Cornicator has basically guaranteed Nebraska completes 4 passes and his held to -80 rush yards
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Breaking Viva Las Vegas: Vegas Bowl v Utah: Game Notes, Depth Chart, etc
- Thread starter Faux Sean Callahan
- Start date
Schedule detail
Well….i think we have positive rushing yardage. Before the sacks are factored in.
The way their offense works, I just see them playing keep away….and scoring a lot.
38-10 kind of game.
Utah has a UCLA caliber defense. I think Holgorsen has enough time to put together 28 points on a handful of big play drives.
I think this game will look similar to that bowl game vs USC after Pelini was fired. Like a 45-42 type game.
Utah played ucla this year. They won by 30 and held ucla to 220 total yards (we allowed 350).
Is there anyone on the internet who watches less cfb but pretends to know more?
TO be fair, that was early in the season when UCLA was looking like they were going to go 0-12.
….as opposed to when we played them, amidst their longest losing streak of the year
Free
I think it's comical that you're seriously trying to act like you understand college football while referencing a game from August. If you can't figure out why that result doesn't matter in December, then you're either really ignorant or just too biased because your head is too blindly up the ass of the Big 12.
Utah is allowing 520 yards per game in the last month of the season. They're coming into this game with one of the worst defenses in the country. And their stud NFL Defensive End is opting out.
I'm betting that Holgersen and Geep Wade have been around the mother fucking block long enough that they can establish an offensive game plan to exploit a porous Big 12 defense, especially with a month to prepare.
I also have zero doubt that Utah is going to run the ball down Nebraska's throat.
There is no reason to think Nebraska will win this game. I honestly don't think that way at all. But, I do believe Nebraska's offense will score some points and move the ball.
When you’re averaging almost 50 a game and scoring on a ton of big plays, giving up yards will happen, “ball knower”.
Maybe we’ll score a couple on their 4th stringers and you can run a victory lap!
Link: Full Bowl Game Notes (Huskers.com)
WHAT: SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl
WHEN: Wednesday, December 31 | 2:30 PM (CT)
WHERE: Allegiant Stadium | Las Vegas, Nevada
TV: ESPN (Dave Flemming, Brock Osweiler, Dawn Davenport)
RADIO: Huskers Radio Network (Kyle Crooks, Damon Benning, Jessica Coody)
UTES
Record: 10-2 (7-2 Big 12)
Last Game: Kansas (W 31-21)
Streak: Won 5
Rank: AP (#15) | Coaches (#15)
Coach: Kyle Whittingham (177-88, 21st year at Utah and overall | vs. Nebraska (0-0)
HUSKERS
Record: 7-5 (4-5 Big Ten)
Last Game: Cockeye (L 16-40)
Streak: Lost 2
Rank: NR
Coach: Matt Rhule (19-18, 3rd year NU | 66-61, 10th year overall | vs. Utah (0-0)
THIS WEEK'S NUMBERS
5 - The SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl meeting between Nebraska and Utah will be the fifth all-time between the two schools. Nebraska won each of the previous four meetings with all four games being played at Memorial Stadium
11 - Nebraska has clinched a second consecutive winning season in 2025, following a 7-6 mark last year. This marks the first time in 11 years the Huskers have posted back-to-back winning seasons, following a seven-year streak from 2008 to 2014.
55 - Nebraska's appearance in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl will be the Huskers' 55th all-time bowl game. Nebraska owns a 27-27 all-time record in bowl games.
THE MATCHUP
Nebraska makes its second consecutive bowl appearance in 2025 in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl, where the Huskers will meet the Utah Utes on New Year's Eve Day. The game from Allegiant Stadium will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT (12:30 p.m. PT), with the matchup televised by ESPN. The game can also be heard on the Huskers Radio Network, the official Huskers App and Huskers.com.
Nebraska stands at 7-5 heading into the Las Vegas Bowl, after finishing Big Ten play with a 4-5 record. The Huskers increased their win total for the third consecutive regular season under Coach Matt Rhule and posted back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2014. Nebraska's Vegas Bowl trip also marks the first back-to-back bowl appearances since a nine-year streak from 2008 to 2016.
Nebraska has had numerous highlights throughout the 2025 season. Offensively, Nebraska posted back-to-back 50-point games for the first time in 18 years, set a season record for team completion percentage and celebrated its first offensive All-American since 2011. On defense, Nebraska has ranked among the nation's top pass defense units all season, and posted its first shutout in 16 years. The Huskers also fielded one of the nation's most-improved special teams units, led by explosive return teams.
Utah comes into the Vegas Bowl with a 10-2 record and are No. 15 in the CFP, AP and Coaches polls. The Utes posted a 7-2 record in Big 12 play, losing only to conference title game participants Texas Tech and BYU. Utah owns a powerful rushing attack, averaging 269.8 yards per game to rank second nationally, while also ranking sixth in both scoring offense and scoring defense. Kyle Whittingham is in his 21st season leading the program and will complete his Ute coaching career in the Vegas Bowl.
SERIES HISTORY
Nebraska and Utah are meeting for the fifth time in school history, but for the first time since the 1992 season. This will mark the first meeting between the two program's outside of Nebraska's Memorial Stadium.
- Nebraska owns a 4-0 advantage in the all-time series, most recently a 49-22 victory in 1992.
- In the first four meetings, Nebraska was ranked 14th or higher in each meeting, while Utah was unranked.
- Nebraska has scored at least 31 points in each of the previous four meetings, while limiting Utah to single digits in the first two matchups in the series.
Nebraska vs. Utah History
1968: Nebraska 31, Utah 0 (Lincoln)
1980: Nebraska 55, Utah 9 (Lincoln)
1989: Nebraska 42, Utah 30 (Lincoln)
1992: Nebraska 49, Utah 22 (Lincoln)
NEBRASKA BOWL HISTORY
Nebraska will be making its 55th bowl appearance in program history at the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl. The Huskers have a 27-27 all-time record in bowl games.
1941: Stanford 21, Nebraska 13 (Rose Bowl)
1955: Duke 34, Nebraska 7 (Orange Bowl)
1962: Nebraska 36, Miami (FL) 34 (Gotham Bowl)
1964: Nebraska 13, Auburn 7 (Orange Bowl)
1965: Arkansas 10, Nebraska 7 (Cotton Bowl)
1966: Alabama 39, Nebraska 28 (Orange Bowl)
1967: Alabama 34, Nebraska 7 (Sugar Bowl)
1969: Nebraska 45, Georgia 6 (Sun Bowl)
1971: Nebraska 17, LSU 12 (Orange Bowl)
1972: Nebraska 38, Alabama 6 (Orange Bowl)
1973: Nebraska 40, Notre Dame 6 (Orange Bowl)
1974: Nebraska 19, Texas 3 (Cotton Bowl)
1975: Arizona State 17, Nebraska 14 (Fiesta Bowl)
1976: Nebraska 27, Texas Tech 24 (Bluebonnet Bowl)
1977: Nebraska 21, North Carolina 17 (Liberty Bowl)
1979: Oklahoma 31, Nebraska 24 (Orange Bowl)
1980: Houston 17, Nebraska 14 (Cotton Bowl)
1980: Nebraska 31, Mississippi State 17 (Sun Bowl)
1982: Clemson 22, Nebraska 15 (Orange Bowl)
1983: Nebraska 21, LSU 20 (Orange Bowl)
1984: Miami (FL) 31, Nebraska 30 (Orange Bowl)
1985: Nebraska 28, LSU 10 (Sugar Bowl)
1986: Michigan 27, Nebraska 23 (Fiesta Bowl)
1987: Nebraska 30, LSU 15 (Sugar Bowl)
1988: Florida State 31, Nebraska 28 (Fiesta Bowl)
1989: Miami (FL) 23, Nebraska 3 (Orange Bowl)
1990: Florida State 41, Nebraska 17 (Fiesta Bowl)
1991: Georgia Tech 45, Nebraska 21 (Citrus Bowl)
1992: Miami (FL) 22, Nebraska 0 (Orange Bowl)
1993: Florida State 27, Nebraska 14 (Orange Bowl)
1994: Florida State 18, Nebraska 16 (Orange Bowl)
1995: Nebraska 24, Miami (FL) 17 (Orange Bowl)
1996: Nebraska 62, Florida 24 (Fiesta Bowl)
1996: Nebraska 41, Virginia Tech 21 (Orange Bowl)
1998: Nebraska 42, Tennessee 17 (Orange Bowl)
1998: Arizona 23, Nebraska 20 (Holiday Bowl)
2000: Nebraska 31, Tennessee 21 (Fiesta Bowl)
2000: Nebraska 66, Northwestern 17 (Alamo Bowl)
2002: Miami (FL) 37, Nebraska 14 (Rose Bowl)
2002: Mississippi 27, Nebraska 23 (Independence Bowl)
2003: Nebraska 17, Michigan State 3 (Alamo Bowl)
2005: Nebraska 32, Michigan 28 (Alamo Bowl)
2007: Auburn 17, Nebraska 14 (Cotton Bowl)
2009: Nebraska 26, Clemson 21 (Gaytor Bowl)
2009: Nebraska 33, Arizona 0 (Holiday Bowl)
2010: Washington 19, Nebraska 7 (Holiday Bowl)
2012: South Carolina 30, Nebraska 13 (Citrus Bowl)
2013: Georgia 45, Nebraska 31 (Citrus Bowl)
2014: Nebraska 24, Georgia 19 (Gaytor Bowl)
2014: USC 45, Nebraska 42 (Holiday Bowl)
2015: Nebraska 37, UCLA 29 (Foster Farms Bowl)
2016: Tennessee 38, Nebraska 24 (Music City Bowl)
2024: Nebraska 20, Boston College 15 (Pinstripe Bowl)
ABOUT UTAH
Utah has fielded a football team since 1892 and the Utes have tallied 734 wins as a program, claiming 28 conference titles. The Utes have an overall bowl record of 17-9. Most recently, Utah fell 14-7 to Northwestern in the Las Vegas Bowl in the 2023 season.
First Year: 1892
All-Time Record: 734-491-31
Bowl Record: 17-9
Conference Titles: 28
National Titles: 0
Stadium: Rice-Eccles Stadium
Capacity: 51,444
Surface: FieldTurf
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Enrollment: 38,261
Colors: Red & White
ABOUT 2025 UTAH FOOTBALL
Schedule/Results
at UCLA (W 43-10)
Cal Poly (W 63-9)
at Wyoming (W 31-6)
#17 Texas Tech (L 10-34)
at West Virginia (W 48-14)
#21 Arizona State (W 42-10)
at #15 BYU (L 21-24)
Colorado (W 53-7)
at Baylor (W 55-28)
Kansas State (W 51-47)
at Kansas (W 31-21)
No. 15 Utah recorded a 10-2 overall record and a 7-2 mark in Big 12 play after ending the regular season with five consecutive victories. The Utes enter the Vegas Bowl matchup with the Big Red averaging 41.1 points and 478.6 yards per game, with 208.8 yards per game through the air and 269.8 yards per game on the ground. Wayshawn Parker leads the Utah rushing attack with 133 carries for 931 yards and six touchdowns, followed by quarterback Devon Dampier with 687 yards and seven scores on 127 rushes.
In the passing game, Dampier has completed 193-of-303 passes for 2,180 yards, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions. Ryan Davis has a team-high 57 receptions for 659 yards and four touchdowns, followed by Dallen Bentley with 514 yards and five touchdowns on 42 catches.
Defensively, the Utes are allowing 18.7 points per game and 360.3 yards per game this season. Jonathan Hall leads the Utah defense with 65 tackles, while John Henry Daley has posted a team-high 17.5 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks on the year.
ABOUT KYLE WHITTINGHAM
Kyle Whittingham, who is tied as the second-longest tenured head coach at the same school in FBS, is in his 21st and final season at the helm and 32nd overall season at Utah in 2025 as the Utes' all-time wins leader with a mark of 177-88.
In the Utes' second season in the Big 12, Whittingham began the season ranked second among active Big 12 head coaches in career victories at the FBS level, while his total ranked fifth among all active FBS head coaches and fourth among head coaches at the same school coming into the 2025 season.
Since 2019, the Utes have produced some of the best offenses and defenses in program history, winning back-to-back Pac-12 championships in 2021 and 2022, also finishing with its highest final CFP Poll ranking in program history in 2022 (10-4 overall, No. 8).
Individually, Whittingham has had 35 players make All-America teams during his time as head coach, including 17 that have made major All-America first teams, with 10 earning consensus or unanimous honors. Whittingham's players have also won a total of 102 first-team all-conference awards, including 57 in Utah's 14 total seasons at the power conference level.
Whittingham was a linebacker at BYU, graduating in 1981. He played several years professionally in the CFL and USFL and one season in the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams (1987). Whittingham began his coaching career as a grad assistant coach at BYU (1985-86), then made stopes as an assistsant at Eastern Utah as defensvie coordinator in 1987 at Idaho State from 1988 to 1993 in various assistant roles and then became a defensive line coach at Utah in 1994. The following year, in 1995, Whittingham was named defensive coordinator for the Utes, a position he held for 10 seasons before being named head coach in 2005.
The Las Vegas Bowl matchup will be Whittingham's first career matchup against Nebraska.
LAST MEETING: SEPTEMBER 5, 1992
Nebraska 49, Utah 22
LINCOLN - The No. 11 Nebraska Cornhuskers opened their 1992 season with a 49-22 victory over Utah. Nebraska jumped out to a 35-0 halftime lead and a 42-0 advantage before the Utes got on the scoreboard.
In all, seven different Huskers scored in the contest. Fullback Lance Lewis started the offensive roll, scoring on a 57-yard jaunt on the first play of Nebraska's second drive. NU jumped out to the top of the rushing charts with 399 yards on the ground, led by I-backs Derek Brown and Calvin Jones, who rushed for 105 and 92 yards, respectively, while Lewis added another 85 yards.
Nebraska outgained Utah in total yardage in the contest 517 to 379. The Huskers added 118 yards passing to go along with their 399 rushing yards. Utah threw for 207 yards in the contest and ran for 172.
Utah's Frank Dolce was 21-of-38 passing in the contest for 207 yards with 4 interceptions. The Utes leading rusher was Keith Williams with 15 carries for 106 yards and their leading receiver was Henry Lusk with 5 receptoins for 58 yards.
Mike Grant was 12-23 for 114 yards and two touchdowns with an interception for the Big Red. Joel Cornwell was 1-of-2 for 4 yards and Tommie Frazier was 0-for-1. In the rushing department, Derek Brown had 15 carries for 105 yards and 1 TD; Calvin Jones had 11 rushes for 92 yards; Lance Lewis 6 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD; Mike Grant had 2 carries for 22 yards and 2 TDs; Vincent Hawkins had 1 carry for 15 yards; Cory Schlesinger 2 carries, 14 yards; Tommie Frazier 2 carries for 14 yards; Andre McDuffy added 1 carry for 6 yards and a TD; Jeff Makovicka had 1 carry for 4 yards; David Fiala added 1 carry for 4 yards; Joel Cornwell 1 carry zero yards and Brook Berringer rushed one time for a loss of 3 yards.
Corey Dixon led Husker receivers with 3 receptions for 40 yards. Other Huskers receivers were Abdul Muhammad (2 rec, 19 yds); Tyrone Hughes (2-15); Truman Bell (2-9), Calvin Jones (1-14, 1 TD); Gerald Armstrong (1-11, 1 TD), Vincent Hawkins (1-6) and William Washington (1-4).
The Huskers picked off four Ute passes with John Reece grabbing a pair of interceptions. Steve Carmer and Tyrone Byrd also picked off the Utes in the win.
Leading tacklers for NU were Carmer with 8 and Mike Anderson with 7. Travis Hill recorded two sacks in the contest for NU for a loss of 9 yards while David White also added a sack for Nebraska.
WHAT: SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl
WHEN: Wednesday, December 31 | 2:30 PM (CT)
WHERE: Allegiant Stadium | Las Vegas, Nevada
TV: ESPN (Dave Flemming, Brock Osweiler, Dawn Davenport)
RADIO: Huskers Radio Network (Kyle Crooks, Damon Benning, Jessica Coody)
UTES
Record: 10-2 (7-2 Big 12)
Last Game: Kansas (W 31-21)
Streak: Won 5
Rank: AP (#15) | Coaches (#15)
Coach: Kyle Whittingham (177-88, 21st year at Utah and overall | vs. Nebraska (0-0)
HUSKERS
Record: 7-5 (4-5 Big Ten)
Last Game: Cockeye (L 16-40)
Streak: Lost 2
Rank: NR
Coach: Matt Rhule (19-18, 3rd year NU | 66-61, 10th year overall | vs. Utah (0-0)
THIS WEEK'S NUMBERS
5 - The SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl meeting between Nebraska and Utah will be the fifth all-time between the two schools. Nebraska won each of the previous four meetings with all four games being played at Memorial Stadium
11 - Nebraska has clinched a second consecutive winning season in 2025, following a 7-6 mark last year. This marks the first time in 11 years the Huskers have posted back-to-back winning seasons, following a seven-year streak from 2008 to 2014.
55 - Nebraska's appearance in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl will be the Huskers' 55th all-time bowl game. Nebraska owns a 27-27 all-time record in bowl games.
THE MATCHUP
Nebraska makes its second consecutive bowl appearance in 2025 in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl, where the Huskers will meet the Utah Utes on New Year's Eve Day. The game from Allegiant Stadium will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT (12:30 p.m. PT), with the matchup televised by ESPN. The game can also be heard on the Huskers Radio Network, the official Huskers App and Huskers.com.
Nebraska stands at 7-5 heading into the Las Vegas Bowl, after finishing Big Ten play with a 4-5 record. The Huskers increased their win total for the third consecutive regular season under Coach Matt Rhule and posted back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2014. Nebraska's Vegas Bowl trip also marks the first back-to-back bowl appearances since a nine-year streak from 2008 to 2016.
Nebraska has had numerous highlights throughout the 2025 season. Offensively, Nebraska posted back-to-back 50-point games for the first time in 18 years, set a season record for team completion percentage and celebrated its first offensive All-American since 2011. On defense, Nebraska has ranked among the nation's top pass defense units all season, and posted its first shutout in 16 years. The Huskers also fielded one of the nation's most-improved special teams units, led by explosive return teams.
Utah comes into the Vegas Bowl with a 10-2 record and are No. 15 in the CFP, AP and Coaches polls. The Utes posted a 7-2 record in Big 12 play, losing only to conference title game participants Texas Tech and BYU. Utah owns a powerful rushing attack, averaging 269.8 yards per game to rank second nationally, while also ranking sixth in both scoring offense and scoring defense. Kyle Whittingham is in his 21st season leading the program and will complete his Ute coaching career in the Vegas Bowl.
SERIES HISTORY
Nebraska and Utah are meeting for the fifth time in school history, but for the first time since the 1992 season. This will mark the first meeting between the two program's outside of Nebraska's Memorial Stadium.
- Nebraska owns a 4-0 advantage in the all-time series, most recently a 49-22 victory in 1992.
- In the first four meetings, Nebraska was ranked 14th or higher in each meeting, while Utah was unranked.
- Nebraska has scored at least 31 points in each of the previous four meetings, while limiting Utah to single digits in the first two matchups in the series.
Nebraska vs. Utah History
1968: Nebraska 31, Utah 0 (Lincoln)
1980: Nebraska 55, Utah 9 (Lincoln)
1989: Nebraska 42, Utah 30 (Lincoln)
1992: Nebraska 49, Utah 22 (Lincoln)
NEBRASKA BOWL HISTORY
Nebraska will be making its 55th bowl appearance in program history at the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl. The Huskers have a 27-27 all-time record in bowl games.
1941: Stanford 21, Nebraska 13 (Rose Bowl)
1955: Duke 34, Nebraska 7 (Orange Bowl)
1962: Nebraska 36, Miami (FL) 34 (Gotham Bowl)
1964: Nebraska 13, Auburn 7 (Orange Bowl)
1965: Arkansas 10, Nebraska 7 (Cotton Bowl)
1966: Alabama 39, Nebraska 28 (Orange Bowl)
1967: Alabama 34, Nebraska 7 (Sugar Bowl)
1969: Nebraska 45, Georgia 6 (Sun Bowl)
1971: Nebraska 17, LSU 12 (Orange Bowl)
1972: Nebraska 38, Alabama 6 (Orange Bowl)
1973: Nebraska 40, Notre Dame 6 (Orange Bowl)
1974: Nebraska 19, Texas 3 (Cotton Bowl)
1975: Arizona State 17, Nebraska 14 (Fiesta Bowl)
1976: Nebraska 27, Texas Tech 24 (Bluebonnet Bowl)
1977: Nebraska 21, North Carolina 17 (Liberty Bowl)
1979: Oklahoma 31, Nebraska 24 (Orange Bowl)
1980: Houston 17, Nebraska 14 (Cotton Bowl)
1980: Nebraska 31, Mississippi State 17 (Sun Bowl)
1982: Clemson 22, Nebraska 15 (Orange Bowl)
1983: Nebraska 21, LSU 20 (Orange Bowl)
1984: Miami (FL) 31, Nebraska 30 (Orange Bowl)
1985: Nebraska 28, LSU 10 (Sugar Bowl)
1986: Michigan 27, Nebraska 23 (Fiesta Bowl)
1987: Nebraska 30, LSU 15 (Sugar Bowl)
1988: Florida State 31, Nebraska 28 (Fiesta Bowl)
1989: Miami (FL) 23, Nebraska 3 (Orange Bowl)
1990: Florida State 41, Nebraska 17 (Fiesta Bowl)
1991: Georgia Tech 45, Nebraska 21 (Citrus Bowl)
1992: Miami (FL) 22, Nebraska 0 (Orange Bowl)
1993: Florida State 27, Nebraska 14 (Orange Bowl)
1994: Florida State 18, Nebraska 16 (Orange Bowl)
1995: Nebraska 24, Miami (FL) 17 (Orange Bowl)
1996: Nebraska 62, Florida 24 (Fiesta Bowl)
1996: Nebraska 41, Virginia Tech 21 (Orange Bowl)
1998: Nebraska 42, Tennessee 17 (Orange Bowl)
1998: Arizona 23, Nebraska 20 (Holiday Bowl)
2000: Nebraska 31, Tennessee 21 (Fiesta Bowl)
2000: Nebraska 66, Northwestern 17 (Alamo Bowl)
2002: Miami (FL) 37, Nebraska 14 (Rose Bowl)
2002: Mississippi 27, Nebraska 23 (Independence Bowl)
2003: Nebraska 17, Michigan State 3 (Alamo Bowl)
2005: Nebraska 32, Michigan 28 (Alamo Bowl)
2007: Auburn 17, Nebraska 14 (Cotton Bowl)
2009: Nebraska 26, Clemson 21 (Gaytor Bowl)
2009: Nebraska 33, Arizona 0 (Holiday Bowl)
2010: Washington 19, Nebraska 7 (Holiday Bowl)
2012: South Carolina 30, Nebraska 13 (Citrus Bowl)
2013: Georgia 45, Nebraska 31 (Citrus Bowl)
2014: Nebraska 24, Georgia 19 (Gaytor Bowl)
2014: USC 45, Nebraska 42 (Holiday Bowl)
2015: Nebraska 37, UCLA 29 (Foster Farms Bowl)
2016: Tennessee 38, Nebraska 24 (Music City Bowl)
2024: Nebraska 20, Boston College 15 (Pinstripe Bowl)
ABOUT UTAH
Utah has fielded a football team since 1892 and the Utes have tallied 734 wins as a program, claiming 28 conference titles. The Utes have an overall bowl record of 17-9. Most recently, Utah fell 14-7 to Northwestern in the Las Vegas Bowl in the 2023 season.
First Year: 1892
All-Time Record: 734-491-31
Bowl Record: 17-9
Conference Titles: 28
National Titles: 0
Stadium: Rice-Eccles Stadium
Capacity: 51,444
Surface: FieldTurf
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Enrollment: 38,261
Colors: Red & White
ABOUT 2025 UTAH FOOTBALL
Schedule/Results
at UCLA (W 43-10)
Cal Poly (W 63-9)
at Wyoming (W 31-6)
#17 Texas Tech (L 10-34)
at West Virginia (W 48-14)
#21 Arizona State (W 42-10)
at #15 BYU (L 21-24)
Colorado (W 53-7)
at Baylor (W 55-28)
Kansas State (W 51-47)
at Kansas (W 31-21)
No. 15 Utah recorded a 10-2 overall record and a 7-2 mark in Big 12 play after ending the regular season with five consecutive victories. The Utes enter the Vegas Bowl matchup with the Big Red averaging 41.1 points and 478.6 yards per game, with 208.8 yards per game through the air and 269.8 yards per game on the ground. Wayshawn Parker leads the Utah rushing attack with 133 carries for 931 yards and six touchdowns, followed by quarterback Devon Dampier with 687 yards and seven scores on 127 rushes.
In the passing game, Dampier has completed 193-of-303 passes for 2,180 yards, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions. Ryan Davis has a team-high 57 receptions for 659 yards and four touchdowns, followed by Dallen Bentley with 514 yards and five touchdowns on 42 catches.
Defensively, the Utes are allowing 18.7 points per game and 360.3 yards per game this season. Jonathan Hall leads the Utah defense with 65 tackles, while John Henry Daley has posted a team-high 17.5 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks on the year.
ABOUT KYLE WHITTINGHAM
Kyle Whittingham, who is tied as the second-longest tenured head coach at the same school in FBS, is in his 21st and final season at the helm and 32nd overall season at Utah in 2025 as the Utes' all-time wins leader with a mark of 177-88.
In the Utes' second season in the Big 12, Whittingham began the season ranked second among active Big 12 head coaches in career victories at the FBS level, while his total ranked fifth among all active FBS head coaches and fourth among head coaches at the same school coming into the 2025 season.
Since 2019, the Utes have produced some of the best offenses and defenses in program history, winning back-to-back Pac-12 championships in 2021 and 2022, also finishing with its highest final CFP Poll ranking in program history in 2022 (10-4 overall, No. 8).
Individually, Whittingham has had 35 players make All-America teams during his time as head coach, including 17 that have made major All-America first teams, with 10 earning consensus or unanimous honors. Whittingham's players have also won a total of 102 first-team all-conference awards, including 57 in Utah's 14 total seasons at the power conference level.
Whittingham was a linebacker at BYU, graduating in 1981. He played several years professionally in the CFL and USFL and one season in the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams (1987). Whittingham began his coaching career as a grad assistant coach at BYU (1985-86), then made stopes as an assistsant at Eastern Utah as defensvie coordinator in 1987 at Idaho State from 1988 to 1993 in various assistant roles and then became a defensive line coach at Utah in 1994. The following year, in 1995, Whittingham was named defensive coordinator for the Utes, a position he held for 10 seasons before being named head coach in 2005.
The Las Vegas Bowl matchup will be Whittingham's first career matchup against Nebraska.
LAST MEETING: SEPTEMBER 5, 1992
Nebraska 49, Utah 22
LINCOLN - The No. 11 Nebraska Cornhuskers opened their 1992 season with a 49-22 victory over Utah. Nebraska jumped out to a 35-0 halftime lead and a 42-0 advantage before the Utes got on the scoreboard.
In all, seven different Huskers scored in the contest. Fullback Lance Lewis started the offensive roll, scoring on a 57-yard jaunt on the first play of Nebraska's second drive. NU jumped out to the top of the rushing charts with 399 yards on the ground, led by I-backs Derek Brown and Calvin Jones, who rushed for 105 and 92 yards, respectively, while Lewis added another 85 yards.
Nebraska outgained Utah in total yardage in the contest 517 to 379. The Huskers added 118 yards passing to go along with their 399 rushing yards. Utah threw for 207 yards in the contest and ran for 172.
Utah's Frank Dolce was 21-of-38 passing in the contest for 207 yards with 4 interceptions. The Utes leading rusher was Keith Williams with 15 carries for 106 yards and their leading receiver was Henry Lusk with 5 receptoins for 58 yards.
Mike Grant was 12-23 for 114 yards and two touchdowns with an interception for the Big Red. Joel Cornwell was 1-of-2 for 4 yards and Tommie Frazier was 0-for-1. In the rushing department, Derek Brown had 15 carries for 105 yards and 1 TD; Calvin Jones had 11 rushes for 92 yards; Lance Lewis 6 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD; Mike Grant had 2 carries for 22 yards and 2 TDs; Vincent Hawkins had 1 carry for 15 yards; Cory Schlesinger 2 carries, 14 yards; Tommie Frazier 2 carries for 14 yards; Andre McDuffy added 1 carry for 6 yards and a TD; Jeff Makovicka had 1 carry for 4 yards; David Fiala added 1 carry for 4 yards; Joel Cornwell 1 carry zero yards and Brook Berringer rushed one time for a loss of 3 yards.
Corey Dixon led Husker receivers with 3 receptions for 40 yards. Other Huskers receivers were Abdul Muhammad (2 rec, 19 yds); Tyrone Hughes (2-15); Truman Bell (2-9), Calvin Jones (1-14, 1 TD); Gerald Armstrong (1-11, 1 TD), Vincent Hawkins (1-6) and William Washington (1-4).
The Huskers picked off four Ute passes with John Reece grabbing a pair of interceptions. Steve Carmer and Tyrone Byrd also picked off the Utes in the win.
Leading tacklers for NU were Carmer with 8 and Mike Anderson with 7. Travis Hill recorded two sacks in the contest for NU for a loss of 9 yards while David White also added a sack for Nebraska.
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