It took, among a few other things, an epic collapse by Oregon, but now that the dust of the regular season has settled, No. 14 Utah finds itself back in the Pac-12 championship game.
On a wild final weekend, the Utes crushed Colorado 63-21 while UCLA, Oregon State and Washington all won.
And because of this, Utah won this improbable Pac-12 parlay and will face No. 6 USC Friday (6 p.m. MST, Fox) at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Yes, the Utes hit the jackpot.
A week ago, Utah was coming off a disappointing 20-17 setback at Oregon. But the Ducks squandered a 31-10 third-quarter lead to their arch-rivals and lost 38-34 in stunning fashion.
The Utes, meanwhile, took care of their business against the Buffaloes.
“All around, a good way to put kind of an exclamation mark on the regular season,” coach Kyle Whittingham said after his team beat Colorado and hours before Washington defeated Washington State to secure Utah’s spot in the championship game.
Whittingham’s steady approach guided Utah back in position to defend its Pac-12 title.
And the Utes could end up back in the Rose Bowl.
“Every win is big. To get our ninth win of the season and to finish 7-2 in league play, I’m very proud of these guys,” Whittingham said. “The bar’s set pretty high here now. We should not take that for granted, I guess is my point. That’s a really good season our guys put together.”
There’s a lot at stake, as always, in the Pac-12 championship game.
For USC (11-1, 8-1), this is a chance to avenge its only loss of the season, a 43-42 last-minute defeat at Utah on Oct. 15. And with a win, the Trojans could punch their ticket to the College Football Playoff and a shot at a national title.
Not to mention USC quarterback Caleb Williams is now viewed as one of the frontrunners to win the Heisman Trophy.
Saturday, USC defeated No. 15 Notre Dame 38-27. Williams completed 18 of 22 passes for 232 yards and a touchdown, and he ran nine times for 35 yards and three touchdowns against the Fighting Irish.
“If USC wins next week,” ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit said during the broadcast, “they’re in the playoff.”
As for the Utes, they will be without running back Tavion Thomas, who declared for the NFL draft Friday.
However, in Thomas’ absence, Ja’Quinden Jackson (10 carries, 117 yards, 3 touchdowns) and Micah Bernard (12 carries, 91 yards and 1 TD) ran wild against the Buffaloes. In all, the Utes racked up 383 yards on the ground.
Whittingham said Thomas “was not able to practice last week. I think Tavion’s made the correct decision and we support him 100%. We’re hoping that he can get completely healthy for this East-West Game. He should be; it’s a month-and-a-half away. Hopefully he’ll have an opportunity in the National Football League to see what he can do.”
Whittingham added that Thomas was ready to move on, regardless of the possibility that Utah could play in the Pac-12 championship game. He explained that Thomas suffered a toe injury that might sideline him for a while.
“It was Tavion’s decision. But we support it,” Whittingham said. “He has people back home that are advising him, high school coaches that know him very well. They were all in the same camp that that was the direction they wanted to go and we gave him our vote of confidence on it.”
The status of tight end Dalton Kincaid is uncertain. He caught five passes for 102 yards and a touchdown Saturday. He sustained an injury on that TD catch.
“Hopefully he’ll be all right,” Whittingham said. “It’s too early to tell. So far, all the diagnoses don’t reveal anything that appears to be serious. But something like this, you’ve got to wait a few days and see where it goes.”
Pac-12 Championship Game
No. 14 Utah (9-3, 8-2) vs. No. USC (11-1, 8-1)
Friday, 6 p.m. MST
Allegiant Stadium
TV: Fox
Radio: ESPN 700