Florida visits Utah on Thursday in Salt Lake City. 14Powers.com previews this SEC football game and predicts the final score.
By 14Powers.com SEC Football
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TEAM SCHEDULES/RESULTS (FIRST GAME)
Florida
| Date | Opponent | Time | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8/31 | at Utah | 8:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 9/9 | vs. McNeese | 7:30 PM ET | ESPNU |
| 9/16 | vs. Tennessee | 7:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 9/23 | vs. Charlotte | 7:00 PM ET | ESP+ |
| 9/30 | at Kentucky | TBA | |
| 10/7 | vs. Vanderbilt | TBA | |
| 10/14 | at South Carolina | TBA | |
| 10/28 | vs. Georgia* | 3:30 PM ET | CBS |
| 11/4 | vs. Arkansas | TBA | |
| 11/11 | at LSU | TBA | |
| 11/18 | at Missouri | TBA | |
| 11/25 | Florida State | TBA | |
| 31-Aug | at Utah | 8:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 9-Sep | vs. McNeese | 7:30 PM ET | ESPNU |
| 16-Sep | vs. Tennessee | 7:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 23-Sep | vs. Charlotte | 7:00 PM ET | ESP+ |
| 30-Sep | at Kentucky | TBA | |
| 7-Oct | vs. Vanderbilt | TBA | |
| 14-Oct | at South Carolina | TBA | |
| 28-Oct | vs. Georgia* | 3:30 PM ET | CBS |
| 4-Nov | vs. Arkansas | TBA | |
| 11-Nov | at LSU | TBA | |
| 18-Nov | at Missouri | TBA | |
| 25-Nov | vs. 8 Florida State | TBA |
Utah
| Date | Opponent | Time | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31-Aug | vs. Florida | 8:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 9-Sep | at Baylor | 12:00 PM ET | ESPN |
| 16-Sep | vs. Weber State | 2:00 PM ET | PACN |
| 23-Sep | vs. UCLA | TBA | |
| 29-Sep | at Oregon State | 9:00 PM ET | FS1 |
| 14-Oct | vs. California | TBA | |
| 21-Oct | at USC | TBA | |
| 28-Oct | vs. Oregon | TBA | |
| 4-Nov | vs. Arizona State | TBA | |
| 11-Nov | at Washington | TBA | |
| 18-Nov | at Arizona | TBA | |
| 25-Nov | vs. Colorado | TBA |
COLLEGE FOOTBALL RATINGS
| Rating | Florida | Utah |
|---|---|---|
| ESPN FPI | 25 | 12 |
| Sagarin | 33 | 7 |
| Massey Composite | 34 | 10 |
| PiRate Ratings | 39 | 6 |
KEY STATS (2022, PER GAME)
| Statistic | Team | National Rank |
Conference Rank |
Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd Down Conversion Pct | Utah Florida |
5 50 |
3 7 |
0.511 0.405 |
| 3rd Down Conversion Pct Defense | Utah Florida |
14 128 |
1 14 |
0.315 0.497 |
| 4th Down Conversion Pct | Utah Florida |
20 90 |
3 12 |
0.621 0.441 |
| 4th Down Conversion Pct Defense | Utah Florida |
12 32 |
2 6 |
0.367 0.435 |
| Blocked Kicks | Florida | 72 | 10 | 1 |
| Blocked Kicks Allowed | Utah Florida |
1 103 |
1 12 |
0 3 |
| Blocked Punts | ||||
| Blocked Punts Allowed | Utah Florida |
1 64 |
1 9 |
0 1 |
| Completion Percentage | Utah Florida |
30 114 |
7 13 |
0.646 0.544 |
| Defensive TDs | Utah Florida |
4 33 |
1 4 |
4 2 |
| Fewest Penalties | Utah Florida |
23 104 |
2 8 |
63 89 |
| Fewest Penalties Per Game | Utah Florida |
13 98 |
1 8 |
4.50 6.85 |
| Fewest Penalty Yards | Utah Florida |
29 54 |
3 4 |
563 651 |
| Fewest Penalty Yards Per Game | Utah Florida |
16 52 |
1 5 |
40.21 50.08 |
| First Downs Defense | Utah Florida |
17 115 |
1 13 |
221 296 |
| First Downs Offense | Utah Florida |
2 72 |
1 8 |
365 260 |
| Fumbles Lost | Florida Utah |
19 60 |
1 6 |
5 8 |
| Fumbles Recovered | Florida Utah |
2 12 |
1 1 |
15 12 |
| Kickoff Return Defense | Utah Florida |
83 85 |
7 8 |
21.31 21.38 |
| Kickoff Returns | Florida Utah |
34 65 |
4 6 |
21.70 20.00 |
| Net Punting | Florida Utah |
4 77 |
1 7 |
43.39 37.90 |
| Passes Had Intercepted | Florida Utah |
48 66 |
8 8 |
9 10 |
| Passes Intercepted | Utah Florida |
40 78 |
3 7 |
12 9 |
| Passing Offense | Utah Florida |
49 76 |
10 9 |
249.2 223.8 |
| Passing Yards Allowed | Utah Florida |
60 83 |
2 11 |
222.6 235.8 |
| Passing Yards per Completion | Florida Utah |
5 64 |
1 5 |
14.62 12.11 |
| Punt Return Defense | Utah Florida |
2 79 |
1 8 |
1.00 8.00 |
| Punt Returns | Florida Utah |
59 66 |
9 6 |
8.12 7.55 |
| Red Zone Defense | Florida Utah |
71 103 |
9 10 |
0.839 0.884 |
| Red Zone Offense | Utah Florida |
68 118 |
8 14 |
0.836 0.750 |
| Rushing Defense | Utah Florida |
17 99 |
2 12 |
111.4 175.2 |
| Rushing Offense | Utah Florida |
11 24 |
2 5 |
217.6 200.2 |
| Sacks Allowed | Utah Florida |
16 23 |
3 2 |
1.07 1.23 |
| Scoring Defense | Utah Florida |
26 86 |
2 10 |
21.4 28.8 |
| Scoring Offense | Utah Florida |
11 56 |
5 9 |
38.6 29.5 |
| Tackles for Loss Allowed | Utah Florida |
10 29 |
3 4 |
4.00 4.54 |
| Team Passing Efficiency | Utah Florida |
28 69 |
5 10 |
148.74 132.47 |
| Team Passing Efficiency Defense | Utah Florida |
83 86 |
5 12 |
134.83 135.24 |
| Team Sacks | Utah Florida |
13 97 |
1 10 |
2.93 1.77 |
| Team Tackles for Loss | Utah Florida |
41 79 |
1 9 |
6.4 5.4 |
| Time of Possession | Utah Florida |
6 81 |
1 10 |
33:40 29:03 |
| Total Defense | Utah Florida |
26 96 |
2 12 |
334.1 411.0 |
| Total Offense | Utah Florida |
17 36 |
5 7 |
466.9 424.1 |
| Turnover Margin | Florida Utah |
12 31 |
2 4 |
0.77 0.43 |
| Turnovers Gained | Florida Utah |
14 14 |
1 2 |
24 24 |
| Turnovers Lost | Florida Utah |
25 55 |
2 5 |
14 18 |
| Winning Percentage | Utah Florida |
19 73 |
5 10 |
0.714 0.462 |
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Florida
QB Graham Mertz, RB Trevor Etienne, WR Ricky Pearsall, OL Kingsley Eguakan, OL Austin Barber, DE Princely Umanmielen, DB Jason Marshall, P Jeremy Crawshaw.
Utah
QB Cameron Rising, RB Ja’Quinden Jackson, WR Devaughn Vele, OL Keaton Bills, DL Simote Pepa, LB Levani Damuni, DB Sione Vaki, P Jack Bouwmeester, K Cole Becker.
INJURIES
Florida
Player POS Status
C. Douglas WR Prob Thurs – Undisclosed
K. Eguakun OL Ques Thurs – Undisclosed
K. Zipperer TE Ques Thurs – Knee
R. Pearsall WR Ques Thurs – Illness
D. Zanders TE Ques Thurs – Lower Body
J. Miller III QB Ques Thurs – Shoulder
T. Chiaokhiao-Bowman WR Ques Thurs – Undisclosed
C. Carroll RB out for season – Knee
C. Jones OL Out indefinitely – Foot
J. Boone DL out for season – Knee
Utah
Player POS Status
B. Kuithe TE Probable Knee
B. Rose QB Questionable Undisclosed
C. Rising QB Probable Knee
Source: Covers.com
Florida vs. Utah Football Series History
Florida leads 2-0
COMMENTS
Florida pulled out a close win in Gainesville last season. This matchup will take place in Salt Lake City. Florida has a new quarterback in Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz. The Gators will have to do without 2022 regular starter Anthony Richardson, who had a decent arm but great running ability. Florida might be able to pull out a win but it won’t be easy.
PREDICTIONS
14Powers Preseason Prediction
Florida 17, Utah 24
14Powers.com Gameweek Prediction
Utah 31, Florida 21
14Powers Preseason Prediction
Florida 17, Utah 24
14Powers.com Gameweek Prediction
Utah 31, Florida 21
Thursday‘s game kicks off at (8:00 PM ET). Watch this SEC football game on the ESPN Network.
