Predictions, picks for Utah vs. Colorado Week 9 college football game

The Utah football team returns to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday for a Big 12 matchup against Colorado.

The third all-time meeting between Kyle Whittingham and Deion Sanders comes a week after the Utes fell to BYU in a physical and tightly-contested affair between in-state rivals.

Following its second loss of the season, Utah will look to get back on track against a Colorado squad that's entering the matchup with some momentum following its first Big 12 win over Iowa State two weeks ago.

"We got to be at our best and be ready," Whittingham said regarding Saturday's contest. "I know they're 3-4, but the combined record of those four losses of the teams they played is 25-3. They played some really good teams, and so they are much better football team than their record indicates."

As prognosticators send in their picks for Saturday's matchup, let's see how a few experts foresee the next installment of the Rumble in the Rockies rivalry game playing out.

Arizona Republic: Utah 30, Colorado 20

Jeremy Cluff of the Arizona Republic predicts the Utes will "get revenge" for the Buffaloes' trouncing them at Folsom Field last season in a 49-24 win for Sanders and company with a double-digit win of their own on Saturday.

Of course, both sides look much different than when they last met. Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter has taken the helm under center for Colorado and is surrounded by Tulsa product Joseph Williams and third-year wideout Omarion Miller on the outside. Those two account for nearly 50% of the Buffaloes' production through the air and rank in the top 20 in the Big 12 in receiving yards. Miller paces with 371, while Williams has 370.

Utah, meanwhile, has turned to junior quarterback Devon Dampier to lead one of the most potent rushing attacks in the country. Utah averages 245 yards on the ground per game — good enough for sixth-best in the Football Bowl Subdivision — with its dual-threat quarterback pacing the team with 442 rush yards through seven games (63.1 per contest).

Bleacher Report: Utah 34, Colorado 20

Bleacher Report's David Kenyon has Utah picking up its seventh consecutive home win over Colorado by a margin of 14 points. All five of the Utes' victories this season have come in double-digit fashion.

ESPN Matchup Predictor: Utah has 83.3% chance to win

ESPN's matchup predictor has been more favorable to the Utes since the start of the season, and that trend continues heading into their Week 9 matchup against the Buffaloes. Utah has a win probability rate of 83.3% according to ESPN's advanced algorithm.

Utah, which was only favored in five of its 12 regular-season games heading into the 2025 campaign, according to ESPN analytics, is the favorite to win in all five of its remaining regular season games.

ESPN SP+: Utah 35, Colorado 18

Bill Connelly's SP+ model, a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measurement of college football efficiency, predicts Utah will win comfortably over Colorado when they meet on the field Saturday.

Connelly's metrics-based formulas have accurately predicted the winner in five of Utah's seven games so far this season, with the exception being its losses to Texas Tech and BYU.

Odds Shark: Utah 41, Colorado 20 (rounded)

Odds Shark's computer projections have Utah cruising to a 21-point win over Colorado on Saturday. That would be the Utes' widest margin of victory over the Buffaloes since coming away with a 63-21 win in their 2022 matchup in Boulder, Colorado. If that prediction holds true, it would also be Utah's sixth win of 20 or more points this season.