The Utes have spent the season building an undefeated campaign, and now they find themselves sitting ahead of college football heavyweights Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Miami in the AP rankings. But being No. 2 and actually making it to the national championship are two very different challenges. With the regular season winding down, ESPN analysts have raised serious questions about Utah’s title credentials.
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When asked whether the Utes have what it takes to clinch the Natty, ESPN senior CFB analyst Heather Dinich acknowledged their impressive campaign but suggested they still have a long way to go before reaching championship-winning dominance.
“They are there by default because some other teams above them lost. They have a great quarterback in s Devon Dampier. This selection committee has a lot of respect for Utah. They’re a good football team. Are they a great football team? I don’t think we know the answer to that. I hesitate to say yes because they struggled to beat Colorado,” said Dinich
Utah’s clash against Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes turned into a nerve-racking affair, giving the Utes a scare they would rather forget. Utah initially took control, heading into halftime with a commanding 13-0 lead.
However, the Buffaloes refused to go down without a fight. Led by former Utah quarterback Isaac Wilson, Colorado mounted a fierce second-half comeback, cutting the deficit to 27-24 before threatening to snatch victory with a last-second Hail Mary attempt.
It was a genuine do-or-die moment for the Utes, but they somehow managed to hold on and escape with the victory. Yet, the narrow win raised a much bigger question as the regular season enters its final stretch: Are the Utes really ready for the College Football Playoff?
Of course, every team has an off day or two over the course of a season, and Utah has been tremendously impressive in their other outings. But that isn’t the only reason ESPN analyst Heather Dinich believes the Utes may fall short of the national championship picture.
“This was the first real big win for them, in my mind, and, by the way, BYU and Bear Bachmeier helped them out with four interceptions and a boatload of penalties. So, I still have some questions about Utah in terms of how they stack up against a team like Georgia. But, sitting there at number two, that’s where I expect them to be. They can compete for the national title. I don’t know if they’re good enough to win it,” Dinich doubled down on her words.
Last week, the Utah Utes defeated the BYU Cougars 28-20 to claim the Holy War bragging rights. But was the victory as convincing as the scoreline suggests? Well, Heather Dinich’s assessment certainly raises a valid question.
While Utah delivered when it mattered, BYU had plenty to do with its own downfall. Bear Bachmeier threw a career-high four interceptions, while the Cougars compounded their struggles with 11 penalties for 80 yards.
Interestingly, despite coming up short on the scoreboard, BYU actually outgained Utah by 61 total yards. However, Bachmeier struggled to protect the football.
He completed 21 of 35 passes for 272 yards and a touchdown but also threw four costly interceptions. Two of those turnovers came in the fourth quarter, both inside the end zone, effectively killing BYU’s hopes of completing a comeback.
This is the biggest reason why Dinich believes the Utah Utes will not be able to win the national championship. However, she is not alone. When Mike Greenberg asked Paul Finebaum for his thoughts, he made it crystal clear: the Utes will not be winning the championship.
“They are not good enough to win it, Greeny. Let me just get that out of the way. I didn’t mean to jump in, but I’ll clear that up for America. They will not win the national championship,” said Finebaum earlier.
So far, the Utah Utes have two ranked wins on their resume, first against the Houston Cougars and then against the BYU Cougars. However, if they want to win the national championship, they will have to remain undefeated. But can they maintain that perfect record? That is yet to be seen.