Florida vs. Utah Prediction, Odds, Trends and Key Players for College Football Week 1

After a thrilling Week 1 matchup in The Swamp last season, Florida looks to make it twice in as many years against Utah, this time in Salt Lake City.

Wisconsin transfer quarterback Graham Mertz takes over for Florida at quarterback and will look to score an upset win in his debut against a Utah team that is an unknown at the position. Star quarterback Cam Rising is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered in last year's Rose Bowl and it's unclear if he'll be available for this one.

It could be even more grim for the Utes as the team's backup, Brandon Rose, suffered a lacerated kidney in training camp and is unlikely to be available. It's possible the team is on to its third string quarterback, currently up for grabs between Bryson Barnes and Nate Johnson.

There's plenty of intrigue for this one, get ready for it by checking out the odds, key players and our best bet.

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Florida

Graham Mertz: Mertz struggled at Wisconsin for the better part of two seasons, eventually being benched by the end of the season, but he joins a talented Florida squad. Mertz may not be the athlete that Anthony Richardson was for the Gators, but he will look to bring balance to the Gators passing game after completing nearly 60% of his passes across three full seasons with the Badgers.

Trevor Etienne: Etienne returns after averaging more than six yards a carry alongside Montrell Johnson. The two helped anchor a Gators offense that was top 10 in EPA/Rush last season.

Utah

Ja'Quinden Jackson: Since it's unknown who is playing quarterback for the Utes yet, and the team may not have star tight end Brent Kuithe, the team is certainly going to lean on the ground game. Enter Jackson, who averaged nearly seven yards per carry last season and was the big play threat of the Utes top 20 ground game.

Before we preview this Thursday night showdown, I broke down three overs I'm playing in Week 1 despite a ton of intrigue around the drop in total plays with new clock rules aimed to speed up the game. You can read that here.

This number has plummeted down as it becomes more and more likely that Rising, the only proven Utah passer sits out as he rehabs his knee injury. I expect the Utes to try and play bully ball with the UF front and grind this game to a halt on its home field.

However, the Gators may be wise to the Utes run-first attack, new defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong comes from Southern Mississippi after creating a top 25 defense in terms of success rate.

While Mertz hopes to find some consistency at Florida after flaming at with the Badgers, this may not be the match up against an elite Utah defense that was top 40 in success rate and top 10 in sacks. Further, this team returns 68% of its production from that side of the ball, 39th in the nation. This defense will be far ahead of the offense early on.

This total continues to tick down on the news that Rising is likely going to miss this game, but it's the only way I can play it given the questions for both offenses.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.