It’s one thing for a good team to start the season 2-0, lots of strong programs do that, but Utah has been dominant. Arkansas is still an SEC team, and Utah rocked it 43-10 to get the Morgan Scalley era off to a flying start.
And then there’s Utah State (0-2). Bronco Mendenhall’s team stumbled against Idaho State in a 29-17 clunker to start the year. It battled with Washington last week, but the offense couldn’t get moving in a 16-14 loss.
Utah vs Utah State: Quick Hits
- Utah starts the Big 12 season next week at Iowa State. This is the team’s third straight home game. It doesn’t have two home games in a row for the rest of the season.
- Utah State hosts Troy, and then starts life as a Pac-12 team with a trip to Boise State.
- Utah has won the last three games in the series and 15 of the last 16 going back to 1998.
How To Watch Utah vs Utah State
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026
Game Time: 3:30 PM ET
TV: FOX
Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, UT
– Week 3 Schedule, Picks
– CFN Expert Picks: Week 3
Why Utah State Will Win
There are plenty of problems with how the season has started, but plenty of the problems should be fixable. Utah State couldn’t stop getting flagged in the loss to Idaho State – it got hit with 11 penalties – and the four interceptions were a killer. The defense did its part against Washington, but once again, the offense kept throwing picks.
The defense has yet to force a takeaway. The team is -7 in turnover margin, and if the mistakes stop, all of a sudden there’s a shot to start building on the positives of last season.
Why Utah Will Win
Everything is clicking.
The running game is averaging over six yards per carry, the downfield passing game is going off, and the attack isn’t missing. Utah was down 3-0 against Arkansas, and then scored 43 straight. It got up 17-0 on Idaho before everyone got in their seats, and the scoring didn’t stop from there.
Utah vs Utah State Prediction, Betting Lines
Utah State is moving the chains a bit on third downs, but being last in the nation in turnover margin has stalled everything. That will continue against a Utah team that’s not giving the ball away – it turned it over just once all year.
Utah will keep the fun going, but the Utah State defense will do just enough to not be totally embarrassed – the score will start to get away late.
Utah 44, Utah State 13
Latest Consensus Line: Utah -27.5, o/u: 56.5
ATS Confidence (out of 5): 2
Must See Rating (out of 5): 2
Consensus line based on BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
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