Utah wallops Colorado to keep Pac-12 title game hopes alive
Cameron Rising was 17-for-19 passing for 234 yards and three touchdowns, Ja’Quindon Jackson rushed for 117 yards and three scores, and the No. 14 Utah Utes beat the Colorado Buffaloes 63-21 in Boulder, Colo., on Saturday.
The Utes (9-3, 8-1) can clinch a spot in the Pac-12 Championship game against USC if Washington beats Washington State later Saturday. Utah stayed in the hunt after Oregon State rallied to beat Oregon on Saturday.
Micah Bernard ran for 91 yards and a TD, Dalton Kincaid had five receptions for 102 yards and a score and Thomas Yassmin, Money Parks and Makai Cope had touchdown catches for the Utes.
Alex Fontenot and Anthony Hankerson ran for touchdowns and Maddox Kopp was 14-for-27 passing for 123 yards and a TD to Frank Fillip for the Buffaloes (1-11, 1-8).
Utah took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on TD runs by Bernard and Jackson, and the Utes opened a big lead in the second quarter.
Bernard carried four times for 53 yards on the next drive and three plays later Jackson scored his second TD with a two-yard run early in the second quarter. After forcing another punt, Utah struck again on a 41-yard TD pass from Rising to Yassmin to make the score 28-0.
Rising made the score 35-0 with a nine-yard TD pass to Parks with 52 seconds left in the half. Colorado used 24 seconds before punting again and Rising finished off a big first half with a 29-yard TD pass to Kincaid with three seconds left.
The Buffaloes intercepted Rising on the first drive of the second half and returned it to the Utah 11. Two plays later, Fontenot scored from one yard out. Jackson scored on a 66-yard run 48 seconds later to make it 48-7.
After another Colorado punt, Bryson Barnes connected with Cope for a 21-yard TD pass late in the third quarter. The Buffaloes responded with its longest drive of the game, 79 yards, finished off by Hankerson’s 23-yard TD run.
Jaylon Glover scored the Utes’ ninth touchdown on a five-yard run.
–Field Level Media
