Author: Jesse

An emotional Kyle Whittingham said one word over and over as he embraced a large group of family members on the Rice-Eccles Stadium field.

“Wow, wow, wow.”

Time will tell if that was the final time Whittingham walked off the field that he’s spent 21 years on as a head coach, but if it is, what a game to go out on.

No. 12 Utah charged back from 12 points down with seven minutes remaining to pull off an improbable 51-47 comeback win over Kansas State on Saturday in a game that will go down as one of the most unbelievable wins of the Whittingham era.

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The Utes looked dead in the water after quarterback Devon Dampier fumbled the ball with 7:49 remaining in the fourth quarter, giving Kansas State great field position at the Utah 26-yard line.

Two plays later, Wildcat running back Joe Jackson was in the end zone — a scene all too familiar for the Utes this day.

Jackson simply ran up the middle, then broke a tackle to put Kansas State up 47-35 as Whittingham took his headset off in frustration.

With seven minutes remaining, that looked like the end for Utah — especially with the way its defense had been playing. In one of — if not the worst — defensive performances of the Whittingham era, the Utes allowed a school-record 472 rushing yards.

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Kansas State ran over the Utes time after time, and Morgan Scalley’s defense couldn’t stop it to save their lives. It wasn’t anything fancy — half the time the Wildcats ran the ball up the gut, only for the Utes to either be completely out of position or miss tackles — oftentimes both.

It was a near-mirror image of Utah’s domination on the ground last week against Baylor, except with the Utes’ defense giving up untouched runs.

“It was a power run game, just a basic power play and it was an ‘A gap’ power play where they started strong side and cut it back and we continually didn’t defend it the right way,” Whittingham said.

“We were out of square, we were losing gaps, and so obviously we didn’t do a good enough job as coaches of getting them ready to play, especially that particular play. But it was that one play that did the majority of the damage. They just ran it over and over and we just didn’t, didn’t do a good enough job as coaches, so that’s on me.”

Kansas State ran wild over the Utes’ poor run fits and tackling with seven runs of 30-plus yards, including touchdowns of 80 and 66 yards. Fans booed the Utes at multiple points during the game after they allowed long rushing touchdowns.

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Jackson had a career night with 293 yards, while Antonio Martin Jr. added 89 yards and a score and quarterback Avery Johnson added 72 and a touchdown.

As Jackson celebrated his third touchdown of the night in the south end zone, some fans started to stream out of the stadium with seven minutes still on the clock.

“I did see a few fans leaving when I think we got down by 10 with not much time to go and didn’t like to see that, but I guess you can’t blame them,” Whittingham said.

For the vast majority of the 51,444 who stayed, they were treated to one of the more remarkable wins in the Whittingham era.

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Utah’s furious comeback began when the Wildcats went for two, up 12, to make it a 14-point game. Ute safety Tao Johnson — who like the rest of the defense, had his struggles in the run game — picked off Johnson in the end zone after cornerback Smith Snowden deflected the pass, and he took it the other way for two points.

“That play, as I mentioned, was instrumental. If that play doesn’t happen, it’s probably a different outcome. In fact, if we didn’t score on it, that would’ve changed the complexion,” Whittingham said.

“If we would’ve just defended it, it still put us in a pretty good deficit, and so like I said, that was a four-point switch and kept our hopes alive, gave us a better chance.”

Utah’s offense had kept the Utes in it all game as the defense was gashed, but the Utes’ previous two drives resulted in a three-and-out and a fumble.

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Dampier, who was already playing through an ankle injury, took several blows to the head in Saturday’s game. He was medically cleared to return to the game, but Saturday’s performance — to that point — was decidedly not his best.

The question hung over Rice-Eccles Stadium — would he be able to drive the Utes down the field in the game’s biggest drive?

In a game full of absolutely inconceivable moments, Utah’s drive delivered two of them. The first was a penalty by Kansas State that extended the drive.

With the ball on the Wildcat 37-yard-line, Utah went for it on fourth-and-2 and running back Wayshawn Parker was stopped short, but illegal substitution was called on Kansas State to extend the Ute drive.

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After that, Dampier was called for intentional grounding on second-and-10, setting up third and 22.

Dampier completed a 21-yard pass to Larry Simmons, then Parker got the first down, shaking off a tackle to convert. On the next play, it was the Dampier-to-Simmons connection once again for a 20-yard touchdown in the corner of the end zone.

Down three, Utah had life.

Its much-maligned defense had to come up with a stop, though — something that had been very rare on Saturday night.

The Utes forced a three-and-out and Kansas State had to punt the ball away.

This was the moment Dampier came to Utah from New Mexico for. Somehow, some way, Utah had the ball with 2:25 left and a chance to tie or win the game. The season — and the Utes’ slim College Football Playoff and Big 12 title hopes — was on the line.

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Dampier, who had persevered through injuries all night and kept the Utes in the game despite a run defense that was as strong as wet paper, had the ball in his hands.

“Not once did I hear Dev say he was going to give up. He kept his head up the whole time, told them, ‘We’re going to go out here and score. Believe it and we’re going to do it,” said quarterback Byrd Ficklin, who spelled Dampier at times and scored three rushing touchdowns.

Like everything else on Saturday, there was adversity to overcome on Utah’s final offensive drive.

After an incomplete pass to start the drive, Dampier found receiver Creed Whittemore — the Mississippi State transfer who has sparingly played this season — for a gain of 6 yards. Utah handed it to Parker on third-and-4, but after he was stopped a yard short of the marker, the Utes were facing fourth and 1.

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As they have many times in that situation this season, offensive coordinator Jason Beck decided to keep the ball in his quarterback’s hands.

With Utah’s season on the line, Dampier just needed to gain about 3 feet.

Dampier took the snap, faked the handoff to Parker and charged forward into a perfectly-sealed hole — tight end Dallen Bentley was part of creating that hole for Dampier.

Once Dampier burst through the hole, he had a lot of green turf in front of him, racing 59 yards until he was caught by Kanijal Thomas at the 3-yard line.

That actually ended up being beneficial for the Utes, who were able to burn off more time — not intentionally — as they were stuffed on first and second down.

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On third and 1, the ball was back in Dampier’s hands and he barreled his way into the north end zone, sending the crowd to volume levels not heard in this building since Cam Rising’s two-point conversion in the 2022 win over USC.

Dampier’s score gave the Utes a four-point lead with just 54 seconds remaining.

“That last score, it was surreal,” Whittingham said. “It was just a moment that, like I said, you can’t even dream it up.”

Dampier’s signature moment as a Ute had arrived.

Time and time again in those last two drives, the pressure was on Dampier to make a play, and he delivered.

“I told Dev, pressure makes diamonds but also crumbles people. Prove you’re a diamond. Show it out to people, show who you are,” Ficklin said.

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After a very rough game, Utah’s defense sealed the game as senior linebacker Lander Barton picked off Johnson, sending Rice-Eccles Stadium into a frenzy.

Barton grew up a Utah fan, then spent time in Rice-Eccles Stadium watching his brothers Cody and Jackson play for Whittingham and the Utes.

His final play in the stadium was one of the most memorable of his career.

“What a fitting way for Lander Barton to finish his career here at Rice-Eccles,” Whittingham said. “… For him to seal the victory with that pick, he’s done so much for this program through the years.”

As Whittingham talked about the senior class in his postgame press conference, he began to choke up.

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“Just a great illustration of what determination and guts and a never-say–die attitude can get you,” Whittingham said.

“Just so happy for our seniors to be able to go out with a win in the last opportunity in Rice-Eccles. Excuse me — when I think about our seniors, I get emotional so I apologize — but it’s just so awesome for them to be able to have that experience.”

Was that also Whittingham’s last game in Rice-Eccles? If so, it was an unforgettable sendoff for the greatest coach in Utah history.

“That was one for the ages,” Whittingham said.

The final Utah high school football games have all wrapped up, well, for the most part, Thursday at the University of Utah’s Rice – Eccles Stadium with the UHSAA state championships.

Corner Canyon will finish with the No. 1 ranking, despite having one more game against St. Frances Academy on Dec. 10 in the Overtime Nationals high school football championship game in Baltimore. How does everyone else throughout the Silver State finish the 2025 season out via the Massey Ratings?

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The Massey Ratings, officially used during the BCS era, is a model that ranks sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule, and margin of victory.

Here is the final Utah high school football Top 25 rankings for 2025, according to Massey as of Nov. 22.

1. Corner Canyon Chargers (12-1)

Star senior quarterback and Texas A&M commit Helaman Casuga didn’t have to be the guy in Corner Canyon‘s 35-20 win over Lone Peak for the UHSAA Class 6A state championship. That’s because running back Wyatt Briggs took on the heavy lifting for his quarterback, rushing for a game-high 174 yards and scoring four touchdowns in the win. Now the Chargers will take their act against an out of the state opponent for the third time this Utah high school football season and face St. Frances Academy (Md.) for the first-ever Overtime Nationals high school football championship.

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2. Skyridge Falcons (10-3)

Skyridge (10-3) came up just short of facing Corner Canyon for the Class 6A state championship, falling to Lone Peak in the state semifinal round, 13-7. Featuring one of Utah high school football’s top offenses, led by three-star signal caller Kaneal Sweetwyne, the Falcons were a team that looked like they could finish atop of these final Utah high school football rankings for moments throughout the season.

3. Lone Peak Knights (8-5)

For awhile during Thursday’s Utah high school football UHSAA Class 6A state championship game, you felt like Lone Peak had a legitimate shot of walking away with a trophy in hand. If not for the effort via the ground game by Briggs, the Knights might be holding up the title. Lone Peak led for a good portion of the second and third quarters before their defensive front seven gave way to huge chunk plays an route to not being able to beat Corner Canyon for a second time this season.

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4. Ridgeline Riverhawks (13-0)

The Ridgeline Riverhawks (13-0) left absolutely no doubt who the best team was of the 2025 Utah high school football season in Class 4A. The Riverhawks cruised to a 56-0 rout of Green Canyon, capping a dominant season. It was a dominating effort on both sides of the ball as Ridgeline’s defense racked up eight sacks in the victory. When it came to consistency this Utah high school football season, no one might have the argument Ridgeline can offer.

5. Orem Tigers (12-2)

Rounding out the top 5 of the final Utah high school football rankings is the Orem Tigers (12-2), which bounced back from a 1-2 start to the season to reel off eleven straight victories en rout to the UHSAA Class 5A state championship. The Tigers were able to sit atop of the classification after a dominating 42-7 win over Springville, with senior defensive end Lopeti Matai’tini Moala Jr. leading the way with a game-high three sacks.

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Utah High School Football Rankings: Nos. 6-25

6. Davis Darts (12-2)
7. American Fork Cavemen (7-5)
8. Mountain Ridge Sentinels (10-4)
9. Lehi Pioneers (6-5)
10. Herriman Mustangs (10-2)

11. West Panthers (11-2)
12. Springville Red Devils (12-2)
13. Syracuse Titans (7-4)
14. Fremont Silverwolves (8-3)
15. Farmington Phoenix (5-6)

16. Timpview Thunderbirds (6-6)
17. Brighton Bengals (7-6)
18. Woods Cross Wildcats (8-4)
19. Crimson Cliffs Mustangs (10-2)
20. Bountiful Redhawks (7-6)

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21. Morgan Trojans (10-2)
22. Westlake Thunder (7-4)
23. Provo Bulldogs (8-5)
24. Riverton Silverwolves (4-6)
25. Bingham Miners (3-7)

How to Follow Utah High School Football

For high school football fans looking to keep up with scores around Utah, staying updated on the action is now easier than ever with the Rivals High School Scoreboard. This comprehensive resource provides real-time updates and final scores from across the state, ensuring you never miss a moment of the Friday night frenzy. From nail-biting finishes to dominant performances, the Rivals High School Scoreboard is your one-stop destination for tracking all the gridiron excitement across Utah high school football.

The New York Rangers are facing off against the Utah Mammoth at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday night.

Here’s how to watch the Rangers game, including time, TV schedule and streaming information:

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What channel is New York Rangers vs Utah Mammoth game on today? Time, TV schedule

Cable/Network TV: MSG Network

Start time: 9 p.m.

Where to watch Rangers vs Mammoth on livestream

You can stream the game on The Gotham Sports App.

Gotham Sports App is available with a cable or satellite login and also has options for non-cable subscribers and for individual games.

You can also stream if you have subscriptions to Spectrum, Optimum, Verizon Fios, DirecTV Stream or fuboTV. Nationally televised games may be available on ESPN+ (if broadcast on ABC, ESPN or carried by ESPN+), Hulu (ESPN+ broadcasts) or MAX (TNT/TBS/TruTV broadcasts).

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Rangers: Longtime NY Post Rangers reporter Larry Brooks dies at 75

New York Rangers remaining November 2025 schedule

• Saturday, Nov. 22 at Utah Mammoth, 9 p.m.

Emily Barnes reports on consumer-related issues for the USA TODAY Network’s New York Connect Team, focusing on scam and recall-related topics. Follow her on X and Instagram @byemilybarnes. Get in touch at ebarnes@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Watch Rangers vs Mammoth game today: Channel, time, streaming

Utah might be one of the 12 best teams in college football, but it has too much to fight through to get to the playoff.

The loss to BYU killed that hope, and the loss to Texas Tech didn’t help – it’ll be hard enough to get a second Big 12 team into the CFP, much less a third.

But if it rolls through Kansas State in the regular season finale and takes down Kansas, it’ll be the third-best team in the Big 12 and off to a strong bowl game.

Kansas State struggled to get past Oklahoma State, and it still needs one more win to get bowl-eligible. If it can get this, great – it’ll screw up the Utes. But there’s a home game against Colorado as a likely backstop.

Kansas State vs Utah Preview

How To Watch Kansas State vs Utah

Date: Saturday, November 22, 2025
Game Time: 4:00 PM ET
TV: ESPN2
Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, UT
@PeteFiutak

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Why Kansas State Will Win

It’s the only question that matters when facing Utah – can you stop the run?

Kansas State should be able to hold its own enough to hang around, but more than that, it has to ramp up its own offense and get hot right out of the gate. Get up early, and then hope the defense can start attacking.

Make Utah press and start to throw when it has to, and bad things happen for its offense.

It’s a different Wildcat team when it starts forcing takeaways, going 4-0 when coming up with three or more, but …

Why Utah Will Win

Utah doesn’t have a turnover problem.

It had to press against Texas Tech when the running game wasn’t working, and out came the mistakes with four turnovers.

That was effectively it.

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There were two in the loss to BYU, and two in the easy win over Cincinnati, and that’s all for the multiple giveaways, with just two giveaways in the other seven games.

Kansas State isn’t controlling the clock or the tempo consistently enough. To beat Utah, you have to be able to keep Devon Dampier and the offense off the field, and ….

Kansas State vs Utah Prediction, Betting Lines

Utah has the two losses to the Big 12 big boys, and it’s absolutely dorrnailing everyone else.

Wyoming is the only team to come within 25 against the Utes, and that includes all the home wins that haven’t even come close to being interesting.

If Kansas State can come out roaring with a good first quarter, this could be fun. Utah won’t let that happen.

Utah 37, Kansas State 16
Line: Utah -17.5, o/u: 52.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 4
Must See Rating: 3.5

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Consensus Line from BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

– Who Will Play in Each Conference Championship?

Related: TCU vs Houston Prediction, Preview, and Betting Lines

This story was originally reported by College Football News on Nov 22, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add College Football News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It’s the most exciting part of Utah’s sports calendar.

Nationally-ranked BYU and Utah are both winding down football’s regular season. The Jazz and Mammoth are playing good teams. The college basketball season is heating up, and BYU’s women’s soccer team even finds itself on a postseason run.

Over the next week or so, there will be a number of notable events for all the different teams around the Beehive State. Here’s a look at some you won’t want to miss.

Friday, Nov. 21

BYU men’s basketball vs. Wisconsin

2 p.m. MST at the Delta Center

The Cougars will take on the red-hot Badgers in a rematch of last year’s NCAA Tournament.

BYU women’s soccer vs. UCLA (NCAA Tournament second round)

5 p.m. MST in Palo Alto, California

The Cougars are looking to advance to the Round of 16 for the 10th time in program history.

Jazz vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

8 p.m. MST at the Delta Center

The Jazz host the defending NBA champions in NBA Cup action.

Saturday, Nov. 22

Utah football vs. Kansas State

2 p.m. MST at Rice-Eccles Stadium

The Utes will look for their fourth-consecutive win and ninth of the season.

BYU football at Cincinnati

6 p.m. MST in Cincinnati

The Cougars face another road test in their pursuit of the Big 12 championship game.

Utah State football at Fresno State

8:30 p.m. MST in Fresno, California

The Aggies are a win away from bowl eligibility in their first season of the Bronco Mendenhall era.

Sunday, Nov. 23

Utah women’s basketball at UConn

12:30 p.m. MST in Montville, Connecticut

The Utes head east to face the No. 1 team in the country.

Jazz vs. Los Angeles Lakers

6 p.m. MST at the Delta Center

LeBron James and Luka Doncic visit Utah.

Monday, Nov. 24

Mammoth vs. Vegas Golden Knights

7 p.m. MST at the Delta Center

Utah hosts its regional rival for the second time this season.

Tuesday, Nov. 25

Utah men’s basketball vs. Grand Canyon

10 p.m. MST in Palm Desert, California

The Runnin’ Utes continue the Acrisure Series against a recent NCAA Tournament regular in the Antelopes.

Wednesday, Nov. 26

Mammoth vs. Montreal Canadiens

7:30 p.m. MST at the Delta Center

Utah hosts one of the NHL’s Original Six.

Utah men’s basketball vs. Ole Miss or Iowa

7:30 p.m. or 10 p.m. MST in Palm Desert, California

The Runnin’ Utes continue the Acrisure Series against one of the two listed opponents.

Thursday, Nov. 27 (Thanksgiving)

BYU men’s basketball vs. Miami

3 p.m. MST at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida

AJ Dybantsa and the Cougars open their Thanksgiving showcase at the ESPN Events Invitational against the Hurricanes.

NFL players from Utah schools playing on Thanksgiving day

• BYU
• Zayne Anderson, Packers DB (at Lions at 11 a.m. MST)
• Chris Brooks, Packers RB (at Lions at 11 a.m. MST)
• Kingsley Suamataia, Chiefs OL (at Cowboys at 2:30 p.m. MST)
• Kyle Van Noy, Ravens LB (vs. Bengals at 6:20 p.m. MST)
• Ryan Rehkow, Bengals punter (at Ravens at 6:20 p.m. MST)

• Utah
• Sione Vaki, Lions RB (vs. Packers at 11 a.m. MST)
• Tyler Huntley, Ravens QB2 (vs. Bengals at 6:20 p.m. MST)
• Utah State
• Jordan Love, Packers QB (at Lions at 11 a.m. MST)

Friday, Nov. 28

Utah football at Kansas

10 a.m. MST in Lawrence, Kansas

The Utes face the Jayhawks in their regular-season finale.

BYU men’s basketball vs. Dayton or Georgetown

5 p.m. MST or 7:30 p.m. MST at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida

The Cougars continue their ESPN Events Invitational visit.

Saturday, Nov. 29

BYU football vs. UCF

TBD at LaVell Edwards Stadium

The Cougars could clinch a Big 12 championship game berth in their regular-season finale.

There remains a half-dozen teams in the race to reach the Big 12 Championship Game next month with the final two weeks of the regular season determining who faces off at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas with a College Football Playoff bid on the line.

Given this week’s new rankings from the playoff selection committee, there’s a scenario in which BYU wins a rematch over one-loss Texas Tech in the title game which would potentially place two Big 12 competitors in the 12-team bracket.

Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire backed BYU’s resume in the at-large discussion earlier this month after the Red Raiders’ win, pounding the table for conference strength.

Cincinnati squandered a golden opportunity for Saturday’s showdown with BYU to be a winner-take-all scenario entering the season’s final weekend after losing to Arizona at home. That’s consecutive losses for the Bearcats who — to begin November — controlled their own destiny in the league title discussion.

Bowl projections: Georgia moves into first-round bye in College Football Playoff, Oklahoma enters bracket

Brad Crawford

Tiebreakers explained

Here’s the Big 12’s tiebreaker procedure, enacted in 2024, that will be used in determining the two teams who play at AT&T Stadium in December in the event of a two-team tie for second:

• A. Head-to-head competition among the two tied teams. 
• B. Win percentage against all common conference opponents among the tied teams. 
• C. Win percentage against the next highest placed common opponent in the standings (based on the record in all games played within the conference), proceeding through the standings. When arriving at another group of tied teams while comparing records, use each team’s win percentage against the collective tied teams as a group (prior to that group’s own tie-breaking procedure) rather than the performance against individual tied teams. 
• D. Combined win percentage in conference games of conference opponents (i.e., the strength of conference schedule). 
• E. Total number of wins in a 12-game season. The following conditions will apply to the calculation of the total number of wins — only one win against a team from the FCS or lower division will be counted annually. Any games that are exempted from counting against the annual maximum number of football contests per NCAA rules shall not be included. 
• F. Highest ranking by SportSource Analytics (team Rating Score metric) following the last weekend of regular-season games. 
• G. Coin toss 

If there are multi-team ties in the Big 12, which is a high-probability this season, the following procedure will be followed:

• A. The records of the three (or more) tied teams will be compared based on winning percentage in games among the tied teams — if all teams involved in the tie did not play each other, but one team defeated all other teams involved in the tie, the team that defeated all other teams in the tie is removed from the tiebreaker, and the remaining teams revert to the beginning of the applicable tiebreaker process (i.e., two team or three or more team tie). Also, if all teams involved in the tie did not play each other and no team defeated all other teams involved in the tie, move to the next step in tiebreaker. 
• B. The records of the three (or more) tied teams will be compared based on winning percentage against all common conference opponents played by all other teams involved in the tie. 
• C. Record of the three (or more) tied teams against the next highest placed common opponent in the standings (based on the record in all games played within the conference), proceeding through the standings. When arriving at another group of tied teams while comparing records, use each team’s win percentage against the collective tied teams as a group (prior to that group’s own tie-breaking procedure) rather than the performance against individual tied teams. 
• D. Record of the three (or more) tied teams based on combined win percentage in conference games of conference opponents (i.e., strength of conference schedule) 
• E. Total number of wins in a 12-game season. The following conditions will apply to the calculation of the total number of wins: Only one win against a team from the FCS or lower division will be counted.

Texas Tech (10-1, 7-1)

The most dominant team in the conference up to this point, the only blemish on the resume for the Red Raiders was a close loss at Arizona State.

• If the Red Raiders beat West Virginia, they’re in the Big 12 Championship Game.
• If the Red Raiders lose to West Virginia, BYU beats Cincinnati and UCF and Arizona State beats Colorado and Arizona, Texas Tech misses a Big 12 Championship Game appearance.

BYU (9-1, 6-1)

You want to be in control of your own destiny at this point and the Cougars hold that distinction.

• If the Cougars beat Cincinnati and UCF, they’re in the Big 12 Championship Game.
• If the Cougars lose to Cincinnati and beats UCF, they’re still in good shape to reach the Big 12 Championship Game with a head-to-head tiebreaker advantage over Utah. In most scenarios for the four two-loss teams behind BYU in the conference standings, they need the Cougars to lose out.

Utah (8-2, 5-2)

While the Utes are in the at-large playoff conversation, losses this season to both of the Big 12’s frontrunners nullify most hopes of reaching the conference title game due to tiebreaker disadvantages.

• If the Utes beat Kansas State and Kansas, they’re in the Big 12 Championship Game if BYU loses to Cincinnati and UCF and Cincinnati loses to TCU. Utah holds a tiebreaker edge over the Bearcats with a head-to-head win.

Willie Fritz’s team needs chaos, which would start with Colorado upsetting Arizona State and Kansas State taking out Utah this weekend.

• If the Cougars beat TCU and Baylor, they would need BYU to lose twice along with Utah, Cincinnati, and Arizona State each losing once to reach the Big 12 Championship Game.

Arizona State (7-3, 5-2)

Banged up over the second half of the season, the Sun Devils’ bid to repeat as conference champions and get to the playoff is slim.

• If the Sun Devils beat Colorado and Arizona, they would need West Virginia to beat Texas Tech along with Utah and Cincinnati to each suffer another loss. That would guarantee a spot for Arizona State in the title game since the Sun Devils own the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Red Raiders.

Cincinnati (7-3, 5-2)

Last week’s loss to Arizona is one the Bearcats could not afford with BYU looming. That torched just about every positive scenario that could’ve unfolded for Cincinnati.

• If the Bearcats beat BYU and TCU, they would need two-loss Arizona State, Houston and Utah to each suffer another setback to reach the Big 12 Championship Game. That would put Cincinnati in the final against Texas Tech since the Bearcats would hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over BYU.

MANHATTAN — One of the best opponents Kansas State football will face all season awaits the Wildcats in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Nov. 22.

K-State will play Utah at 3 p.m. at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Utah (8-2, 5-2 Big 12) has plenty to play for as it pursues a spot in the College Football Playoff and, with help, still has a shot at reaching the Big 12 championship. The Utes are massive favorites to win the game.

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K-State (5-5, 4-3 Big 12) has to win one of its last two games to earn bowl eligibility.

Here are some things to know heading into the Utah game:

Utah football’s two-quarterback attack will be worth watching

Utah’s offense has the second-best ground attack in the country while touting one of the sport’s better offensive lines. The Utes have good running backs, but their two quarterbacks require a bit more preparation.

Utah plays two quarterbacks, Devon Dampier and true freshman Byrd Ficklin, who are both capable runners and throwers. Dampier has been banged up, pushing him into more of a throwing role, while Ficklin has proven to be one of the more explosive runners at the position. K-State defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman joked that he has yet to see Ficklin get tackled in the tape that he’s reviewed.

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Klanderman also noted that the Utes don’t change much in their offense depending on who’s under center.

“They could have three or four different personnel groups and be in the same formation,” Klanderman said. “It’s about players, not plays; I suppose at the end of the day, that’s how it should be.”

How will Kansas State replace Jayce Brown? It can’t.

K-State will be without its best receiver for the remainder of the season after Jayce Brown exited the Wildcats’ win over Oklahoma State. He led the team with 41 catches for 712 yards and five touchdowns this season, while also providing a home-run threat that the Wildcats don’t have much of.

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“You’re not going to replace Jayce Brown,” offensive coordinator Matt Wells said. “I think you’ve gotta find different ways to move the ball, and that’s going to be a big challenge against these guys. I think the key for the whole offense is that we gotta get to third down and be able to convert.”

What went wrong against Oklahoma State on offense?

Wells noticed that different players took turns at messing up. Some plays, it’d be Avery Johnson; on others, it’d be a receiver dropping a pass; then, there’d be a lineman giving up penetration, blowing up a play.

“You couldn’t put your finger on one thing,” Wells said. “I was just proud of our resolve as the game went on. We continue to fight and find different ways to run the ball, especially in between the tackles late in the game.”

How good is Utah football’s pass rush?

Kansas State has already faced one of the best defenses in the country, playing Texas Tech earlier in the year. The Wildcats will now face the Big 12’s second-best defense when they play the Utes.

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Utah ranks 16th in the country with 2.7 sacks per game, while also allowing just 15.6 points per outing. Defensive end John Henry Daley leads the team with 9.5 sacks and 14 tackles for a loss. Across from him, Logan Fano has three sacks and five tackles for a loss. Henry Daley is graded as the 11th-best pass rusher in college football.

Matt Wells said the altitude in Utah is a mindset

Wells coached in Utah as Utah State’s head coach from 2013 to 18, and he spent time as an assistant in the two years before that. He thinks the worry about playing in altitude is overblown.

“It’s a marketing ploy out there, I think a little bit, but you gotta hydrate,” Wells said. “I think it may be a little psychological at times. I don’t ever see it as a big factor, to be honest with you.”

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Wyatt D. Wheeler covers Kansas State athletics for the USA TODAY Network and Topeka Capital-Journal. You can follow him on X at @WyattWheeler_, contact him at 417-371-6987 or email him at wwheeler@usatodayco.com

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State football visits Utah – Things to know