Utah Football: Complete 2018 season preview, prediction

Utah tumbled from division contender to Pac-12 afterthought over the past few years. Can Kyle Whittingham’s team return to prominence in the west in 2018?

Since 2015, Utah has backslid in the Pac-12 South standings. From a tie for first place in the division in 2015, the Utes fell to third place in 2016. Then last year’s squad tumbled to a 3-6 conference record en route to a 7-6 campaign. It was Utah’s fourth straight season with a postseason appearance, but they finished fifth in the six-team Pac-12 South.

Only one of Utah’s players from 2017 was selected in the 2018 NFL Draft this spring. But that belies the number of quality players that graduated from last year’s roster. Seven starters return on each side of the ball, but the players that departed are going to be sorely missed.

Utah was already a young team in 2017. Kyle Whittingham and his staff return a young roster in 2018. Young stars will need to take the next leap forward if the Utes are going to rebound and remain a bowl-eligible team in the upcoming season.

Can this year’s Utah team turn around its recent fortunes and get back to winning ways in the Pac-12 South? Let’s dive in and look at the Utes offense and defense heading into the 2018 season before evaluating the schedule and prospects for the new year.