Utah Utes predictions

The Utah Utes open up their season tonight at 6 p.m. MDT against Montana State, an FCS or I-AA opponent. The game will be televised over-the-air in the Salt Lake area on KJZZ. The game really should serve as a walk-over of sorts for the Utes, who are heavily favored. The main thing I will be anxious to see tonight is how quarterback Jordan Wynn looks after having a shoulder injury last season. However, it will be tough to get a good read on this team based solely on tonight's game.

Here's a look at my predictions for the Utes this year:

-- Thurs. Sept. 1st: vs. Montana State -- Win. Just a tune-up.
-- Sat., Sept. 10th: at USC -- Loss. Tough place to play, against a good team. Not a good fit for the first road game.
-- Sat., Sept. 17th: at BYU -- Loss. Another tough road environment, against a team with a good quarterback in Jake Heaps. Plus the Cougars will be motivated to avenge last year's loss. Believe me, this pick is not what I'm rooting for.
--Sat., Oct. 1st: vs. Washington -- Win. UW is a proud program, but they haven't been that strong lately, the Utes should win at home.
--Sat., Oct. 8th: vs. Arizona State -- Win. ASU is down, Utes should handle them.
--Sat., Oct. 15th: at Pittsburgh -- Loss. It's tough to travel across the country for a college team, I think the Utes lose in a close one.
--Sat., Oct. 22nd: at California -- Win. Played at AT&T Park, home of the World Champion San Francisco Giants. Toss-up, really, but I think the Utes will be motivated and pull it out in a close one.
--Sat., Oct. 29th: vs. Oregon State -- Win. Decent opponent, but the home field will help the Utes win close.
--Sat., Nov. 5th: at Arizona -- Win. Could be dicey on the road, but I believe Utah has the better team.
--Sat., Nov. 12th: vs. UCLA -- Win. Utes should handle the Bruins pretty easily at home.
--Sat., Nov. 19th: at Washington State -- Win. This shouldn't be close, Washington State isn't very good.
--Fri., Nov. 25th: vs. Colorado -- Win. Utes by a couple of touchdowns I think.

There you have it, 9-3 overall and 8-1 in the Pac-12. Perhaps a bit optimistic, but if Wynn is healthy I believe this team can do good things, maybe even a berth in the Pac-12 title game if USC stumbles a couple of times.

I'll be on the scene, tweeting updates tonight and I'll be back on here after the game. Go Utes!