Utah Football vs. Washington: PAC-12 Title Game bold predictions

2. Armand Shyne has three rushing touchdowns, less than 50 rushing yards

The season-ending injury to star Utah football running back Zack Moss hurt this offense in a number of ways. Before his season ended, Moss was well over 1,000 rushing yards and looked like a premier rusher in the PAC-12. His injury left an opportunity for Utah’s backup running back to get into the spotlight.

Junior running back Armand Shyne is already having a career season in the wake of Moss’s absence. Shyne should be able to easily reach the 500-rushing yard mark on the season. As a solidified red zone threat, Shyne should also be able to add to his rushing touchdown total on the year which sits at five.

The breakout game this fall for Shyne came in a massive home win in Week 11 over the Oregon Ducks. Oregon started slipping down the stretch, despite the best efforts of the 2019 NFL Draft top-tier quarterback prospect Justin Herbert. That didn’t stop Oregon from joining the ranks of the Stanford Cardinal and USC Trojans as the PAC-12’s biggest letdowns of 2018.

Utah football can complete its surprise 2018 run and push for a New Year’s Six Bowl by beating Washington to win the PAC-12 Title. This team is going to need a solid effort from its ground game, which will be led by starting quarterback Tyler Huntley and Shyne. The red zone scoring could come from Shyne. He could add to his weird rushing stats from the past two weeks by racking up multiple touchdowns on the ground with minimal yardage.