Las Vegas Bowl Reflects Futures of BYU, Utah Football Teams

Utah, Las Vegas Bowl, NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 19, 2015, in Las Vegas. Utah plays BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday. Both teams will likely fly into McCarran International Airport but for the student body and fan base the short trip south on Interstate 15 created immediate interest in the game resulting in the bowl affair being sold out in less than 24 hours after the matchup was announced. Utah coach Kyle Whittingham called the effort in the third and half of the fourth quarter “pathetic” as his team allowed BYU to claw back into the game. We expect a lower scoring contest in Vegas in this rivalry game and with Utah missing DeVontae Booker. BYU coach Mendenhall is coaching against the rival Utes for the last time before taking over the Virginia program.

Tanner Mangum’s day couldn’t have started worse when he threw three first-quarter interceptions (two of which were returned for touchdowns) and lost a fumble on a sack. Score: Utah 35, BYU 28Prediction: Utah 28, BYU 23, Line: Utah -2.5, o/u: 54 And You Care Because… Peck’s touchdown reception was the first by a BYU tight end this year.

It’s nearly time for us to find out, because for the first time in 27 months, Rivalry Week is back on in Utah.

Utah was flawless in the first quarter, though, which made its overall performance passable in a 35-28 victory over its archrival.

In a statistical quirk, BYU actually outgained Utah 89-69 in the first quarter. Mangum would bring BYU (9-4) back, throwing two TD passes and rushing for another with 3:23 left to get the Cougars within one score, but BYU never got the ball back.

“You’re not going to lose a lot of games when you’re plus-5 in the turnover department”, Whittingham said. “We got complacent and that’s on me”.

“It’s 35-0, and I don’t even know how much time expired”, he said.

Mangum’s shaky start didn’t stop him from throwing for 315 yards in rallying his team. BYU is statistically dead even with them, also giving up only 21.8 points per game.

It’s no small feat for the Australian punter, who last week told ESPN’s Chris Fowler, “The main reason I’m playing this sport right now is because I’m fat, and I don’t like running very far”. With all the momentum on their side, the Cougars just needed the ball one last time to get the opportunity to score, but Joe Williams wouldn’t give Mendenhall and his team the chance.

The Utes (10-3) built a 35-0 1st quarter lead by scoring 5 touchdown off 5 Cougar turnovers and it looked like a rout in front of a sellout crowd at Sam Boyd Stadium and a national ABC television audience.

It may have been no small coincidence that Utah junior defensive end Hunter Dimick logged his first significant action since he injured his shoulder against USC – recording his third sack after totaling 10 as a sophomore – and that Utah had a full rotation of four defensive tackles as sophomore Filipo Mokofisi showed no signs of being hobbled. Williams rushed for a game-high 91 yards on 25 carries for Utah (10-3), including 26 yards on five carries that produced two first downs on a game-clinching final drive that ran out the clock after BYU (9-4) had scored 28 straight points after falling behind 35-0 in the first 10 1/2 minutes.