Utah @ UCLA preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 3, 2017 ) UCLA 17, Utah 48

The Pac-12 South Division is wide open heading into the home stretch of the regular season, and the winner of No. 24 Utah and UCLA on Friday night at the Rose Bowl will significantly better their chances of earning a berth in the conference championship. Utah moved into a tie with USC atop the South Division by defeating the Trojans on Saturday, while UCLA is back in the picture after winning back-to-back Pac-12 games for the first time since 2015.

The 41-28 win against USC not only further tightened the conference standings, but moved the Utes into the top 25 of the coaches' poll for the first time this season. Like the Bruins, Utah opened Pac-12 play with two straight losses, but quarterback Tyler Huntley has upped his level of play, completing at least 73 percent of his passes in each of the past three games and accounting for seven touchdown passes and one interception in that span. Utah's defense remains one of the best in the nation, entering the week ranked No. 1 in rush defense and No. 7 in total defense. The Bruins have also become more active on defense, forcing nine turnovers in the past three games after accumulating 13 takeaways all of last season.

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: Utah -10

ABOUT UTAH (5-2, 3-2 Pac-12): The Utes have scored at least 40 points in three consecutive games for the first time since 2010, and they'll be up against a UCLA defense that has yielded at least 30 points five of the past six games. Huntley threw four touchdowns against the Bruins last season in a 48-17 win in Utah, the Utes' only win in a seven-game stretch of conference games. Huntley may hand the ball off more to fellow Florida native Zack Moss, who has surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark in three of the past four games and had his top rushing performance last season against UCLA, totaling 153 yards and two touchdowns.

ABOUT UCLA (2-5, 2-2): The Bruins have turned things around following an 0-5 start, and running back Joshua Kelley is a major reason why they've been successful the past two games. After combining for 27 yards on 11 carries the first three games, Kelley has exploded for 542 rushing yards and five TDs in the past four contests. UCLA has handed off to Kelley 30 times in each of the past two games, the first running back since Tyler Ebell in 2002 to hit that mark two games in a row.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Kelley is also the first UCLA running back with four consecutive 100-yard games since Ebell had six straight in 2002.

2. The Utes would become bowl-eligible with a win, and Utah coach Kyle Whittingham is 11-1 in bowl games, the best winning percentage (92 percent) in NCAA history.

3. Utah LB Chase Hansen ranks second nationally with an average of two tackles for loss per game.

PREDICTION: UCLA 28, Utah 27