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You've waited long enough for football. Why should you have to pedal through a long-winded intro to a Utah-SUU game guide?

You shouldn't. Here goes:

Time, Place and [Radio Waves in] Space • The Utes season opener at Rice-Eccles stadium gets going on Thursday night at 6 p.m. You can watch on Pac-12 Networks or listen in on ESPN 700 AM. The game itself is a "Checker Rice-Eccles" fan promotion, meaning attendees should look online to see what color their section is if they hope to blend in.

Line • As many FBS v. FCS games go, there isn't a line for this game. It moves the needle as much in Vegas as it probably will in other parts of the country.

Opposing Coach • http://www.sltrib.com/home/3986544-155/suu-football-new-coach-demario-warren";>Welcome to your first game as head coach, Demario Warren. You get a team that went 10-3 last year. He's only in his early 30s, but Warren knows the drill, having coached SUU's defense last year in a strong performance despite a 12-9 loss to Utah State (the winning touchdown was on a punt return). The first African American head coach at a Utah Division I school, Warren hails from UC Davis, and was hired by former SUU coach Ed Lamb almost by accident. But Warren proved himself starting in the secondary, and eventually helped groom NFL Draft picks Miles Killebrew and LeShaun Sims. Now at the head of the program coming off its best season ever, Warren looks to stay competitive with the Utes on Thursday and keep the program's ascension going.

Utah Ties • Both offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick and linebackers coach Justin Ena coached at SUU, with Roderick serving as a coordinator in 2003 and 2004, while Ena served as the DC in the Lamb era. Ena was Warren's predecessor at defensive coordinator, serving between 2008 and 2013. Director of football operations Jeff Rudy was an all-conference lineman for SUU, playing there between 1994 and 1995. SUU offensive coordinator http://www.thespectrum.com/story/sports/2016/08/30/suu-football-justin-walterscheid-face-coaching-mentor-thursday/89572394/";>Justin Walterschied played for Roderick at SUU, and coached under him as a grad assistant. As you would expect for in-state schools, there's a lot of high school connections — particularly Bingham, Lone Peak, East and Snow College. Among the more fun connections: SUU starting quarterback McCoy Hill's Jordan team narrowly fell to http://www.heraldextra.com/sports/high-school/football/big-hits-give-lone-peak-momentum-to-rally-past-jordan/article_deea73e2-1ca8-51fc-9906-6adab4af7acb.html";>Chase Hansen's Lone Peak team in 2010, 35-30. In the long-time-coming rematch between the two, Hansen will be prowling the secondary as a safety trying to stop Hill.

Pregame Quotable • While Kyle Whittingham was slightly more diplomatic to former receivers coach Taylor Stubblefield this week, senior receiver Tim Patrick was a little more critical when describing the difference http://bit.ly/22PdYnP";>between Guy Holliday and his predecessor at WR coach: "He doesn't play around. If we play around, we're doing up-downs, push-ups or something after practice. He's on us 24/7. For how young our group is, we need the structure. That's what he brings. I don't think Stubblefield brought the structure. We were each able to do kind of our own thing. Having young guys like that, they get relaxed and too comfortable. With Holiday, he doesn't allow that. He's pushing us."

Media Guide Nugget • The SUU roster will featurehttp://www.thespectrum.com/story/sports/college/southern-utah/2016/08/18/suu-football-vaivaka-and-fukofuka-elder-linemen/88977970/";> junior Sefisi Vaa'ivaka who is 6-foot-3, 350 pounds and 30 years old. The 2004 Bingham High grad left high school only one year after his coach, Demario Warren, and he played high school football against drivetime radio host Sean O'Connell.

Telling Stat • Utah is 37-0 against the current Big Sky line-up, and 6-0 under Kyle Whittingham. The closest game the Utes have ever played was a 16-point win over Weber State in 2008, one of Utah's undefeated years.

Thunderbirds Offensive Outlook • This is a system that produced a lot of yards in the air last year, and if McCoy Hill is the guy SUU thinks he could be, the offense could be prolific again. Hill won't lack for weapons: He has returning receivers Brady Measom, Ty Rutledge and especially Mike Sharp (13 TDs, 889 yards). He also has a four-star newcomer receiver Desean Holmes at his disposal, who could be a special weapon. One thing he doesn't have is an experienced line: Two starters transferred to BYU when Ed Lamb left to join Kalani Sitake's staff. Hill could find himself on the run against Utah's vaunted pass rush.

Thunderbirds Defensive Outlook • Any time an FCS team loses three NFL prospects, it hurts. But there's still a lot of talent on this side of the ball thanks to some strong recruiting in the last few years. The obvious standout is linebacker Mike Needham, a former Desert Hills star who had 115 tackles, 10 for a loss and three picks last year. He backs a large defensive line, anchored by two mammoth tackles and pass rusher Taylor Pili (three sacks last year). Josh Thornton is LeShaun Sims' spiritual successor as a lockdown corner, but other areas of the defense aren't quite as settled. Look for Utah to challenge the Thunderbirds with speed in the running game and size in the passing game.

Thunderbirds Special Teams Outlook • The headliner here might just behttp://www.thespectrum.com/story/sports/2016/07/19/suu-football-believe-big-tate-lewis-really-punter/87277920/";> 6-foot-6 Tate Lewis, who averaged 42 yards per punt last year as a junior. Kicker Keita Calhoun was 10 for 15 on field goals last year, but his longest was 36 yards. The T-Birds returned one punt for a touchdown last year, but overall didn't experience a lot of success in the return game.

Injury Report • http://bit.ly/2aNUiuL";>The Utes lost Siale Fakailoatonga for the season in camp with a knee injury. Others have been "dinged up" throughout camp (hurt but still getting some reps), including key players on defense: Lowell Lotulelei, Kylie Fitts and Kavika Luafatasaga among them. There's typically a few surprises in each season opener as opponents try to hold onto as many secrets as they can, so keep an eye out for surprise scratches on Thursday night.

Three Big Questions

1. How much firepower will Utah show on offense? There's a delicate balance between wanting to preserve some of the playbook for the high-level opponents andhttp://bit.ly/2c5nD6V";> needing to show your fans some long-sought offensive fireworks. Utah needs to do both, on some level. The best-case scenario is probably to build a big early lead and get younger players and back-ups in the game for some experience. But the #throwgame needs some practice: Troy Williams and his receivers need to get some game experience and start finding a rhythm when the play goes live. It might lead Utah to air it out a few times, if only to develop that confidence. But the last thing Utah wants is to have to get in a shootout with SUU — a half of explosive offense is probably enough of a show to help the players feel settled in.

2. Does Utah still have a special teams edge? The last time Utah played an FCS team in 2014, Kaelin Clay announced his arrival with gusto: a kick return and a punt return for a touchdown. It's unclear if Utah has a playmaker of that caliber (it would be surprising) but the point remains that special teams can really shine in this kind of game. As it happens, Utah is breaking in new punter Mitch Wishnowsky, and has a pair of http://bit.ly/2c0G8Jn";>freshmen kick returners Terrell Burgess and Julian Blackmon. Utah's edge on special teams has been one of the defining traits of the last two seasons, and Thursday will be the first glimpse to see if it holds true.

3. Can Utah get out of the game healthy? Let's face it: Whether the Utes win big or win ugly, they're likely to win on Thursday night. The overriding concern, beyond getting the win, has to be keeping legs relatively fresh for BYU next week. Looking down the depth chart, the same places Utah has a lot of experience — offensive line, tight end, defensive line, cornerback — are also spots where the Utes have some freshmen in the mix to play if the starters go down. While Utah surely wants to squeeze some experience in for the youth on the team in this game, they don't want their hand to be forced in that direction due to injury.

kgoon@sltrib.com
Twitter: @kylegoon