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Pac 12 Football: Week One Power Rankings

By Michael Valverde

Sep 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; General view of Pac-12 logo on the field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the NCAA football game between the Stanford Cardinal and Southern California Trojans. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 19, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; General view of Pac-12 logo on the field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the NCAA football game between the Stanford Cardinal and Southern California Trojans. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 1, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Utes wide receiver Tim Patrick (12) catches a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 1, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Utes wide receiver Tim Patrick (12) catches a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports /

The Utah Utes went on to win their ninth straight opening game by beating the Southern Utah Thunderbirds 24-0. It was a closer contest than the score represents as Utah quarterback Troy Williams had a hard time getting going in the first quarter and the team could only muster a field goal.

It then took just under 11 minutes into the second quarter to get their first touchdown and just three minutes later the Utes took a 17-0 lead into halftime when Williams hit Tim Patrick for a two-yard touchdown score. Utah would take nearly a quarter and a half to score again. With nine and a half minutes remaining Williams connected with Patrick for a 57-yard touchdown.

Even though Williams finished the day with 272-yards passing and two touchdowns, the star was the defensive unit of Utah. They apparently manhandled the smaller Southern Utah school out of the Big Sky conference. The Thunderbirds could only garner 158 yards of total offense, 21:10 of possession time, and just seven first downs. Whenever they faced a third down situation, they could only convert two-of-twelve.

Utah will now take on a much tougher team in the BYU Cougars who beat Arizona this week 18-16. Look for another defensive game out of these two teams, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the score ended nearly the same. The advantage will be to Utah as they are going to be at home and are favored by 2.5 points at this time.

Next: Number 3

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