Rivals.com has released its Mountain West preview and it has an in depth look at how the Utes could stand in the way of BYU's BCS dreams. Some things of note:
OFFENSIVE PLAYER ON THE SPOT: Utah quarterback Brian Johnson. Nobody questions what this guy can do. The only concern is how long he can stay on the field. Johnson missed the 2006 season with a knee injury and sat out two games last season after hurting his shoulder in the opener. The Utes enter the season with high hopes, but they can’t win the MWC title unless Johnson stays healthy.
BREAKOUT OFFENSIVE STAR: Utah wide receiver Brent Casteel. After leading the Utes in all-purpose yardage two years ago, Casteel suffered a knee injury in the second game of the 2007 season and missed the rest of the year. Now that he has recovered from knee surgery, he could emerge as one of the conference’s top receivers.
GAME OF THE YEAR: BYU at Utah, Nov. 22. BYU has delivered classic comebacks to beat Utah in the final minute in each of the past two seasons, including scoring the winning touchdown as time expired in ‘06. Could a BCS bid be on the line when the two teams meet this season?
They list the Utes finishing 2nd to BYU, but don't make any record predictions.
A pretty fair writeup, though the final thing bugged me, since past tradition does not mean squat in today's football world. But oh well, still decent enough.