College Football Must See Matchup – Utah Utes at Oregon Ducks
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: OREGON -5, Total 54
You know, when we have talked the Utah Utes (not youths) on these pages, we have always made reference to the fact that they have had to replace the quarterback, Brian Johnson, who seemingly had been there forever. Well, you have to be at least somewhat impressed with Terrence Cain, last year’s junior college (NJCAA) offensive player of the year, who has complete almost two-thirds of his passes (38 of 61) in wins over Utah State and San Jose State.He’s the kind of solid veteran guy at the controls that can give Utah a chance to repeat as champions in the Mountain West Conference.
Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
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UTAH has covered four of its last six games
UTAH has won its last 16 games SU
UTAH has played four of its last five games OVER the total
UTAH has covered eight of its last 12 road games
UTAH has won its last seven road games SU
UTAH has played six of its last eight road games OVER the total 
ORE has won five of its last six games SU
ORE has played four of its last six games OVER the total
ORE has covered one of its last five home games
ORE has won six of its last seven home games SU
ORE has played five of its last six home games OVER the total
Perhaps the more important guy to replace is Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount, who did very little in the opening game loss to Boise State (where the Ducks had only 154 total yards) and then went berserk after the contest, throwing a straight right hand to deck one Boise State player, and skirmishing with coaches, security, police and his own teammates. After that he was suspended for the season. What makes it problematic is that Oregon had no other returning running back who gained more than 161 yards last season.
LaMichael James, Andre Crenshaw and Kenjon Barner have been taking time at the position, but what it comes down to is that quarterback Jeremiah Masoli is the team’s leading rusher, operating out of the spread. These guys were nip-and-tuck all the way last week, with the Ducks holding on for a 38-36 victory that did not cover in the NCAA college football betting odds.
The Utes have not been choppy on offense; even though their opposition has not quite matched that of Oregon, they have at least been able to roll up 1018 yards, although five turnovers have not been something to be proud of. Meanwhile, there seems to be a bit of a transition problem in Eugene, as Chip Kelly’s adjustment form a coordinator calling plays to a head coach with many more responsibilities has not been the smoothest, especially since his storied predecessor, Mike Bellotti, is watching every move from the athletic director’s chair.
It is useful to know that Utah not only has a great record as a road dog, covering 18 of its last 23 times in that role, but that this group knows how to win. That comes in handy against a team that thus far appears to have searched high and low for ways to lose games. We’re going with Utah, the five-point underdog in the NCAA college football betting odds.
OUR PLAY: UTAH +5 ***
