No. 21/23 UTAH (3-0, 0-0) at Arizona (2-1, 0-0)
Kickoff: FRIDAY, 8:30 p.m. MT
Arizona Stadium (56,675), Tucson
FieldTurf
TV: FS1
Radio: ESPN 700AM
Series: Utes lead 21-19-2
Weather: Partly cloudy with temperatures in the low 80s.
The stakes
For UTAH … A Pac-12 road win would no doubt be beneficial in the Utes’ quest to win the South Division title. The Wildcats were picked to finish last in the Pac-12 preseason media poll.
For Arizona ... An upset of nationally-ranked Utah would cool the hot seat that coach Rich Rodriguez is sitting on. A victory would also make football somewhat relevant in Tucson — for now.
The trends
For UTAH … The Utes ended a four-game skid to Arizona last season with a 36-23 triumph in Salt Lake City. They haven’t won in Tucson, though, since prevailing 34-21 back in 2011.
For Arizona ... The Wildcats reeled off four straight wins over Utah from 2012-15. The victories came by an average margin of 15 points. Rodriguez is 4-2 in his career against Whittingham.
The crystal ball
UTAH will win if ... The Utes continue to stuff the run and make the Wildcats one-dimensional. This game will most likely be decided in the trenches and Utah appears to have the big edge.
Arizona will win if ... The Wildcats are able to run the ball effectively. It was the key to success in past triumphs over Utah. However, neutralizing the Utes’ defensive line is a tall order.
Player to watch
BRANDON DAWKINS, Arizona quarterback: The dual-threat signal caller accounted for six touchdowns (three passing, three rushing) in last week’s 63-16 win over UTEP. Can Utah contain him Friday night?
Key matchup
UTAH’S RUN DEFENSE VS. ARIZONA’S RUN OFFENSE: Something’s got to give when the Pac-12’s top run defense (49.3 ypg) takes on the conference’s leading rushing offense (328 ypg).
Quotable
“Rich (Rodriguez) has a great grasp of offensive schemes. He knows exactly what he wants to do and it starts with the run game with those guys. They run the read zone as well as anyone in the country.”
— Utah coach Kyle Whittingham
"I would rather not go up against a similar offense to ours. If they just had a big old slug at quarterback, maybe it would be better. But (Tyler Huntley) is very athletic. He can run and reminds me a lot of Brandon Dawkins.”
— Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez
Next up
Both teams have byes next weekend. The Utes return to action Oct. 7 at home against Stanford, while Arizona visits Colorado the same day.
Utah schedule
Aug. 31 — NORTH DAKOTA, Won 37-16
Sept. 9 — at BYU, Won 19-13
Sept. 16 — SAN JOSE STATE, Won 54-16
Sept. 22 — at Arizona, 8:30 p.m. (FS1)
Oct. 7 — STANFORD, TBD
Oct. 14 — at USC, TBD
Oct. 21 — ARIZONA STATE, TBD
Oct. 28 — at Oregon, TBD
Nov. 3 — UCLA, 7:30 p.m. (FS1)
Nov. 11 — WASHINGTON STATE, TBD
Nov. 18 — at Washington, TBD
Nov. 25 — COLORADO, TBD
All times Mountain