Utah vs. Boise State
I guess Vegas is where the best teams in the country that no one wants to acknowledge get to play. Utah is better than several teams in BCS bowls games and Boise State is still the best team in the country, in-spite of their loss to Nevada. This game should be very interesting to watch. It certainly won’t be much of a quarterback battle if history is any indication. While Kellen Moore is the single best quarterback in the country, Terrence Cain is getting the start solely because of an injury to the regular starting quarterback Jordan Wynn. This can both help and hurt the Utah offense. On one hand, Cain is tremendously athletic and could bring a different dimension to the rushing offense. On the other hand, Cain is not a great passer, especially in the intermediate routes. He does have the arm strength to challenge the secondary deep, which can be helped by the solid play of wide receivers DeVonte Christopher, Jerome Brooks, Shaky Smithson and Luke Matthews. However, Utah cannot become a pass first team in this game. Boise State is simply too good at pressuring the quarterback and handling man-on-man coverage for Cain to beat them with his arm. They need to rely on their rushing game, particularly the power rushing of Matt Asiata. While Eddie Wide brings a lot of explosiveness to the rushing game, Boise State’s defense has the athleticism to match those sweep plays that Wide excels at. The best way for Utah to keep up offensively, is to just let Zane Taylor, Caleb Schlauderaff and the rest of the offensive line drive the Boise defenders off the ball and be methodical with their play calling.
Boise State on the other hand has a tremendous advantage with their offense, not just because they have the best quarterback in college football (Kellen Moore) and one of the best offensively innovative minds (Chris Peterson) stalking the sidelines, but because they make sure their offense is completely balanced. They excel at both rushing the ball and passing it, allowing them to adapt to whatever the opposing defenses puts in front of them. In this game, the Broncos don’t need to dominate on the ground, they just need Doug Martin and Jeremy Avery to keep Utah’s defense off balance. Utah’s pass defense has been porous in the red zone and, in spite of the efforts of talented cornerback Brandon Burton, have given up 18 passing touchdowns (only 5 rushing touchdowns were scored against them this season). While average teams may only be able to exploit that defense in the red zone, Kellen Moore should be able to pick apart the holes in that defense and take advantage of every possible matchup. It helps that he has two very good wide receivers in Austin Pettis and Titus Young. Pettis has great size and is a precise route runner while Young is a speed demon. Don’t be surprised if you see wide receiver Tyler Showmaker or tight end Kyle Efaw have big games either. There are only so many defensive backs Utah can get on the field at any time, leaving an opening somewhere in that defense. Kellen Moore is the kind of quarterback who can take advantage of that. Also, don’t underestimate his ability to step into the pocket and move to avoid sacks. I think the pass rush of Utah will be neutralized by that savvy.
The special teams match-up is also going to be interesting to watch. Both teams have a dynamic returner and a strong placekicker. Titus Young, who I mentioned earlier also returns punts and kickoffs for the Broncos and can be dangerous if given a hole or two. However the bigger issue is Shaky Smithson, the Utah returner, leads the nation in punt return average (19.7 YPR) and Boise State has had issues covering kicks and punts. If Utah has Smithson back returning kicks as well as punts, they may not have to concern themselves with keeping up offensively. Also, when you consider the very public failures Boise state Kicker Kyle Brotzman experienced during the Nevada game, it’s easy to assume that he may have some issues keeping his cool in this spotlight.
Prospects to Watch
Utah
Zane Taylor – Offensive Center/Guard: Taylor is an experienced and intelligent center. He shows great toughness and awareness pre-snap. However he lacks ideal bulk and shows some inconsistencies with his technique. Strengthening up before the combine could help his cause, but as it stands he could fit in well with a team that runs a zone-blocking style run offense. He could go in the later rounds.
Boise State
Titus Young – Wide Receiver: While Young is not as precise a route runner as his teammate Austin Pettis, he has the speed to draw interest from numerous teams. He also has experience as a returner, which is in high demand these days. I’d expect to see him come off the board between the 3rd and 6th rounds, depending how he tests during the combine.
Final Pick
Boise State – All the signs indicate that Boise State remains the superior team. While I know Utah can pull the big upset, it’s difficult to see them pulling a major upset in this game.
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