The Oregon Ducks will face off against the Utah Utes this Saturday for the final matchup between these two schools as members of the Pac-12. The era of these teams being in the same conference has been short, but it has also been fruitful. Some of the Ducks’ best games over the last ten years have come against Utah.
Most recently, Oregon took down the Utes 20-17 in Autzen Stadium last November. The game came a week after Oregon dropped its second game of the season to Washington. Bo Nix had suffered an injury late in the Washington game and was hindered throughout most of the game against Utah. But, late in the game when it mattered most, Nix used his legs to pick up a game-clinching first down for the Ducks.
Oregon has an all-time record of 24-12 over Utah and a 6-4 record in the Pac-12 era. Since the Utes joined the Pacific Athletic Conference in 2011, the Ducks have had five head coaches, while Utah has remained steadfast with Kyle Whittingham — one of the longest-tenured coaches in the sport.
There are some other memorable moments from this series that I want to highlight. First, there was Utah WR Kaelin Clay’s unforced fumble at the goalline in 2014 that turned into a 99-yard defensive TD for the Ducks. Oregon went on to play in the national championship that year. Another classic moment was Darren Carrington’s spectacular tiptoe catch for a last-second TD to steal the game from the Utes on the road.
While those are some highlights for the Ducks’, Utah has had plenty of success in this series. They have won two of the last three head-to-head matchups between the teams, both of which were 25+ point losses for Oregon. It is also worth mentioning that Utah has won the past two Pac-12 championships, beating the Ducks in Las Vegas for the title back in 2021.
There is a lot of history in this series, but the final game between these two teams as conference opponents could be one of the best. Both teams are ranked inside the top 15 of the AP Poll, Utah is coming off a big win at USC, and Oregon is looking to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive with a win at Rice-Eccles stadium — a challenge that is a historically near-impossible feat.
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