The Southern Utah Thunderbirds (1-0) take on the Utah Utes (0-1) in Salt Lake City Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Southern Utah vs. Utah odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
Utah is No. 15 in the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports. The Utes are coming off a tough fought loss in Week 1 at the Florida Gators. Trailing most of the game, the Utes had a chance to win in the final seconds, but an interception on the 6-yard line thrown by QB Cameron Rising was the final play in a 29-26 loss.
Southern Utah posted a dominant 44-13 victory against FCS-member St. Thomas-Minnesota last week. Although St. Thomas was a powerhouse in Division III, which propelled it to skip Division II entirely and enter the FCS, it was still not up for the challenge against Southern Utah. But this Saturday will be an entirely different test for the Thunderbirds – they won’t be the better team here.
Utah looks to win its first game of the season and extend its home winning streak at Rice-Eccles Stadium to 9 games. Plus, the Utes own a 26-game home win streak against non-conference foes.