I was just taking a look at some figures for the Utah vs. USC matchup, and some interesting statistics jumped out at me. Granted, USC has played Alabama and Stanford, but they are interesting stats nonetheless.
Max Browne: 55/87, 474 yards, 2 TD and 2 INT
Troy Williams: 54/86, 723 yards, 4 TD and 4 INT
Almost identical attempts, yet Williams has 250 more yards. For all the shortcomings in the red zone for Utah, Williams is still putting up the yards and getting them in the red zone in the first place. If Utah can get one or two 40+ yard completions like they've been able to the past few games, I like their chances.
Another statistic, Utah has given up 12 points per game, and USC is scoring 20 per game. If Utah can jump to an early lead, I trust the defense to shut down USC's shaky offense.
USC is allowing an average of 195 rushing yards per game. Utah plays the time of possession game, and they control that aspect by running the ball and completing 3rd and manageable attempts to move the chains. That's Utah's mantra.
FWIW, ESPN's Football Power Index has Utah'a chances of winning at 47%, so pretty much a toss up. But I'm not sure how much that accounts for home field advantage, the emotional drainage from USC playing and losing the two top 5 or so teams in the nation, and Utah wanting vengeance for the beating last year to drop them to 6-1. Another note, how motivated will they be traveling to Utah with a 1-2 record? Will they have already thrown in the towel, or are they too beat up after their brutal games the past 2 weeks? We'll see on Friday.
Let's hear your thoughts. What are the keys to the game? Will it be a battle of the trenches? Will defense decide the game? Utah matches up well with USC. If they can win this game, they'll be set up extremely well in the Pac-12 South.
Max Browne: 55/87, 474 yards, 2 TD and 2 INT
Troy Williams: 54/86, 723 yards, 4 TD and 4 INT
Almost identical attempts, yet Williams has 250 more yards. For all the shortcomings in the red zone for Utah, Williams is still putting up the yards and getting them in the red zone in the first place. If Utah can get one or two 40+ yard completions like they've been able to the past few games, I like their chances.
Another statistic, Utah has given up 12 points per game, and USC is scoring 20 per game. If Utah can jump to an early lead, I trust the defense to shut down USC's shaky offense.
USC is allowing an average of 195 rushing yards per game. Utah plays the time of possession game, and they control that aspect by running the ball and completing 3rd and manageable attempts to move the chains. That's Utah's mantra.
FWIW, ESPN's Football Power Index has Utah'a chances of winning at 47%, so pretty much a toss up. But I'm not sure how much that accounts for home field advantage, the emotional drainage from USC playing and losing the two top 5 or so teams in the nation, and Utah wanting vengeance for the beating last year to drop them to 6-1. Another note, how motivated will they be traveling to Utah with a 1-2 record? Will they have already thrown in the towel, or are they too beat up after their brutal games the past 2 weeks? We'll see on Friday.
Let's hear your thoughts. What are the keys to the game? Will it be a battle of the trenches? Will defense decide the game? Utah matches up well with USC. If they can win this game, they'll be set up extremely well in the Pac-12 South.
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