Florida at Utah odds, expert picks: Cam Rising’s status unclear ahead of Thursday clash with Gators

The Utah Utes begin their Pac-12 farewell tour by hosting the Florida Gators. Utah, which has not lost at home since Nov. 21, 2020, enters the game favored by less than a touchdown.

The Utes are back-to-back Pac-12 champions, but grabbing another title on their way out the door — and perhaps in the conference’s last season ever — will be no easy task. The conference has five teams inside the top 20 of preseason rankings.

How the Utes fare this season, especially in their early games such as this one against Florida, will depend on the health of quarterback Cam Rising, who tore his ACL in January in Utah’s loss to Penn State in the Rose Bowl. Rising is doubtful to play against the Gators. Tight end Brant Kuithe, another fixture of the Utes’ offense, is also questionable to play Thursday after tearing his ACL last September.

The Gators enter this season with a new quarterback. Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz will take the reins as Florida’s signal-caller after Anthony Richardson was selected fourth overall by the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL Draft. The Gators’ returning running back duo of Montrell Johnson Jr. and Trevor Etienne should help ease Mertz’s transition into a new offense.

Additional college football week 1 picks:

While Utah has its sights set on a conference title, Florida’s best hope is to qualify for another bowl game. A road win against a ranked Utah team would do wonders for the Gators’ season outlook, but it’s a daunting task in Week 1.

What is the spread for Florida at Utah?

How to watch and stream Florida at Utah

Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET Thursday at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPN and can be streamed on the ESPN app with authentication.