Utah (4-7, 1-7) at UCF (4-7, 2-6)
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Kickoff: Friday, 6 p.m. MST
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Venue: FBC Mortgage Stadium
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TV: Fox
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Livestream: foxsports.com/live
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Radio: ESPN 700 AM/92.1 FM
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Series: First meeting
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Weather: Partly cloudy with temperatures in the low 60s at kickoff, dropping to low 50s by end of game
The trends
For Utah: The Utes will look to break a seven-game losing streak that started back on Sep. 28 in a 23-10 home loss to Arizona. Utah’s latest defeat came against Iowa State last week after the Cyclones drove 75 yards in 4:20 to score the go-ahead touchdown. Fifth-string quarterback Luke Bottari, who came in after Isaac Wilson was injured, drove Utah to the Iowa State 35-yard line, but Cole Becker missed the 54-yard field goal.
For UCF: The Knights have lost seven of their last eight games, with the lone win coming against Arizona, 56-12, on Nov. 2. Since then, UCF lost at Arizona State and at West Virginia to ensure a losing record.
What to watch for
Once again, Utah’s starter for the final game of the season is Luke Bottari. Cam Rising, Isaac Wilson, Brandon Rose and Sam Huard are all out for the season, so the Utes turn to their fifth-string quarterback.
Last year, Bottari scored two rushing touchdowns in Utah’s 23-17 victory over Colorado, who was also playing its backup quarterback. In that win, Bottari passed the ball just 10 times, with running back Jaylon Glover leading the way with 107 rushing yards, while Sione Vaki added 68.
Will we see a similar game plan against UCF — limited pass attempts from Bottari and an emphasis on running the ball?
The Knights have one of the better run defenses in the Big 12, allowing just 123.5 rushing yards, though BYU and West Virginia were recently able to eclipse 200 yards on the ground against the Knights. Utah will try and establish the ground game early on, something the team hasn’t been able to do in the last two contests. Bottari’s ability to run the ball could come in handy — he rushed for 47 yards against Iowa State — but he likely won’t catch the Knights off guard like the Cyclones.
Running back Micah Bernard, who is 78 yards short of 1,000 rushing yards this season, needs to have a big performance in his final game as a Ute for Utah to have a chance in this one. Bottari can throw if called upon, but offensive success will likely come down to if Bernard and the Utes can get the ball moving on the ground.
Key player
RJ Harvey, UCF RB: The best running back in the country is clearly Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty, who has rushed for 2,062 yards this year, but UCF’s RJ Harvey isn’t too far behind, rushing for 1,458 yards and 21 touchdowns this season.
He is the main reason why UCF’s offense garners the most yards in the Big 12 — 454 yards per game — despite going through three quarterbacks this season. The Knights finally settled on Dylan Rizk, who they turned to in the BYU loss, and he’s started the last three games for UCF, throwing for 797 yards, five touchdowns and an interception on 68% accuracy.
Make no mistake about it, for the 10-point-underdog Utes to have a shot at snapping their seven-game losing streak, they’ll have to bottle up Harvey, which is no easy feat, especially for a run defense which has been good, but not elite, throughout the season.
Quotable
“It’ll be a challenge for our defense this week to face that (offense), particularly that rushing attack.” — Utah coach Kyle Whittingham
“We’re playing Utah, a team in the same boat we are, same record. You look at them and time of possession, they’re one of the best teams in college football in time of possession. Third-down defense, I think they’re second in the country. They play really good defense, they hold on to the football.” — UCF coach Gus Malzahn
Next up
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Utah: Season over
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UCF: Season over
Utah schedule/results
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Aug. 29: Utah 49, Southern Utah 0.
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Sept. 7: Utah 23, Baylor 12.
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Sept. 14: Utah 38, Utah State 21.
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Sept. 21: Utah 22, Oklahoma State 19.
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Sept. 28: Arizona 23, Utah 10.
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Oct. 5: Bye.
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Oct. 11: Arizona State 27, Utah 19.
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Oct. 19: TCU 13, Utah 7.
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Oct. 26: Houston 17, Utah 14.
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Nov. 2: Bye.
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Nov. 9: BYU, 22, Utah 21.
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Nov. 16: Colorado 49, Utah 24.
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Nov. 23: Iowa State 31, Utah 28.
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Nov. 29: at UCF (6 p.m., Fox).
All times Mountain Time Zone.
