Utah vs. Idaho: Prediction, Pick and Preview

It’s a new day for Morgan Scalley and the No. 21 Utah Utes, as the longtime Kyle Whittingham staffer makes the official jump to head coach in his first game against the Idaho Vandals on Friday night in Salt Lake City.

Phil Steele picked Utah to finish third in the Big 12 this season, and that’s pretty high considering just how much of the old guard followed Whittingham over to Michigan this offseason. They return just four starters across the field, but Scalley had a Heisman-contender quarterback in Devon Dampier with the experience required to orchestrate the offense. Third Team All-Big 12 running back Wayshawn Parker is also back after averaging 6.6 yards every time he touched the football a year ago.

FanDuel has the Utes as a comfortable 34.5-point favorite in this Week 1 opener, but is that number too high?

Idaho dropped to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) before the 2018 season, but has posted three winning seasons across its last four. Thomas Ford led the Vandals to 4-8 last year and opened the season with an enthralling 38-34 loss at Cal Poly, now led by former UCLA interim head coach Tim Skipper, last Friday. The Vandals scored 18 points in the fourth quarter, and Idaho QB Joshua Wood completed 18 of 25 (72%) attempts for 363 yards and two touchdowns through the air.

Thursday marks the first contest between Idaho and Utah since 1993, when the Vandals managed a 28-17 road win. Can Idaho give Utah another scare in their first meeting in over three decades? Or will the Utes put their foot down right away in Week 1?