Stumble at UCF puts Cougars in must-win situation vs. Utes to keep CFP hopes alive

It is impossible to overstate the importance of Saturday’s rivalry football game pitting No. 3 Utah and No. 9 BYU.

It truly is the most significant matchup in the 100-plus year history of the series, and the first time ever that both Beehive State powers are in the top 10. The stakes are sky-high, as has been detailed by the Deseret News throughout the week, a week that has been devoid of the kind of bravado and brashness that has defined the rivalry in past years.

Neither side has been willing to give the other an inch of motivation that doesn’t already exist.

“Morgan (Scalley) said it yesterday. You have two top-10 teams going at it in the state of Utah,” said BYU associate head coach and defensive tackles coach Sione Po’uha. “It is really something that the state can celebrate, whether you are with the blue or with the red. We can celebrate it together and just celebrate the rich tradition of football around here.”

That doesn’t mean the teams don’t want to smash each other. But there’s been a different vibe leading up to this game, the third time the Utes and Cougars will tangle as Big 12 foes.

For the 7-1 Cougars, the game at Rice Eccles Stadium (10 a.m., ABC) in Salt Lake City has moved into the must-win category if they hope to keep their hopes alive of making it into the College Football Playoff without winning the Big 12 championship.

The 39-31 double-overtime loss at UCF two weeks ago made that apparent.

The CFP committee has not been kind to two-loss teams from the Big 12, as the Cougars have learned the past two seasons, having gone 11-2 in 2024 and 12-2 in 2025 and been on the outside looking in.

If the Cougars lose to a Utah team that has been crushing most of its opponents and has revenge on its mind after losing three-straight rivalry games, they could still make it to the Big 12 championship game — and a possible rematch with the Utes — but they would need some help. They would need to win out and have Texas Tech and Houston lose at least one more time, for instance, and then have some tiebreaker scenarios work in their favor.

BYU simply has no room for error.

“It is an incredible challenge, no question about it,” said Po’uha, who is as familiar with Utah and its approach to the rivalry game as anybody on BYU’s staff, having played and coached at Utah before joining Kalani Sitake’s staff in 2023. “Both programs are definitely playing outstanding football, and both programs are on the rise.”

BYU coaches and players have described a different feeling in practices and team meetings this week, similar to what they felt in the lead up to the Notre Dame game on Oct. 17. BYU won that game 28-24 to jump to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 poll before the stumble in Orlando that exposed some weaknesses the Utes will be sure to try to exploit, most notably tackling ball-carriers in open space.

“You can definitely feel the energy and the excitement of the game for sure,” said BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick. “You try to preach to these guys that every opponent is the same and every week is the same, but everyone can feel it. It’s a big game. I thought the energy was really good, and I’m sure it was really good at their practices, too.”

BYU defensive end Hunter Clegg signed with Utah out of high school, but switched to BYU while on his church mission.

“It is an incredible challenge, no question about it. Both programs are definitely playing outstanding football, and both programs are on the rise.”

BYU defensive tackles coach Sione Po’uhaPo’uha, who is as familiar with Utah and its approach to the rivalry game as anybody on BYU’s staff, having played and coached at Utah before joining Kalani Sitake’s staff in 2023.

“There’s some great energy this week,” Clegg said Wednesday. “Everybody’s excited, playing hard, flying around and focused on executing.”

Clegg said the Cougars are expecting a “crazy and hostile environment” even though the 10 a.m. kickoff could slightly mute the Rice-Eccles crowd in the early going.

More important for the Cougars will be to get off to a fast start to take the crowd out of the game as much as they can. That won’t be easy, considering the Utes have a versatile offense that has not been stopped all season, and rarely slowed.

Utah quarterbacks Devon Dampier and Byrd Ficklin and running backs Wayshawn Parker and Daniel Bray will present the Cougars all kinds of trouble, especially if they tackle like they did against UCF and in last week’s 27-20 win over Arizona State.

“There’s some uniqueness to them that we got to get used to, repetition-wise,” said BYU defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga. “There’s some stuff that we haven’t seen all year that they do. Props to them. They have a good scheme to challenge you a lot of different ways.”

Poppinga called Utah’s two-quarterback system “awesome” and “entertaining stuff” that is fun to watch.

“One quarterback is left-handed, the other one is right-handed, so there are a lot of different things they do that way as well,” Poppinga said. “It is a unique formation and props to those guys for thinking of it and being able to execute it.”

BYU’s defense will again be shorthanded, with star cornerback Evan Johnson listed as doubtful and defensive end Kendal Wall listed as questionable.

For BYU offensively, the pregame focus has been on whether running back LJ Martin will play. For the last month Martin has targeted the Utah game as the time for his return, and several national outlets have reported that that he will give it a go Saturday morning.

Whether he is effective remains to be seen. He was averaging 7.8 yards per carry before leaving the TCU game with a high ankle sprain. Preston Rex, who was effective against the Irish, is also due back for the Cougars.

At any rate, BYU will be in trouble if it can’t move the ball on the ground and control the clock to keep Dampier and company off the field.

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier has carried the Cougars with his arm and his legs in Martin’s absence, but Roderick said Utah’s defense is “good at everything and has been a great defense for a long time” under Scalley, and now under Colton Swan.

Roderick also said the turnover battle will be huge. BYU is 7-0 in the turnover battle in its last three games against the Utes, all wins.

“We want (Bachmeier) to take care of the football, be efficient in the passing game, get us into the right plays, and when he’s called on to run to get (the first down),” Roderick said. “We don’t need him to be a hero or anything. Just play his game and do what he does for us on a weekly basis.”

Roderick said BYU-Utah is almost always a four-quarter game, but establishing themselves early will be big for the Cougars. Utah has outscored opponents 89-6 in the first quarter this season.

Whatever the case, BYU coach Kalani Sitake reminded everyone to enjoy the game and celebrate it respectfully.

“We are in groundbreaking territory. Let’s have a lot of fun with it and enjoy it,” Sitake said. “I know that we have tons of respect for Utah, and I know they have the same for us. It is going to be a great game, a great environment, and all eyes will be on Salt Lake City. That’s what this game should be all about.”