ESPN College Gameday 2023: TV Schedule and Predictions for Week 9 Location | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
ESPN's College Gameday crew returns for Week 9 of the College Football season, heading to Salt Lake City for a matchup between two of the Pac-12's best. No. 13 Utah will host No. 8 Oregon in a battle between the high-powered Ducks' offense and a stout Utes defense.
Location: Presidents Circle in Salt Lake City, Utah
Start Time: 9 a.m. ET
Hosts: Rece Davis, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, and Pat McAfee
Guest Picker: TBA
TV: ESPN, ESPNU
Streaming: ESPN app, FuboTV
This will be Utah's fifth time on College Gameday, and the school's first since 2016. Oregon last appeared on the show very recently, falling to Washington in Week 7 as the crew traveled to the Huskies' campus.
The Ducks currently hold a 24-12 record in the all-time matchup between the two schools, which includes a 20-17 victory in their last contest against the Utes in Nov. 2022.
Both programs enter Week 9 at 6-1, including matching 3-1 records within the Pac-12. Utah is 4-0 at home, while Oregon is 2-1 on the road.
The Ducks are coming off a 38-24 win over Washington State, having surpassed the 30-point mark as a team in every single game this season. Utah is also fresh off a victory, an upset over USC by the final score of 34-32.
This included quarterback Bryson Barnes out-dueling reigning Heisman Trophy-winner Caleb Williams, completing just under 61 percent of his passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns compared to just one interception. He also added 57 yards and another score on the ground, looking like former starter Cam Rising.
Pac-12 Conference @pac12Bryson Barnes is CLUTCH 😱 <a href="">
Prediction
The Ducks offense, led by quarterback Bo Nix, is one of the best in the nation. The team's 47.0 points and 551.6 yards per game both rank second in the country.
Nix has completed an eye-popping 78.4 percent of his passes for 2,089 yards this season, tossing 19 touchdowns with just a single interception. After throwing for at least 275 yards and two scores in each of his past four appearances, the 23-year-old is back in the Heisman conversation.
Bleacher Report @BleacherReportBO NIX WITH A DIME FOR 6 🔥 <br><br>(via <a href="">@oregonfootball</a>) <br> <a href="">
Running back Bucky Irving is the Ducks' featured option in the run game, with Jordan James not far behind. Irving has averaged 7.5 yards per carry for 649 yards this year, including a season-high 129 against Washington State.
While Oregon's offense seems unstoppable, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham's defense has been the key to the team's superb season. The Utes are allowing just 15 points per game in 2023, the second-best mark in the conference and 11th-best average in the country.
Utah's offense is built around the run game, with a unique combination of options in the backfield. Ja'Quinden Jackson is the team's leading rusher with 450 yards on the season, although starting safety Sione Vaki has become one of the program's top offensive players midway through the year.
Vaki has recorded 226 yards on the ground and 144 receiving yards in the Utes' past two games, both wins. Whittingham has been impressed with the sophomore.
"The impact he's made on offense is actually probably bigger than the impact he's made on defense," he said, per John Coon of AP News. "He's one of the best safeties in the country so that tells you how valuable he's been on offense."
Although the run game has been solid, Utah has struggled to find the end zone consistently. The team is averaging just 23.4 points per game, the third-worst mark in the Pac-12.
While the Utes' home-field advantage at Rice-Eccles Stadium cannot be discounted and the team's defense should be able to hold Oregon to it's lowest point total of the season, Nix and the Ducks' offense should end up being too much to handle.
Score Prediction: Oregon 28, Utah 23
