ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

At 20-9 with 2:30 before the break, it felt like 15th-ranked Utah might be asserting itself.

At 20-15, the halftime mood figures to be much better for Oregon State.

A four-play, 82-yard drive tends create momentum in the halftime locker room.

What stands out.

Each team had a costly turnover that led directly to a touchdown.

Each team is getting good pressure on the quarterback. Oregon State had three sacks. Utah has two sacks and three passes knocked down.

The Beavers running game, so potent against USC, was mostly muted by a very good Utah run defense until Jacquizz Rodgers got away for 33 yards on the late TD drive. Rodgers had 26 yards on his other 10 carries.

Utah's run game seems to be doing well on the perimeter, particularly on the option pitch. The Utes 78 yards rushing on 25 carries includes runs of 11, 12, 15 and eight yards, so it's not all about one carry.

What's going to happen in the second half?

Here's a guess that one of the two quarterbacks is going to assert himself.

Oregon State's Lyle Moevao (9 of 15 for 159 yards) needs to be more aware of getting the ball over leaping defensive linemen.

Utah's Brian Johnson (5 of 11 for 80 yards) needs to get rid of the ball faster. Gifting him wide-open receivers, as the Beavers did on the 14-yard TD pass to Freddie Brown, will help him get into a groove.

Utah gets the ball to start the third quarter.