No. 12 Utah (3-0, 0-0 Big 12) at No. 14 Oklahoma State (3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
- Kickoff: Saturday, 2 p.m. MDT
- Venue: Boone Pickens Stadium
- TV: Fox
- Livestream: foxsports.com/live
- Radio: ESPN 700 AM/92.1 FM
- Series: Oklahoma State lead 1-0
- Weather: Sunny with temperatures in the high 90s at kickoff
The trends
For Utah: The Utes are 3-0 after a 38-21 comeback win over instate foe Utah State. Without quarterback Cam Rising, true freshman Isaac Wilson got the start, throwing for 239 yards and three touchdowns with an interception.
For Oklahoma State: The Cowboys emerged from nonconference play unscathed after defeating Arkansas and former Ute running back Ja’Quinden Jackson 39-31 in double overtime, then downing Tulsa 45-10.
What to watch for
For the second straight week, the main storyline heading into the game has revolved around who will be playing quarterback for Utah. After starting quarterback Rising injured his ring finger after being pushed into the Gatorade coolers on the sideline in the second quarter of the Baylor game, Wilson was called upon to start against Utah State.
After a slow start against the Aggies — the Utes scored just three points on their first four drives and faced a 14-3 deficit — Wilson settled in and led Utah to a 38-21 win over Utah State. While the true freshman ended up with a good performance — he graded out as the best true freshman QB in Week 3, per Pro Football Focus — Utah needs Rising back for one of the most pivotal games on the schedule.
The expectation is that Rising will start, though he may wear a glove on his throwing hand. Rising has thrown for 346 yards and seven touchdowns with no interceptions through a little less than six quarters of play so far this season.
Key player
Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State RB: It’s been a slow start to the season for one of the nation’s premier running backs, but it only takes one game to get back into a groove.
Gordon has rushed for 216 yards and four touchdowns on 62 carries, a stark departure from last season, when he had 1,732 yards and 21 scores on 285 carries (6.1 yards per carry) en route to winning the Doak Walker Award, which honors the best running back in the nation.
Teams have been keying on Gordon thus far, stacking the box, which has opened up opportunities for quarterback Alan Bowman, who has passed for an average of 322 yards per game.
The Utes’ No. 1 priority Saturday will be to minimize Gordon’s impact on the game, though they’ll likely have to slow him down without starting linebacker Karene Reid — one of Utah’s best run defenders.
Quotable
“Tough place to play from what I hear. … There’s a lot of similarities between the two programs. Coach Gundy’s done a great job there for a lot of years and they’re undefeated, 3-0, highly ranked, as are we, so should make for a good matchup. It’ll be an intriguing start for us as the first conference game, official conference game, in the Big 12.” — Utah coach Kyle Whittingham
“We’re playing a very good football team, very sound football team that plays physical, tough football. It’ll be a real challenge for us this week, but obviously looking forward to playing the game.” — Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy
Next up
- Utah: vs. Arizona
- Oklahoma State: at Kansas State
Utah schedule
- Aug. 29: Utah 49, Southern Utah 0
- Sept. 7: Utah 23, Baylor 12
- Sept. 14: Utah 38, Utah State 21
- Sept. 21: at Oklahoma State (2 p.m., Fox)
- Sept. 28: Arizona (8:15 p.m., ESPN)
- Oct. 5: Bye
- Oct. 11: at Arizona State (8:30 p.m., ESPN)
- Oct. 19: TCU
- Oct. 26: at Houston
- Nov. 2: Bye
- Nov. 9: BYU
- Nov. 16: at Colorado
- Nov. 23: Iowa State
- Nov. 29: at UCF (6 p.m., Fox)
All times Mountain time zone.