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It's a team that lost by 52 last week at No. 15 Ole Miss, that Utah beat by 32 last season in Salt Lake City.

For a second consecutive year, Fresno State faces Utah while still trying to determine its starting quarterback, as a raw bunch that was tenderized the previous week by a Power 5 opponent.

(In 2014, it was No. 15 USC.)

But they're not afraid, said Fresno State head coach Tim DeRuyter on Monday.

Amid the Rebel onslaught, "I didn't see that faraway look in their eyes, like we have in years past," he said.

"I think we are, potentially, a much better team than a year ago. I think we're much more talented. I think you can see that."

For what it's worth — probably nothing, since the last occasion was 1997 — the Bulldogs are 3-0 all time against the Utes at Bulldog Stadium, never winning by less than two touchdowns.

And they're 3-0 wearing black at home, as they intend to do Saturday night.

Meanwhile, the game will cap an emotionally draining week for Utah, after sophomore guard Lo Falemaka and true freshman running back Marcel Brooks-Brown were shot while attending a party last weekend.

For senior running back Devontae Booker, it's an opportunity to take out some pent-up aggression against a team that once backed off him when he failed to qualify.

And it's one more chance for Utah to iron out any wrinkles before heading to Eugene to begin Pac-12 play against the No. 12 Ducks.

Time, Place and [Radio Waves in] Space • Kicking off at 8:30 p.m. MT on turf at 41,031-capacity Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, Calif., the game will air on CBS Sports Network — called by Dave Ryan, Corey Chavous and Melanie Collins — and on the radio at ESPN 700 — called by Bill Riley, Frank Dolce and Bo Nagahi. Satellite radio listeners can tune in at Sirius 126 or XM 204.

Line • Utah -14, over/under 54

Opposing Coach • Now in his fourth season, Tim DeRuyter is 27-15 as Fresno State's head coach. He's a longtime defensive coordinator — holding that post at Texas A&M, Air Force, Nevada, Ohio and Navy — and after inheriting a Bulldogs team that had gone 4-9, he led them to back-to-back Mountain West championships and received a five-year contract extension. But after losing quarterback Derek Carr, among others, his Bulldogs went just 6-8 last season. About the best things you could say about them is that they were resilient enough to twice win three straight after losing three straight, they ran the ball decently well (194 yards per game) and they avoided penalties (4.2 per game for 39 yards). DeRuyter's rebuilding effort continues this season.

Utah Ties • Utah true freshman wideout Tyrone Smith hails from Fresno's Edison High, while Fresno State junior cornerback Stratton Brown hails from Bluffdale and played at Snow College before joining the Bulldogs. … Utah assistant head coach and running backs coach Dennis Erickson was served from 1976 to 1978 as Fresno State's offensive coordinator, a position currently occupied by Dave Schramm, who held jobs as offensive coordinator and coach of running backs, quarterbacks and tight ends during his time at Utah from 2005-11. Schramm is joined by former Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn, now an unpaid volunteer. … Utah junior cornerback Cory Butler-Byrd and Fresno State redshirt freshman receiver Jamire Jordan were teammates as Pee Wee players in Palmdale, Calif. … Senior running back Devontae Booker might've gone there if not for failing to qualify academically out of Sacramento's Grant Union High. … Fresno State was once thought to be a possible landing spot for Utah junior running back/linebacker Marcus Sanders-Williams, before he decided to rejoin the Utes this fall.

Pregame Quotable • "The adrenaline was pumping so much that they kind of lost their minds a little bit," DeRuyter, on his young team's response to the atmosphere in Oxford, Miss.

Media Guide Nuggets • Meh. We'll go with "Google Nuggets" this time: The tallest building in Fresno (population: 509,924) is the nine-story Robert E. Coyle United States Courthouse, at 225 feet. Salt Lake City (population 191,180) has 22 taller buildings. … Fresno County canceled high school football games last Friday due to the smoke in the air from the Rough Fire, one of the 15 largest in state history. Conditions are expected to be fine Saturday.

Telling Stat • The Bulldogs are 23-1 when scoring 30 or more points under DeRuyter and average 41 at Bulldog Stadium, where he is 18-2.

Bulldogs Offensive Outlook • Fresno State lost its identity last year — 101st in the nation in passing efficiency, averaging just 26.5 points per game and leaning on senior running back Marteze Waller, who finished with 1,368 yards and 11 touchdowns.

But maybe that's what they are now.

Waller again had 28 carries for 91 yards last week against Ole Miss, while the Bulldogs, like the Utes, head into Saturday's game with an "OR" at quarterback.

Touted true freshman Chason Virgil played nearly three quarters at Ole Miss, finishing the first half 7-of-7 for 83 yards and a score but going just 5-of-11 for 57 yards, one touchdowns and two interception in the second. He also lost a fumble.

Sophomore Zack Greenlee has thrown three touchdowns against one interception in 36 attempts this season, but he's only completed 17 of those passes.

Fresno State will be without its top five leaders in receiving yards from 2014 — with Josh Harper, Greg Watson and Josh Quezeda moving on and Aaron Peck (foot) and Delvon Hardaway (ACL) injured.

That leaves — hard to say.

Junior Long Beach City College transfer Josiah Blandin caught touchdown passes in each of his first two games, and sophomore tight end Chad Olsen caught two against Abilene Christian. Junior Da'Mari Scott led the team in Oxford with five catches for 67 yards.

At least they have Waller, and an experienced offensive line that has conceded just one sack despite the lack of production through the air this season.

Bulldogs Defensive Outlook • As bad as Fresno State was throwing the ball last year, it was even worse at defending the pass.

The Bulldogs finished 118th in passing efficiency defense, conceding 456 yards per game, and memorably allowed Travis Wilson to throw for five touchdowns in a single half.

Last week was a similar story, as Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly went 20-of-35 for 346 yards and four touchdowns.

Theoretically, the Bulldogs' rushing defense is more stout, and they held Abilene Christian to just 34 rushing yards, but the Rebels gashed them for 215 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

Utah may not need to stretch the field to score against this defense, but it would make things easier.

Junior cornerback Jamal Ellis has four passes defended, ninth in the NCAA through two games, and finished with a career-high 10 tackles last week, while senior free safety Shannon Edwards returned an interception 56 yards for a score.

Senior defensive end Claudell Louis has sacks in each of the first two games, and senior outside linebacker Ejiro Ederaine has 11 tackles, a sack and an interception.

Bulldogs Special Teams Outlook • Senior punter Garrett Swanson boasts a career average of 41.6 yards, and just 33 of his 144 punts have been returned, for an average of just 6.2 yards.

Kicker is less certain (recall that the Bulldogs last year held open tryouts at the position). Sophomore Kody Kroenig has attempted and converted all seven extra points, but has attempted just one field goal to Jimmy Camacho's two.

Look out for senior long snapper Dylan Detwiler, one of Fresno State's three captains, who forced a fumble in punt coverage last week.

Required Reading

Injury Report • Senior quarterback Travis Wilson sprained his shoulder against Utah State, and his status is unknown despite his involvement in practice this week. Junior defensive end Hunter Dimick sustained an unknown lower leg injury against the Aggies, and it's not known if he'll participate, either. Redshirt freshman Raelon Singleton still has yet to play this season, hampered by an undisclosed injury. Brooks-Brown is expected to be out for weeks yet, while Falemaka may miss the remainder of the season, joining senior tight end Evan Moeai and redshirt freshman Troy McCormick on that list. Senior cornerback Ahmad Christian remains out after tearing his Achilles during winter conditioning. For Fresno State, redshirt freshman wideout Keyan Williams injured his head against Ole Miss and is "doubtful," DeRuyter said, while Hardaway is "close" to returning from a partial ACL tear and Peck is out for the year with a foot injury.

Three Big Questions

1. Who will play quarterback for Utah? • Limited perhaps by Utah's conservative approach as much as anything, Kendal Thompson finished with just 56 passing yards and 23 rushing yards in more than a half of duty against the Aggies. Utah's longest completion this season is 22 yards, and given that Wilson is regarded as the better downfield passer of the two quarterbacks, and that the Bulldogs are highly susceptible to the deep ball, there may be some incentive to let Wilson play through the pain. If not, it's an opportunity for Thompson.

2. Can Utah pressure the passer? • Sacks aren't everything, Utah coaches have said. Utah's pressure has yielded five interceptions — tied for third in the nation. But after leading the nation with 55 in 2014, the Utes sit with just two through two games. Last year, the Bulldogs' visit Salt Lake City was good for seven. Dimick's status is unknown, but junior Kylie Fitts played well in his stead against USU, and junior Pita Taumoepenu forced a key fumble from Chuckie Keeton. Is there more where that came from?

3. Is there such a thing as a trap game? • Whittingham said this week that the Bulldogs have their full attention, but this is one of those weeks where you wonder. Utah has every reason to think they'll pummel Fresno State like they did last year and like Ole Miss did last week. But Fresno State had a little Jekyll and Hyde to it in 2014, rallying to play in the Mountain West Championship Game. Even if DeRuyter lacks the experienced talent he had while winning many of those 18 games at Bulldog Stadium, a .900 win percentage can't be totally ignored.

— Matthew Piper

mpiper@sltrib.com

Twitter: @matthew_piper