9 wisconsin and oregon state beat #1 usc. so how bad can wisconsin and usc be right???? yeah yeah yeah we could go on all day but the fact is any team can beat any team on any given week. haha and why are you even bringing auburn into the conversation???? they have no relation to byu and or ucla.
Anonymous | 11:55 a.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I smell another Top 25 upset. Sorry Utah!
re anon 1155 | 12:12 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
by that you mean we won't have an undefeated byu team to trounce in november? Pretty bold to predict the aggies will knock off the cougars tomorrow, but I like it
true garbage teams?? | 12:16 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
"why are you even bringing auburn into the conversation???? they have no relation to byu and or ucla"

For the same reason you brought Wisconsin and USC into the conversation, opponents of opponents of opponents; the cut off point is arbitrary.

The fact is, nobody really knows for sure how good or bad every team is this early in the season.

You can cite Oregon State's close win over USC as proof that the Beavers are a good team.

I can cite Oregon State's blowout loss to Penn State and their 28-36 loss to a weak Stanford team as proof that the Beavers are a "garbage" team.

A 3-1 team with a couple of wins over supposedly good teams, can look pretty good now. In hindsight, they won't look so great when they finish 3-9.

A 1-3 team today, with losses to several good teams, might not look so good now. In hindsight, people could be saying they just got off to a slow start when they finish 9-3.

Fans who can separate the 1-3 sleepers from the 3-1 pretenders can make alot of money in Vegas. Most of us are not that clever or perseptive. Are you?
Oh, I didn't know | 12:37 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Is byu playing today? I thought Utah is playing a legitimate team today. I guess the arrogant b y u -loser bloggers know their team is lame and Utah is getting the national attention tonight.

b-y-u-loser bloggers go away and peddle your insecurities somewhere else and sit home and hope the Mighty UTES lose...which they won't.

Utah 34
OSU 17
BYU Fan | 12:39 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I, for one, am not a hater.
Good luck tonight Utes.

And tomorrow....GO COUGARS!!!
Brettski | 12:40 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Good to see the BYU faithful out in full force pretending to be OSU or "objectionable" fans. What a sorry bunch of schmucks with parts in their hair.

Good luck to the Utes tonight! Oregon is pretty good, but I think the home field, altitude, revenge factor, and Paul Kruger give the Utes the edge.
no quizz tonight | 12:44 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
i am suprised about the concern for our D backs. It seems todays college football fans are paying less attention to good plays and too much attention to the big plays. Utahs D backs are probably some of the most solid in the country. They may not have the interceptions that others have but that is 2 percent of their job, they are extremely quick at breaking to the ball and read the quarterbacks very well, just watch and see how many broken up plays and deflected passes they will have. That is the real job. As far as our D line, they have played stellar in recent games. Look at what paul kruger has done, he is up there in the top 15 ends in the country, and rated much higher than a certain jan jorgensen that got a little too much hype. Our offense is just waiting to break out, Asiata will have his comming out party tonight and i have a feeling Johnson will be moving his feet pretty well also. Get a win tonight and our cred goes way beyond BYU, If we keep winning we will jump them.

GO UTES
MJB | 12:44 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Utah 35
Oregon State 21
SoCalUtahFan | 12:46 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008

All I want...is a win against Oregon State tonight.
And I want Utah to remain unbeaten at the end of the season. If that happens, things will fall into places. This season, not many team can remain unbeaten and has played a good schedule.
Alum | 12:54 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Go Utes! Beat the Beavers of the mighty Pac-0. I smell some disgruntled fans. As for BY Who, lay it all out on the field on Nov. 22 and see what happens.
It will be fun no question.
To: WhoAmISir | 1:01 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
So what channel was the Weber State game on?
AzByuFan | 1:38 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Go Utes!!!! Utah 27 Oregon St 13.

I am a very blue BYU fan but the Utes represent the state and conference and have made a very entertaining rivalry. If BYU would ever get invited to the PAC 10 it's chances would be greatly improved as a package deal with the success of Utah. Utah has represented the conference better than anyone this decade with their long streak of bowl wins and wins over BCS teams, gracias.
Utes > OSU > USC
then come November BYU > UT. I couldn't resist. Go Utah beat the Beavs!
re: Brettski | 1:54 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
As a Utah alum I invoke my right to comment on Utah football, even though I'm an avid BYU fan.

Actually, it's a free forum, everybody is allowed to post on any article.

If you have a valid rebuttal, then post it. If your only response is a feable attempt to discredit other posters through name calling, that's weak.

Go Utes; make us proud...

btw, Paul Kruger is a good neighbor.

He just chose poorly.

Just kidding. He's a great kid and has his own life to live.

Until November.
re:AzByuFan | 2:03 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008

Well, thanks for rooting for Utah, little brother.

But I have to dis-agree with you about the game on Nov 22. It's a victory for Utah.

Until then, good luck to both teams. After all, we want BYU to lose only to Utah this year.

Ciao
Uteowl | 2:29 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Re: YAWN "Many of the local haters will never acknowledge BYU having a pretty good team even if the Cougars beat everybody on their schedule 100-0."

Back atcha! Same goes for Ute haters.

Unfortunately for both fans - BOTH teams are good this year. But then again it is probably easier to hate your rivals when they are good. e.g. I never root for the Dallas Cowboys or the LA Dodgers, but I really hate them when they're good. (Go Utes! Go Eagles! GO PHILLIES! - and again...GO UTES trap the Beavers and skin 'em!)
RR | 2:31 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
As a BYU fan, if Utah wins tonight, they have every right to be on the same page as far as frontrunners to the BC$, based solely on impressive wins vs. Michigan and OSU. Both teams played two lower division teams (USU included) and teams from BC$ conferences, and both just winning on the road by 1-2 points.

If Utah barely wins, they should be considered on the same page. If they blow them out, that would be something else, considering USC. BYU did blowout UCLA, who had everyone talking about them after a big upset of a top 25 team (and from the SEC).

All the non-conference games are so much alike. Both teams deserve equal consideration.
Re: Yawn | 2:33 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Could you define knowledgeable football fans? Do they all live down South? Maybe you're right. Maybe it's out of line to claim BYU's offensive success is the product of playing putrid opponents, but it's equally foolish to claim one team's performance in one game is a solid barometer of what's to come during future encounters. I seem to remember a similar BYU offense only put up 17 pts to similar Ute defense (at LES) just last season. And guess what? Oregon St. put up 24 on the Utes earlier that year.

I know BYU is improved from last year, especially offensively, but to imply Utah's defensive performance against OSU has any bearing on the rivalry matchup in November is applying a very minute portion of the logic existing in the mind of a knowledgeable football fan.
1 loss per team | 3:01 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Mark my words BOTH BYU and Utah will have at least one loss before the rilvary game. This could be the game for the Utes.
Can U pass the Quizz? | 3:08 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
I just watched a series of clips from the Oregon State/USC game. Quizz is fast, shifty, and is great at following his massive blockers, then bursting through a seam.

Utah needs to be careful not to crowd the line of scrimmage too closely because if Quizz bursts through a tightly packed defensive front, he'll be gone. Cornerbacks covering the wide receivers in the flats won't be able to recover fast enough to stop this kid.

Quizz's nearly 200 yds rushing all came from runs that were 15 yards or less. Oregon State was methodical marching down the field. Utah needs to counter that by stripping the ball a couple times to kill drives and momentum.

Utah's smallish defensive line could be a big problem. Many of Oregon State's runs were just pile drives, where those big OSU hogs just blew straight forward with Quizz tucking in behind and surfing the wave of orange and black bodies.

Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers.

Utah is going to need more possessions than OSU to win this game. The only way they're going to do that is by creating more turnovers than they surrender.

(subliminal message not intended)

Good luck Utah. You'll need it.
SoCalUtahFan | 3:10 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008

why tonight's game not on ESPN? it would make a great game!!!
No implication needed | 3:15 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Utah's defensive performance against the Beavers will show whether they can shut down a multifaceted offensive attack.

Shutting down Air Force's running game was impressive, but Utah was able to sell out to stop the run because the Falcon's have no real passing game.

Oregon State can do both -- run and pass. Utah's challenge is to stop Quizz without giving up big passing plays. If they're successful, that will be a good indication that they are capable of handling BYU's strong running and passing attack.

If they struggle against Oregon State, that's not a good sign for Utah's defense.
Anonymous | 3:34 p.m. Oct. 2, 2008
Every game is different for every player

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