PROVO, Utah-Thursday, BYU and Utah commence their football season with the 100th all-time meeting in the rivalry at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
The Utes are seeking to win their 12th straight season opener, dating back to 2008.
A win for the Utes Thursday would be their ninth straight victory against their bitter rivals 45 miles down Interstate 15.
The Utes come into Thursday’s game 75-49-1 all-time in season openers. This is the first time head coach Kyle Whittingham’s squad has opened on the road since 2008. In this game, they upset the Michigan Wolverines 25-23 at Ann Arbor, Mich.
This is the first time the Utes have opened the season at Provo since 1896, when they played against “Brigham Young Academy” and secured a 12-4 win. A win for Utah Thursday will improve Whittingham to 13-2 all-time in season openers.
The Utes lead the all-time series against the Cougars 61-34-4 and are 20-17-1 all-time in the series at Provo.
The No. 14 Utes have achieved their highest preseason ranking in program history and boast five preseason all-Pac-12 performers.
They include senior tailback, Zack Moss, senior defensive end Bradlee Anae, senior defensive tackle Leki Fotu, senior defensive back Julian Blackmon and junior defensive back Jaylon Johnson.
The Utes are 23-1 all-time in regular season non-conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011. Their last non-conference regular season loss in their Pac-12 history was to Utah State in 2012, a 27-20 defeat at Logan, Utah.
