The Air Force-Utah football rivalry lived up to its reputation Saturday.

So too did the Utah Utes.

Beaten in virtually every stat that matters, the No. 19 Utes somehow found a way to defeat Air Force 23-16 in overtime Saturday in front of 45,129 at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

"I think I have an ulcer," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham muttered as he looked at the final stat sheet following the game.

His sentiment likely was shared by many of the Utah fans who agonized through yet another hard-fought, close game in the rivalry.

For most of the afternoon, the Utes (6-1, 3-0 MWC) couldn't move the ball against the Air Force defense as they managed just eight first downs to Air Force's 20 and finished with just 267 yards of total offense to Air Force's 318. The Utes self-destructed by committing six turnovers and had the ball for only 21 minutes while Air Force (4-4, 3-2) had it for 39 minutes.

No way should the Utes have won the game was the general thought looking at those final stats.

However, finding a way to win such games has become almost a cliche for the Utes, who embraced dramatic finishes in 2008 and have continued to do so this year.

At least on Saturday they offered up a little variety, winning their first overtime game since 2005, when they defeated BYU.

The game, fittingly enough, came down to a final stand by Utah's defense to protect the 23-16 advantage the Utes earned when Eddie Wide scored on a 1-yard run.

On fourth-and-2 at the Utes' seven-yard line, Air Force quarterback Connor Dietz was stopped for no gain by Utah linebackers Stevenson Sylvester and Mike Wright.

There wasn't any rushing of the field by fans like such victories sparked in 2008, but the feeling was similar nonetheless, as the Utes had somehow found a way to win despite stats that predicted a different ending.

"We have no business winning a game with eight first downs," Whittingham said. "That's why I say give the defense credit."

Criticized for inconsistent play and unwise decisions that have led to numerous penalties this season, Utah's defense had one of its better games against one of the trickiest offenses it will face this year.

The Falcons finished with more yardage than the Utes, but Utah succeeded in its main task, which was to deny the Falcons big plays. Air Force's longest rushing play went for 25 yards while the longest pass play went for 28 yards.

"We practiced in full pads every single day this week," linebacker Kepa Gaison said. "We really prepared with extra film work. The option game isn't easy to go against but we held up."

The long pass play occurred in the fourth quarter on a third-and-10 when Air Force receiver Kyle Halderman burned Sylvester for the gain, setting up a 48-yard field goal by Erik Soderberg that tied the game at 16-16 with 6:22 remaining.

But after that slip, Utah's defense came up big time and time again. Aside from a first down awarded following a personal foul on Utah defender Derrick Shelby, the Falcons managed just one more first down for the rest of the game.

"It played out just like it has in the past," Whittingham said of the game. "We stressed to the team all week long to expect 60 minutes of hard fought, disciplined tough football from the cadets. It was no different and it never is. I was proud of our players for matching that toughness and discipline and finding a way to win. That is something these guys seem to be developing a knack for, finding a way to win."

As well as the defense played in the final minutes, it still needed the offense to produce the winning points. The Utes were able to do so as an offense that had been stagnant for most of the game suddenly got the yards it needed in overtime, earning two of their eight first downs on their final drive.

Wide, who left the game in the first half with an ankle injury, found a little space he needed in the middle of Air Force's defense to score the winning touchdown.

"The line got a great push on the last play and I just pounded it in there," he said.

lwodraska@sltrib.com

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Utah 23, AFA 16 (OT)

In short » The Utes win another classic battle with the Falcons when Eddie Wide scores on a 1-yard run in overtime.

Key moment » The Falcons' bid to score in overtime ends when quarterback Connor Dietz is tackled for no gain on a fourth-down play.

Key stat » The Utes manage just eight first downs against the Falcons.

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Mountain West Conference

Conference All Games

W L PF PA W L PF PA

TCU 3 0 102 30 7 0 241 89

Utah 3 0 82 48 6 1 195 124

BYU 3 1 146 110 6 2 277 207

Air Force 3 2 106 70 4 4 204 106

Wyoming 2 1 67 50 4 3 136 165

San Diego St. 1 2 84 92 2 5 197 195

UNLV 1 3 97 141 3 5 218 263

New Mexico 0 3 43 108 0 7 104 261

Colorado St. 0 3 46 110 3 4 157 201

Saturday's games

Utah 23, Air Force 16

San Diego St. 42, Colorado St. 28

TCU 38, BYU 7

UNLV 34, New Mexico 17

Saturday, Oct. 31 games

Air Force at Colorado St., 2 p.m.

UNLV at TCU, 2 p.m.

New Mexico at San Diego St., 5:30 p.m.

Wyoming at Utah, 6 p.m.