The No. 9 Utah Utes (-3.5) are flying west to take on the Washington Huskies at Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium. This pivotal conference game starts at 4:00 p.m. ET and FOX is scheduled to broadcast the action.
Betting Preview: Utah Utes at Washington Huskies
Washington is playing the role of underdog and is currently getting 3.5 points in this Saturday Pac-12 game. The Utes are also receiving -175 moneyline odds while the Huskies are +155. If one side can create a bunch of points early it will create a worthy live betting opportunity. Vegas has determined the over/under (O/U) to be 48 points.
The line initially opened at 1 and the game’s total was set originally at 48.5, so the early action appears to be leaned toward the Utes.
The Utes have gained 2.3 units so far and are 5-3 against the spread (ATS). They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an O/U record of 1-7.
The Huskies have been a disappointment to moneyline bettors this season, losing 8.8 units. They’re 5-3 ATS and five of their games have gone over the total.
The Utes are 7-1 straight up (SU), including 4-1 SU against Pac-12 opponents. The Huskies are 5-3 SU overall and 2-3 SU in conference play.
The Utes are coming off a resounding 35-0 win over California last week. The defense did its part in the win, keeping the Golden Bears to just 60 passing yards and 23 rushing yards. Christopher Brown Jr. had a good day for the Golden Bears in that one with 0 yards on zero catch. On the offensive side of the ball, the Utes completed 15-of-22 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Huntley went 11-for-17 for 214 yards and one touchdown while Jason Shelley completed four-of-five for 28 yards and one touchdown. Zack Moss (115 rushing yards on 17 attempts, two TDs) led the running attack while Moss (three receptions, 89 yards) and Brant Kuithe (three catches, 30 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties in the win.
Washington just lost a 35-31 game to Oregon. The defensive unit allowed the Ducks to eat up the clock by running for 154 yards on 38 rush attempts, along with one rushing TD. Cyrus Habibi-Likio had a productive showing in the win for Oregon, recording 81 rushing yards and a score on 14 attempts. For Washington, Jacob Eason completed 23-of-30 passes for 289 yards and three touchdowns. Salvon Ahmed (140 rushing yards on 24 attempts, one TD) mounted the running game as Terrell Bynum (six receptions, 43 yards) and Ahmed (four catches, four yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
Utah’s run the ball on 65.2 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Washington has a rush percentage of 55.6 percent. The Utes have rushed for 219.4 yards per game (including 215.4 per game versus Pac-12 opponents) and have 21 scores on the ground this year. The Huskies are averaging 172 rushing yards per game (159.8 in conference) and have 15 total rush TDs.
It appears that the Utes should own an edge when it comes to efficiency in the ground game. Their running backs has generated 5.1 yards per carry while their defense is allowing a YPC of 2.5 to opponents. The Huskies have ran for 4.7 yards per carry and allowed a YPC of 4.2 to opponents.
The Utes offense has averaged 233 yards in the air overall (244.8 per game versus conference opposition) and has 11 passing TDs so far. The Huskies have produced 250 pass yards per outing (216 in the Pac-12) and have 16 total pass scores.
Utah seems to hold the upper hand in both areas of the defense. The team has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 56.4 yards and pass for 174.6 yards per game. The Washington D has given up 224.8 yards per game to opposing passers and 147.6 yards per game on the ground. The Utes are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 3.80 to opponents, while the Huskies have allowed a 5.16 ANY/A.
Offensively, Huntley is up to 1,607 passing yards this season, and has connected on 74 percent of his 148 attempts with 10 scores through the air and has yet to throw an interception. Huntley’s got a pristine 11.74 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 9.59 over the past two games.
Jacob Eason has completed 142-of-211 passes for 1,738 yards, 14 TDs and three INTs for Washington. His ANY/A stands at 8.35 for the year and 11.28 over his past two outings.
Utah Utes vs. Washington Huskies Free Pick
SU Winner: Utah, ATS Winner: Utah, O/U: Over
Betting Trends
- The Utes offense has produced eight pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Huskies have put up four such plays.
- The Utah defense has allowed three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while Washington has given up four such plays.
- The Utah offense has created 11 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Washington has created 10 such runs.
- The Utes defense has allowed two rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Huskies have given up nine such runs.
- Each team defense has produced 16 sacks this year.
- As a team, Utah has produced 4.7 yards per carry over its past three games and 4.1 over its last two.
- Washington has averaged 4.2 yards per carry over its last three contests and 4.2 over its last two.
- In its last three matches, Washington is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- The Over/Under for Utah’s previous game was 37. The under cashed in the team’s 35-0 win over California.
- In its last three games, Utah is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
- The O/U for Washington’s previous matchup was set at 48.5. The over cashed in the 35-31 defeat to Oregon.
