College Football Preview: San Diego State vs. Utah

San Diego State (7-3, 4-2 Mountain West) vs. Utah (8-2, 5-1 Mountain West, 10:00 P.M. ET

Spread: Utah by 2.5
Total: 55.5

Preview: After an 8-0 start that had Utah in the national title race a few short weeks ago, the Utes have come crashing down in the last two weeks. In back-to-back losses to TCU and Notre Dame, Utah has been outscored 75-10.

A third straight defeat could be on the horizon as they visit the Aztecs, who fought bravely at TCU in a 40-35 loss last week and have had a very impressive season under second-year head coach Brady Hoke.

I look for Utah to find the end zone with a little more frequency than they have in their last two games, but will it be enough to score the win in San Diego?

The Utes will certainly need to rediscover their rhythm on offense. Last week, they had 265 total yards in a 28-3 loss at Notre Dame, and the week prior, they managed only 199 yards in their 47-7 home humiliation against TCU. They also need to hold onto the ball much better, as they committed six turnovers in those two defeats.

The Aztecs can beat you by ground with freshman Ronnie Hillman, who’s run for 1,089 yards and 12 touchdowns, and if Ryan Lindley (2,688 yards, 18 TD, 11 INT) is on his game, by air as well, as he has two receivers who can stretch the field in Vincent Brown (48 catches, 929 yards, 5 TD) and DeMarco Sampson (47 catches, 893 yards, 6 TD).

There’ll be quite a few points scored in this one, but in the end, I look for SDSU to notch win #8 at the expense of keeping Utah stuck on #8.

Pick: SAN DIEGO STATE +2.5, OVER 55.5

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