This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utah upset Stanford last season, when the Cardinal came to Rice-Eccles Stadium with a No. 5 ranking.
The Utes beat USC last month, when both teams were in the Top 25.
This is different. This is bigger. This is Oregon.
The Ducks are not the Pac-12's defending champions, like that Stanford team. They're not the conference's historic standard-bearer, like USC.
Yet in this century of Pac-12 football, Oregon is the biggest brand name. So here come the No. 5 Ducks, the last school to visit Utah in the Pac-12 era, for one of the most meaningful games ever played in this town.
Saturday night's matchup would have meant even more if Utah had outlasted Arizona State in overtime last weekend and moved up in the College Football Playoff rankings. Instead, much of the significance stems from what Oregon stands to lose.
The Ducks are in the CFP selection committee's top four and quarterback Marcus Mariota is the Heisman Trophy favorite. Utah is regarded highly enough that those credentials will be validated or voided by what happens in ESPN's late-night game.
And the Utes have much to play for themselves, trying to stay in the Pac-12 South race and position themselves for one of the conference's most attractive bowl games. Only once, in 2008, have the Utes beaten two ranked teams at home in the same season (No. 11 TCU and No. 16 BYU). They could match that achievement Saturday and top it in two weeks against Arizona, presumably.
In terms of a national showcase, this game resembles '08, when Utah edged TCU 13-10. This won't be like that, because Oregon's offense is so good. It also evokes 2010, when No. 4 TCU pounded No. 6 Utah 47-7. This won't be like that, because Utah's defense is so good.
The Utes won't be overwhelmed by Oregon, but scoring enough to match the Ducks is another issue. No matter what you may have heard, even from Ute coach Kyle Whittingham, keeping Oregon's offense off the field is not the universal cure. No, no, no. The Utes have to score touchdowns.
Stanford kept the ball for five-plus minutes on three drives last week against Oregon and finished with 35 minutes, 38 seconds of possession. How'd that work out? Oregon 45, Stanford 16.
The Cardinal settled for three field goals and simply couldn't keep up with Oregon. Limiting the number of possessions sounds good, but the fact remains the Utes have to stop the Ducks more often than they stop them.
If the Utes can get ahead, shortening the game definitely will work in their favor. But Mariota and Oregon's offense will get their chances. Utah will send the country's best pass-rushing group after him and also must contain him when he scrambles, while he's also looking to throw the ball downfield.
Mariota delivers "four or five plays in a game that other people can't make," said Stanford coach David Shaw.
Conversely, Oregon's defense won't be mistaken for those TCU teams that came to town. The Ducks will give up a bunch of yards to Ute running back Devontae Booker. The question is whether quarterbacks Travis Wilson and Kendal Thompson can exploit Oregon with enough big passing plays to reduce the reliance on Booker and produce touchdowns, not field goals.
As Ute receiver Kaelin Clay said this week, "They do have some holes in their defense that we can attack."
Field position is insignificant to Oregon, with its offensive capability. In that sense, the Ducks can overcome two of Utah's most valuable players, kicker Andy Phillips and punter Tom Hackett. Other stars will have to emerge to keep Utah in the game, and Whittingham must manage the game aggressively.
The Utes have to maximize every scoring opportunity, so some fourth-down decisions will come into play. There's no hanging around with Oregon, there's just keeping up on the scoreboard. Utah can do that, if everything comes together for the offense.
Yeah, this would be a good time for that to happen.
Twitter: @tribkurt