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November 3, 2026

No. 3 Utah hosts No. 7 BYU on Saturday in a matchup ranking of two top 10 teams, which has never happened in the history of this long, bitter rivalry. The Utes are favored. BYU is the underdog, a role they last had against No. 2 Notre Dame.

This game will be played on a dramatic college football Saturday with a 10 a.m. kickoff, and it will start the long day of long-anticipated games, including No. 1 Miami at No. 4 Notre Dame; the No. 7 Cougars at No. 3 Utah; No. 2 Georgia at No. 12 Ole Miss; Alabama at LSU; Oregon playing Ohio State; and Kentucky vs. Tennessee.

The Cougars need to knock off undefeated Utah to make the Big 12 race an open affair for one- and two-loss teams in the league. Utah needs to win to stay atop league standings and an inside track to Arlington and possibly the CFP.

Question of the Week: Most would agree that Utah is playing better than BYU heading into this weekend’s big game, and since summer, ESPN metrics have favored the Utes. In your opinion, what factors must BYU meet to overcome its underdog role and win this game? Give your score prediction.

Jay Drew: BYU will need to play a near-perfect game, similar to its outing against Notre Dame — only better — if it hopes to upset Utah on Saturday at Rice-Eccles. If BYU plays like it did against UCF or ASU, it will lose, and probably big.

First, the Cougars absolutely have to take care of the football, and not give Devon Dampier and the Utes any cheap touchdowns. BYU has lost the turnover battle the past two games. It simply has to win it Saturday to have any chance.

Second, BYU’s defenders must figure out how to tackle better, and contain Dampier and star Utah running back Wayshawn Parker. Utah thrives off big plays; BYU is usually good at limiting them, and must do that again and make the Utes sustain long drives and put Dampier and company behind the chains.

Third, BYU has to find a running game without calling on Bear Bachmeier to run more than 10 times against the Utes. That’s a big ask, especially if LJ Martin can’t play.

Prediction: Utah 38, BYU 24

Dave McCann: Turnovers have meant everything in BYU’s three-game winning streak against Utah, where the Cougars are +7 since 2021. In emotional games like this, the team who turns the ball over is usually in for a long day.

Both BYU and Utah are physical, their respective rosters are deep, and both have a skilled and confident quarterback. This game comes down to mental edge and focus — which often reveals itself by turnovers, or the lack of them.

The 8-0 Utes are feeling good after quality wins against Houston at home and Cincinnati on the road. BYU has looked less than dynamic in their two recent games against UCF and Arizona State, but the 7-1 Cougars do have a 28-24 win against No. 2 Notre Dame under their belt, which they won without star runner LJ Martin. If they are talented and confident enough to take down the Irish, they have the kind of roster that can beat the Utes for a fourth-straight time, even if it takes a last-minute field goal by Matthias Dunn to do it.

Prediction: BYU 23, Utah 20

Jackson Payne: To topple the Utes, BYU must win the turnover battle. The Cougars haven’t done so since beating TCU a month ago, but it’s a nonnegotiable for Saturday.

During its current three-game rivalry win streak, BYU is +7 in turnover margin against Utah, never once giving away a possession. BYU won’t beat the Utes without protecting the football, especially if LJ Martin doesn’t play.

Additionally, the Cougars desperately need to tackle better if they want to stop talented Utes running back Wayshawn Parker. Kelly Poppinga’s defense hasn’t been the same since defeating Notre Dame. Each missed tackle against Utah will dig a deeper and deeper hole for BYU.

Prediction: If Martin does play, I say BYU wins a 21-20 thriller. If he is inactive once again, Utah will triumph 20-14

Dick Harmon: This game will come down to turnovers. Both Utah and BYU have shown they can cough up the football. Whichever team does it least has a leg up on Saturday.

Utah is executing at a higher level than BYU right now. That doesn’t mean BYU isn’t capable of turning that around and performing at the level they did against Notre Dame. We didn’t see it against UCF and ASU, but it is possible, because BYU is talented enough.

Having LJ Martin would be a plus, but only if he is near 100%. BYU beat Notre Dame without him by running the ball by committee and passing the ball.

BYU’s three-game win run over Utah has come by having great play in the trenches on both sides of the ball. That talent is there this year with more depth, speed and size than last year. Trouble is, Utah is creating big chunk plays against everyone. Slow that down like Colorado did, or Houston did for much of the game, and BYU can win this game.

I go back and forth with this one. I think Utah should be favored and will win if BYU struggles to tackle, a growing concern. But I think given one game, a big game like this Utah game, BYU has proven — like in the Notre Dame game — it can elevate. But they haven’t faced a circus offense like Utah’s this season. If BYU wins, it will be an upset. If BYU holds Utah to 21 points, they will win.

Prediction: BYU 23, Utah 21

BYU basketball defeated Ohio State in the Delta Center to kick off the season. After a slow start the Cougars had a remarkable second half offensively, putting up 60 points. In that second half, the Cougars shot 69%, 70% from 3-point land and 86.7% from the free-throw line.

Rob Wright was the star of the night and all five starters finished in double figures.

BYU’s women took first, the men second in the Big 12 Cross Country Championships this past week. Here is a piece with a national perspective.

BYU sophomore Kihei Akina finished in the top 15 in the Mexico Open PGA Tour event this past weekend, making a remarkable run of top 20 finishes on the tour. Akina finished 15th at (-16) at the Mexico Open, got his third top 20 and fourth in five PGA Tour starts this season. He’s made every cut, including one top 10 at the @BOUChampionship. While hoping for another sponsor exemption in 2026, he heads back to BYU with more experience in his back pocket, according to an X post by Fairways Media’s Randy Dodson.

Comments from Deseret News readers:

Whittingham, Daley, Jay Hill and others must be pulling their hair out to be languishing & irrelevant at unranked Michigan (2-3 in conference play) ... and not a part of this epic matchup of No. 3 and No. 7 in the nation. And Utah would have been that much better if they still had those players that were poached away to Michigan. I think BYU would also have been better if they still had Hill as their DC. Also, bummer about the long list of BYU injuries. Would’ve been fun to see this game with both teams at full health. Even if LJ tries to play, he’ll be a shadow of his former capability. You don’t just bounce back to 100% when you’ve been out of action as long as he has. Lots of woulda, couldas, and shouldas… — KNDR84

The loser won’t drop much as long as one team doesn’t crush the other (unlikely). The games are usually close, nail-biting affairs. The score differential is rarely more than one touchdown. Here are the past 10 results:

In eight of the past 10 games only two game’s score differential was more than one touchdown — 2018 and 2019 — both won by Utah. BYU and Utah did not play games in 2014, 2022 or 2023. — rvalens2

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