Florida Gators vs Utah Utes Prediction, 8/31/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Florida Gators vs Utah Utes

Date: Thursday, August 31, 2023

Location: Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, UT

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Utes (-8)

Total/Over-Under: 46

The Florida Gators (6-7 last season) are traveling to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Thursday, August 31, 2023 where they will attempt to defeat the Utah Utes (10-4 last year). Utah opens this contest as 8-point favorites from Vegas oddsmakers. The over/under is set at 46.

The Florida Gators ended the year having earned a 6-7 mark. In their last game, the Gators went up against the Oregon State Beavers and went home with a loss by a final score of 30-3. Jack Miller III connected on 13/22 with 180 yds through the air. He had a quarterback rating of 127.8 and ended the contest without throwing a pick. Trevor Etienne was the best rusher for the Gators with 8 attempts for 14 yds (1.8 yards per attempt). When all was said and done, they tallied 55 plays which totaled 219 yards. The Florida Gators ran the rock 33 different times and had 39 yards, which earned them an average of 1.2 yards per tote. In the running game, the Gators conceded 164 yds on 39 attempts, which is an average of 4.2 yds per run surrendered. Florida relinquished 17 pass completions on 26 tries for a total of 189 yards, and a completion rate of 65.4%.

The Gators earned 5,513 yards in total for the prior year. Florida earned 18 touchdowns via the pass and 29 touchdowns on the ground. They gave the ball to the opposition 14 different times. Florida tallied 260 1st downs as a unit, and they were called for 88 infractions for 651 yards. As a team they had an average of 200.2 yards on the ground, which ranked them 24th in D-1. When talking about getting in the endzone, the Florida Gators were sitting at 29.5 points per game.

In terms of passing yardage, the Gators allowed 3,065 yds which ranked them 86th in college football. During their 13 games played, they conceded 235.8 yards per contest via the pass and relinquishing a completion percentage of 60.7%. They surrendered 411.0 yards/outing putting them 97th in the nation. They surrendered 17 passing touchdowns and 29 rushing touchdowns. They allowed 4.5 yards per attempt on the ground and 175.2 rushing yards per game last season. In total, they allowed 2,278 running yards through 13 games. The Gators ranked 87th in the nation regarding team defense, allowing 28.8 points per contest.

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The Utes ended the year with a 10-4 mark. For their last game, the Utes walked away with a loss by a score of 35-21 when they played the Penn State Nittany Lions. Bryson Barnes (1 touchdown) finished the game with 112 yds on 10/19 through the air while his QB rate was 109. He threw 1 interception and his average yards per attempt was 5.9. Ja'Quinden Jackson carried the ball 13 times for 81 yards, finishing the contest with 6.2 yards per attempt for Utah. The Utes finished the contest with 391 yds while they ran 83 plays (4.7 yds per play). Utah ran the ball for 4.3 yds per attempt, finishing with a total of 184 yards on 43 carries. Utah conceded 31 rush attempts for 169 yds (5.5 yds per rush). The Utes pass defense conceded a completion percentage of 72.7%, relinquishing 279 yds on 16 out of 22 through the air.

Regarding their scoring prowess, the Utes had a ranking of 11th in the country holding an average of 38.6 points per outing. Last year, the Utes threw for 3,489 passing yards in addition to an average of 249.2 passing yards per outing, ranking them 50th in college football. The Utah Utes maintained an average of 466.9 yards per game, ranking them 17th in the country. The Utah offense accrued 563 yards of penalties on 63 violations, which had them ranked 107th in college football in terms of giving up free yards.

The Utes relinquished 21.4 PPG, which had them ranked 27th in Division 1. Utah conceded a total of 1,560 yards rushing (111.4 yards/game) as well as 18 touchdowns via the rush over the course of last year. In total, they allowed 300 total points. They surrendered 20 touchdowns through the air in addition to 222.6 yards/game, which put them in 59th in D-1. The Utes defense was on the field for 806 plays, which was good for 20th in the country.

Who will win tonight's Gators/Utes college football game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Gators +8

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