College football preseason rankings: No. 11 Utah has pieces to make playoff, but will Utes stay healthy?

Welcome to the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff.

In anticipation of the first four-round postseason in college football history, we’re counting down our predicted playoff field as the season approaches. The top five conference champions in the CFP selection committee’s rankings will make the playoff and the rest of the field will be filled out by seven at-large teams.

Who will lift the national championship trophy on Jan. 20 in Atlanta?

Previous previews: Nos. 25-13, No. 12 Boise State

No. 11 Utah

2023 record: 8-5, 5-4 Pac-12

Last season in 100 words

The Utes entered the season without both QB Cam Rising and TE Brant Kuithe and neither made an appearance on the field. Kuithe missed the season after suffering a season-ending knee injury in September of 2022 and Rising was out after he suffered a serious knee injury during the Rose Bowl at the end of the 2022 season.

Without Rising — and a top receiving target like Kuithe — the Utah offense struggled. After averaging nearly 39 points per game in 2022, Utah scored just 23 points per game in 2023. The defense was exceptional as it always is — the Utes gave up just 19 points per game — but the offense’s struggles capped the team’s ceiling.

Why Utah can make the playoff

This one is pretty simple: because Rising is healthy. The veteran returns for what will be his seventh and likely last season of college football. He emerged as Utah’s starter in 2021 after transferring from Texas ahead of the 2020 season and was even better in 2022. He threw for over 3,000 yards and 26 TDs with just eight interceptions two seasons ago. He also rushed for 465 yards and six scores on the ground.

Rising has a strong case to be considered the best quarterback in a conference that includes Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Kansas’ Jalon Daniels. We won’t be surprised if Rising’s rushing stats go down in 2024 because of the knee injury, but he should be one of the conference’s top passers.

Kuithe should also return to the field along with running back Micah Bernard after he missed most of 2023. The offense also added former USC WR Dorian Singer.

The defense could be just as good as it was in 2023, too. Nine starters are back, including leading tacklers Levani Damuni and Karene Reid. Sophomore Logan Fano had 3.5 sacks in three games a season ago while edge rusher Connor O’Toole had 4.5 sacks. The pass rush should still be very good even though the Utes need to replace Jonah Elliss and his 12 sacks.

The other starter who jumped to the NFL is defensive back Cole Bishop. But with three starters back in the secondary and some depth added through the transfer portal, replacing Bishop is not insurmountable.

Key player

RB Micah Bernard

Bernard played in just two games at the start of the season before suffering a season-ending injury. In his absence, Utah used a rotating cast of players at running back, including converted defensive back Sione Vaki. He even averaged 10.5 yards a carry against Cal in October.

Vaki is off to the NFL and last year’s leading rusher Ja’Quinden Jackson is now at Arkansas. Jaylon Glover (562 yards in 2023) is back, but Bernard could end up being the main running back over the course of the season.

Over 2021 and 2022, Bernard had 193 carries for 1,056 yards and six touchdowns while also averaging over nine yards a catch. If he’s back to full strength along with Rising and Kuithe, watch out.

Biggest game

Sept. 21 at Oklahoma State

Utah can’t have any complaints about its Big 12 schedule. Not only are the Utes the most talented team heading into the season, they don’t have to play Kansas State at all in the regular season.

Not having the Wildcats on the schedule means that Utah’s trip to last season’s Big 12 runners-up is the biggest game of the season. It’s the first road game for Utah as a Big 12 member and Oklahoma State brings back 19 starters from a team that was 10-4 a season ago.

That OSU game is also the first in a pivotal two-game stretch. Arizona visits on Sept. 28. The Wildcats lost coach Jedd Fisch to Washington, but they return a lot of talent on offense and are also a Big 12 title game contender. If the Utes are 5-0 heading into their bye week in the first week of October, they will be the prohibitive Big 12 favorites.