ESPN College Football

Utah’s 37-27 win over Cal continues the Mountain West’s bowl winning streak and is another dominating performance over a team from the Pac-10. BYU defeated Oregon State 44-20 on Tuesday. The win further lends credibility to the Mountain West Conference and will all but guarantee the Utes yet another Top 25 finish.

How the game was won: After falling into a 14-0 hole midway through the first half, Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn settled down and proceeded to lead the Utes to 27 unanswered points while having the best game of his young career. Cal couldn’t get anything going on offense and Utah dialed up the pressure on quarterback Kevin Riley and the Bears’ receivers continually dropped passes.

Turning point: After starting with 10 plays and 47 yards through its first two possessions of the first half, Utah turned it around and finished its last four possessions of the first half with 32 plays for 210 yards and 24 unanswered points to take a 24-14 halftime lead from which Cal was never able to recover.

Stat of the game: Utah true freshman quarterback Jordan Wynn completed 26 of 36 passes for 338 yards, his first career 300-yard game, but 234 of those yards came after the catch.

Player of the game: Utah free safety Robert Johnson was a stellar defensive force from the opening kick. He popped two Cal receivers early to set the tone, then tipped a ball that led to a pick-6 by Stevenson Sylvester. Johnson capped his evening by grabbing an interception late in the fourth quarter.

Record performance: With the win, Utah notches a 10-win season for just the fifth time in school history. This is the second time in school history that the Utes have had back-to-back 10-win seasons. In 2003, the Utes won 10 games and then turned around to win 12 in 2004. Last year, Utah went 13-0. This is also Utah’s ninth consecutive bowl win, which ties it with USC for second all-time and puts the Utes two wins behind Florida State.

Utah (9-3)

1. Run the ball: Eddie Wide and Sausan Shakerin have done a great job this season filling in for starter Matt Asiata, who suffered a season-ending injury, but the duo is going to have a tough time putting up strong numbers against a Cal defense that allows just 117.08 rushing yards per game. The Bears have allowed more than 200 yards just once this season, but did allow 188 and 177 rushing yards, respectively, in their final two games. The Utah running game struggled against TCU and BYU, the two best rushing teams it faced this season.

2. Protect Wynn: True freshman quarterback Jordan Wynn has shown the ability to make plays when given enough time to do so, and that will be the key against a Cal front that will attempt to disrupt the Utes' passing game and make the Utes one-dimensional. Cal averages more than two sacks per game, and Wynn already has thrown three interceptions in just four starts.

3. Don’t discount the run: It would be easy to get lax on the Cal running game with star Jahvid Best out, but replacement Shane Vereen has been as equally tough to stop. In the past three games, Vereen has rushed for 444 yards and four touchdowns. The Utah rushing defense allows 141.33 yards per game, but has allowed four teams to rush for more than 200 yards this season.

The San Diego Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl might have been a great matchup had Cal running back Jahvid Best been in the starting lineup. As it stands, it’s a good matchup and a chance for Utah fans to catch a glimpse of the team they hope the Utes will be next season.

WHO TO WATCH: Jordan Wynn, QB, Utah

Wynn was thrown into the fire late in the season against some good teams and he lost to TCU and BYU, the two biggest teams on the Utes' schedule. But he’s the future of this Utah team, and this game against a good Cal team could be a glimpse of next year’s Utes. In four starts, Wynn completed 78 of 143 passes for 991 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions.

WHAT TO WATCH: The rushing defense

It would be easy to get lax on rushing defense with the announcement that Best isn’t going to play, but the Bears still rushed for 176 and 242 yards against Arizona and Stanford, respectively, in two of the last three games of the regular season. Sophomore Shane Vereen has the capability to bust open the game on the ground if the Utes aren’t prepared. Utah allows 141.33 yards per game and has struggled against some of the better rushing teams it’s faced this season.


WHY TO WATCH: The Utes of the future

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham spent a lot of time separating this year’s Utah team from last year’s undefeated squad, but the team that takes the field in the Poinsettia Bowl will be a look into the future of the Utes. Utah has shown flashes of being great with Wynn at the helm and has a chance to be the non-AQ BCS buster next season. A win in this game will go a long way toward laying the foundation for that to happen.


PREDICTION: Going out on a limb and taking Utah in this game. Cal played uninspired against Washington in the final game of the regular season, and it might not be too excited about being in this bowl. Utah, on the other hand, wants to end its season on a positive note, and Wynn wants to give fans confidence that he can lead the Utes to the promised land. Utah 31, Cal 21.

Breaking down the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl between California (8-4) and No. 23 Utah (9-3).

WHO TO WATCH: Cal quarterback Kevin Riley. Riley stood on the sidelines last year and watched Nate Longshore play terribly in the Bears' Emerald Bowl win over Miami. He was on the bench because of inconsistency, and that's still his biggest problem. Cal averaged 29 points per game this year but only 10 points per game in its four losses. Not all of that, of course, falls on Riley -- heck, the Bears lost those four by an average of nearly 29 points; it wasn't just one guy. But it's hard to imagine that if Riley comes out sharp, the Bears' chances won't be greatly enhanced.

WHAT TO WATCH: The consensus thinking entering the season was that Cal owned one of the nation's best secondaries. The crew didn't live up to the hype, ranking seventh in the Pac-10 in pass efficiency defense, with opponents completing 63 percent of their throws. Utah, however, isn't a great passing team. It decided to make a quarterback switch eight games into the season to true freshman Jordan Wynn, who's done some good things but has completed only 50 percent of his passes over the last three games. It's likely that cornerback Syd'Quan Thompson will see a lot of action opposite the Utes' best receiver, David Reed. It's unlikely the Utes will be able to run all over the Bears' solid rushing defense. They will have to throw, and that's a battle the Bears need to win.

WHY TO WATCH: First off, aren't you curious which Cal team shows up? You might get the one that was once ranked sixth in the country and whipped Arizona and Stanford. Or you might get the one that lost by 32 points at Washington. Second, it's a good matchup. The winner will end up nationally ranked and will feel fairly good about its season. The loser will not.

PREDICTION: California, 28-24. As we've said before: Golden Bears, why can't we quit you? The simple fact is Cal has better players. If they show up with a sound plan and play hard, they should win. The Bears have shown some resilience this year when folks are counting them out, winning five of six after getting bludgeoned on consecutive weekends by Oregon and USC. The humbling debacle at Washington should serve as motivation. Bears, do you really want to go out as losers in 2009?