Utah @ Oregon preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 19, 2009 ) Utah 24, Oregon 31

The health of quarterback Marcus Mariota is an issue as No. 7 Oregon attempts to bounce back from its first loss of the season when it hosts Utah on Saturday. Mariota is dealing with a sprained ligament in his left knee that hindered his ability to run in the loss to Stanford on Nov. 7, and the Heisman Trophy candidate indicated early this week that he will play against the Utes. Utah has lost three consecutive contests.

Mariota sidestepped questions about the seriousness of his knee injury – “My knee is what it is,” he said. “I’m not going to use that as an excuse.” The Ducks signal-caller has thrown 22 touchdown passes without being intercepted and has added another nine on the ground. The Utes let a 12-point lead slip away en route to a 20-19 loss to Arizona State last Saturday. “It was a tough defeat, but life’s all about picking yourself up and moving forward and taking on the next challenge,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1. LINE: None.

ABOUT UTAH (4-5, 1-5 Pac-12): The Utes have excelled at pressuring the quarterback as they lead the nation in sacks per game (3.67) and their 33 total sacks are second to Missouri’s 34. Defensive end/linebacker Trevor Reilly leads the squad in tackles (78), tackles for loss (13.5) and sacks (seven), and linebacker Jacoby Hale (6.5 sacks) has also been a force. Receiver Dres Anderson – the son of former NFL standout Willie “Flipper” Anderson – is emerging as a big-play receiver with six catches of 50 or more yards while leading the Pac-12 in yards per reception (20.1).

ABOUT OREGON (8-1, 5-1 Pac-12): The Ducks likely had their national championship aspirations extinguished with the 26-20 loss to Stanford as they were stunningly blanked for three quarters before attempting to rally. The season-low output drops Oregon’s scoring average to 51.7 per game – third nationally – and the Ducks now need Stanford to stumble to have any chance of being the North’s representative in the Pac-12 title game. Linebacker Derrick Malone has a team-best 80 tackles for a defensive unit allowing 17.9 points per game.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Oregon has an 18-8 edge in the series and won the last meeting in 2009 when Utah was still a member of the Mountain West.

2. The Ducks have scored 55 or more points six times this season.

3. Utah is 3-8 in Pac-12 road games since joining the conference.

PREDICTION: Oregon 45, Utah 13