#23 Utah Utes Preview
Spring practices are in the books and fall camps will be here before you know it so that means getting an early jump on the 2006 NCAA football season.
Knowing the teams now will save you time in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year.
We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Preview.
#23 - Utah Utes 7-5 SU; 4-8 ATS Fargo's Take After going undefeated in 2004, Utah was expected to falloff last season and that it did but it was still a respectable year.
After defeating rival BYU in overtime to secure a bowl invitation, the Utes dismantled Georgia Tech in the Emerald Bowl, bringing some momentum into 2006.
Utah will challenge TCU, last year's MWC Champion, for the title and it should very well be up for the task.
The Utes have a problem at quarterback but it's a problem most teams would like to have as they have two players who could start for a lot of teams around the country.
Defensively, Utah regressed last season but with eight starters coming back, it should get back into the top 25 in scoring defense, similar to where it was in 2004.
The schedule is very much in the favor of another late season run but if some upsets occur early, a possible repeat BCS trip is not as far fetched as it sounds.
Returning Starters on Offense - 6 Brian Johnson took control of the offense and had a spectacular season.
He threw for 2,892 yards, tossed 18 touchdowns and just seven interceptions while completing over 63 percent of his passes.
He suffered a season ending knee injury in the 10th game of the season so the Utes turned to junior Brett Ratliff and he didn't disappoint.
He led Utah to two victories while passing for 621 yards and eight touchdowns.
The decision still has not been made who will be starting as a lot of has to do with Johnson's knee.
Replacing running back Quinton Ganther and his 1,120 yards will not be easy.
Also gone are the top two receivers but Brian Hernandez should be up for the task after a solid 2005 season despite a bum ankle.
The offensive line is ranked second best in the conference behind BYU.
Returning Starters on Defense - 8 The defense had a very down year for Utah standards although finishing 59th in total defense and 50th in scoring defense was nothing to be ashamed of.
The Utes allowed the most points since 1996 but they had only four starters back from that undefeated 2004 season.
Things should turn around this year as there is some excellent experience coming back.
The secondary is the strength with All-MWC safety Eric Weddle returning and switching to cornerback.
In total, three starters are back as are three starters along the defensive line.
Replacing defensive tackle Steve Fifita is the biggest concern but Kelly Talavou will move over from nose guard and will dominate.
The linebackers are the other big concern with the loss of Spencer Tooner but four juniors will be in the mix for the starting spots.
Schedule The schedule doesn't start out very kind with three of the first four games being on the road.
The good news is that all three can be won with the opener at UCLA being the toughest of the bunch.
The lone home game in that stretch is a laugher against Northern Arizona.
Two extremely difficult home games follow as the Utes host Boise St.
and TCU back-to-back.
The game against the Horned Frogs will decide who has the inside track to the conference title.
After that, it's pretty much a cakewalk for the next five games with the home game against Colorado St.
being the most difficult challenge.
The season finale is at home against a much improved BYU team and that game should have implications in deciding the championship.
You can bet on...
Utah will have a lot of new faces heading into this season but expectations are high following the great ending to the 2005 campaign.
The biggest question is at quarterback and how Johnson's knee is responding to rehab as he has already missed some practice time because of it.
If the knee isn't 100 percent, the Utes have said they will redshirt him and go with Ratliff.
Utah is an amazing 14-3 ATS as an underdog since 1999 and it will likely be in that role right out the gate against UCLA, a game that is still off the board as of this writing.
The Utes were just 1-7 against the number as a favorite last year because of overreaction to their undefeated season from the prior year.
Don't expect them to be overvalued this season, as it should be the exact opposite of that.
Knowing the teams now will save you time in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year.
We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Preview.
#23 - Utah Utes 7-5 SU; 4-8 ATS Fargo's Take After going undefeated in 2004, Utah was expected to falloff last season and that it did but it was still a respectable year.
After defeating rival BYU in overtime to secure a bowl invitation, the Utes dismantled Georgia Tech in the Emerald Bowl, bringing some momentum into 2006.
Utah will challenge TCU, last year's MWC Champion, for the title and it should very well be up for the task.
The Utes have a problem at quarterback but it's a problem most teams would like to have as they have two players who could start for a lot of teams around the country.
Defensively, Utah regressed last season but with eight starters coming back, it should get back into the top 25 in scoring defense, similar to where it was in 2004.
The schedule is very much in the favor of another late season run but if some upsets occur early, a possible repeat BCS trip is not as far fetched as it sounds.
Returning Starters on Offense - 6 Brian Johnson took control of the offense and had a spectacular season.
He threw for 2,892 yards, tossed 18 touchdowns and just seven interceptions while completing over 63 percent of his passes.
He suffered a season ending knee injury in the 10th game of the season so the Utes turned to junior Brett Ratliff and he didn't disappoint.
He led Utah to two victories while passing for 621 yards and eight touchdowns.
The decision still has not been made who will be starting as a lot of has to do with Johnson's knee.
Replacing running back Quinton Ganther and his 1,120 yards will not be easy.
Also gone are the top two receivers but Brian Hernandez should be up for the task after a solid 2005 season despite a bum ankle.
The offensive line is ranked second best in the conference behind BYU.
Returning Starters on Defense - 8 The defense had a very down year for Utah standards although finishing 59th in total defense and 50th in scoring defense was nothing to be ashamed of.
The Utes allowed the most points since 1996 but they had only four starters back from that undefeated 2004 season.
Things should turn around this year as there is some excellent experience coming back.
The secondary is the strength with All-MWC safety Eric Weddle returning and switching to cornerback.
In total, three starters are back as are three starters along the defensive line.
Replacing defensive tackle Steve Fifita is the biggest concern but Kelly Talavou will move over from nose guard and will dominate.
The linebackers are the other big concern with the loss of Spencer Tooner but four juniors will be in the mix for the starting spots.
Schedule The schedule doesn't start out very kind with three of the first four games being on the road.
The good news is that all three can be won with the opener at UCLA being the toughest of the bunch.
The lone home game in that stretch is a laugher against Northern Arizona.
Two extremely difficult home games follow as the Utes host Boise St.
and TCU back-to-back.
The game against the Horned Frogs will decide who has the inside track to the conference title.
After that, it's pretty much a cakewalk for the next five games with the home game against Colorado St.
being the most difficult challenge.
The season finale is at home against a much improved BYU team and that game should have implications in deciding the championship.
You can bet on...
Utah will have a lot of new faces heading into this season but expectations are high following the great ending to the 2005 campaign.
The biggest question is at quarterback and how Johnson's knee is responding to rehab as he has already missed some practice time because of it.
If the knee isn't 100 percent, the Utes have said they will redshirt him and go with Ratliff.
Utah is an amazing 14-3 ATS as an underdog since 1999 and it will likely be in that role right out the gate against UCLA, a game that is still off the board as of this writing.
The Utes were just 1-7 against the number as a favorite last year because of overreaction to their undefeated season from the prior year.
Don't expect them to be overvalued this season, as it should be the exact opposite of that.
Source...