Holy War Stakes: Utah and BYU Play for the Big 12 and a CFP Bye
On Saturday in Salt Lake City, Utah's oldest rivalry takes on a new dimension. Utah (8-0), No. 3 in the first College Football Playoff rankings, hosts BYU (7-1), No. 9, with first place in the Big 12 at stake and, behind it, one of the four first-round byes in the playoff. The Utes are the conference's only unbeaten team, yet they have lost three straight to the Cougars. A win would give them a two-game cushion over their rival; a loss would blow the race wide open.
A rivalry that has tilted toward BYU
BYU has won the last three meetings: 26-17 in 2021 in Provo, 22-21 in 2024 in Salt Lake City on Will Ferrin's 44-yard field goal with three seconds left, and 24-21 last season in Provo. Utah has not beaten its neighbor since 2019. The all-time series still clearly favors the Utes (62-37-4, according to Utah Athletics), but the recent run weighs on a program that has changed leaders.
This will be Morgan Scalley's first Holy War as head coach. He succeeded Kyle Whittingham, who left after 21 seasons, and he has yet to lose. His defense allows 15.9 points per game, according to Beehive Athletes. Last Saturday at Cincinnati, it scored two first-half touchdowns, and Utah led 42-6 at the break before winning 49-25.
Dampier vs. Bachmeier: two quarterbacks who can run
On offense, Utah leans on Devon Dampier, as dangerous on the ground as through the air: 150 rushing yards against Houston, then 260 passing yards and three touchdowns at Cincinnati, according to local coverage. He has, however, thrown three interceptions over his last two games, a weakness BYU's defense will look to exploit.
On the other side, Bear Bachmeier remains the main threat. The BYU quarterback accounted for four touchdowns in the win over Notre Dame, according to the Daily Utah Chronicle. But the Cougars' offense struggled Saturday against Arizona State (27-20): 47 rushing yards on 30 carries, per the Deseret News. Running back LJ Martin is questionable, which would take an important piece out of BYU's ground game. "There's things we need to improve on," Kalani Sitake said after that game, as quoted by Cronkite News.
Oddsmakers list Utah as a 6.5-point favorite, according to the Daily Utah Chronicle. The game kicks off at 10 a.m. local time, the rivalry's first morning kickoff since 1996, per Sports Illustrated, and a slot that does not always favor the home team.
What it means for the Big 12 and the College Football Playoff
In the Big 12 standings, Utah (5-0) leads BYU and Texas Tech (4-1 each). Only two teams will play in the conference championship game, on Friday, Dec. 4, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. A Utes win would put them two games clear of BYU, with the head-to-head edge as well. A BYU win, on the other hand, would give the Cougars the head-to-head tiebreaker and could create a three-way tie at the top if Texas Tech beats West Virginia that night (9:30 p.m. ET, 7:30 p.m. in Vancouver, 3:30 a.m. Sunday in France, on ESPN).
Texas Tech, powered by Tommy Castellanos and its option game, does not face another ranked opponent the rest of the regular season, according to Cronkite News. Any slip by Utah or BYU would play straight into the Red Raiders' hands.
The College Football Playoff format raises the stakes further. The committee's four highest-ranked teams receive first-round byes, whether or not they win their conference. Utah currently sits third, ahead of Indiana and Alabama. A loss to the No. 9 team would not knock the Utes out of the field, but it would put that bye in immediate danger. BYU, which would travel to UCLA in the first round if the field were set today, according to NCAA.com's projection, can aim for the Big 12 title and the automatic bid that comes with it.
For Utah, the equation is simple: win, and the road to Arlington and to the top four becomes much clearer, ahead of a trip to Arizona on Nov. 14 (kickoff time not yet announced). For BYU, a fourth straight win in the rivalry would reshape everything, in the Big 12 and in the eyes of the committee, which releases its next rankings on Tuesday, Nov. 10.
