Utah rolls over Oregon again, wins 1st Pac-12 title

Salt Lake City oregon Las Vegas, precocious November oregon aboriginal December, it doesn’t marque a difference.

Utah and a pro-Utes assemblage showed up astatine Allegiant Stadium connected Friday night, and determination was small uncertainty from opening to extremity which was the superior team.

Just similar what the 14th-ranked Utes did astir 2 weeks agone astatine home, they dominated No. 10 Oregon. Their 38-10 triumph allowed them to assertion the school’s archetypal Pac-12 rubric and gain a travel to the Rose Bowl.

“It’s a history-making squad astatine Utah,” Utes manager Kyle Whittingham said. “If you had told maine aft 3 games (a 1-2 start) that we would beryllium present close now, I would’ve said, ‘You’re crazy.’”

Utah fans drove the announced attendance of 56,511, the second-highest neutral-site Pac-12 Championship. The grounds was acceptable successful 2015 erstwhile 58,476 fans watched Southern California-Stanford successful Santa Clara, California.

The rubric crippled volition beryllium backmost astatine Allegiant adjacent year, and different beardown assemblage could support the crippled present connected a long-tern basis. Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff noted helium was connected the different broadside of the negotiating array with MGM Resorts erstwhile helium helped bring the crippled to Las Vegas.

“I deliberation Vegas is an unthinkable spot for championships and not conscionable successful shot and basketball,” Kliavkoff said.

Two-time defending league champion Oregon (10-3) apt heads to the Alamo Bowl aft losing for the archetypal clip successful 5 trips to the rubric game. Just 2 weeks ago, the Ducks were successful superior contention for a playoff spot, but past Utah (10-3) routed them 38-7.

Utah led 28-0 astatine halftime of that crippled and 23-0 midway done this one. In the rematch, Utah held the Ducks to 65 yards astatine halftime and 221 for the game.

“Our defence was suffocating,” Whittingham said.

Oregon manager Mario Cristobal was peppered with questions astir whether helium would stay successful Eugene oregon instrumentality implicit astatine Miami. He is simply a Miami autochthonal and played connected 2 Hurricanes nationalist title teams.

“I haven’t talked to anybody, truthful let’s not make narratives arsenic we beryllium present successful this property conference,” Cristobal said. “Oregon is moving connected immoderate worldly for me, and that’s what I person close now, and that’s the grade of the conversations.”

As for the game, Utes choky extremity Dalton Kincaid, who went to Faith Lutheran, caught 4 passes for 61 yards and an 11-yard touchdown with 27 seconds near successful the archetypal fractional that enactment Utah up 20-0.

It was each Utes from the opening drive, erstwhile they converted a fourth-and-1 astatine their 48-yard enactment to acceptable up a abbreviated touchdown tally by Tavion Thomas for a 7-0 lead. Then Devin Lloyd stepped successful beforehand of walk connected an Oregon crossing way for an casual 34-yard TD.

Suddenly, it was 14-0 and the code was set.

This triumph punctuated an affectional play for the Utes, mourning the losses of players Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe successful the past year. A video tribute to some players was played successful the archetypal half, and fans passim the stadium stood with flashlights turned connected their cellphones.

“As satisfying arsenic it gets to cognize that we did grant them the close way,” Lloyd said. “Up to this point, we did everything we tin for them.”

Contact newsman Mark Anderson astatine manderson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @markanderson65 connected Twitter.