The Utah Utes Are Up Next

The Utah Utes arrive to battle the Trojans this week. A home game, uh oh, for the Trojans and so far this year has not been an advantage as we look back on OSU and Stanford. The Utes are debuting their Throwback Uniforms that feature an all white look and helmets to boot. Personally I would have waited till I entered the field of play to release that bit of change for the full impact. But oh well here we go. Game time is 5pm PDT. Last year the Trojans took the Utes convincingly, 33-17 during their undefeated run leading to the one loss against Oregon on the way to the uh playoffs.

Kyle Whittingham has always shown up for battle. As the head coach of the Utes he prepares them well and they are a well disciplined group as well. Even though last year was a much wider score differential than normal it was also an unusual set of circumstances that everyone was dealing with in respect to COVID management. The team and city are mourning the loss of one of their players, Aaron Lowe. They will wear his number in honor of his life taken away so early and tragically.

The Trojans lead by Kedon Slovis need this win. They need to show their fans and themselves that they can regain their dominance at the Coliseum and not allow visitors to trample Travelers lawn. This is USC's home not the outsiders. Kedon was looking better last week against Colorado but that team fielded by the Buffalos may have been just what the team needed to get back on course but make no mistakes about it they are one of the weakest teams in college football today. Far cry from the run they had going in 2020. I still believe had USC played Colorado the outcome could easily have gone the Buffaloes way.

Will the running game continue to make strides and build on what they were doing in Colorado against Utah Saturday night? Big questions here as the yardage was getting interesting again but we saw what should have been a touchdown on Ingram break away run get caught from behind. We lost a fumble that lead to a score by Ingram as well so this week Im sure he was in ball security mode in practice. We appear to be settling in with Ingram as well and even Barlow getting more and more involved. Which leaves Vavae Malepeai with less opportunities which is difficult for me as I have always enjoyed Vavae and his commitment to excellence as a Trojan.

Tail of the tape:

Prediction --> USC by 6

Fight On