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Game recap, analysis: Utah dominates Cincinnati to win Big 12 showdown

Utes thump the Bearcats in a top-25 matchup from Salt Lake City
Cole Forsman|
Utah Utes wide receiver Ryan Davis (9) is tackled after a catch by Cincinnati Bearcats safety Tayden Barnes (10) during the second quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Utah Utes wide receiver Ryan Davis (9) is tackled after a catch by Cincinnati Bearcats safety Tayden Barnes (10) during the second quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

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Through 8 minutes of play, it looked like a shootout between Utah and Cincinnati was inevitable.

After a 16-play scoring drive from the Utes made it 7-0, the Bearcats took it to the home team with a strong run game, tying it up on the scoreboard swiftly with a touchdown from Brendan Sorsby on the visitor's ensuing possession

Then came an avalanche.

Utah (7-2, 4-2 Big 12) scored 38 of the game's final 45 points, dominating all three phases of the game to hand Cincinnati (7-2, 5-1 Big 12) its first loss in league play in a 45-14 final from Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday.

Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham, left, and Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield, right
Nov 1, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham, left, and Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield, right, speak before the game at Rice-Eccles Stadium. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

The Utes went into the halftime break up 17, and just when it looked like the Bearcats were ready to push back, a 75-yard punt return by Mana Carvalho in the third quarter essentially shut the door on any comeback attempt. The true freshman's first touchdown of his collegiate career put Utah up 38-14 and sent Rice-Eccles Stadium into a frenzy, creating an electric atmosphere on a night the home team needed to capitalize on in order to keep its conference title and College Football Playoff aspirations alive.

Here is the live updates recap of Saturday's game:

4TH QUARTER

Touchdown Utes!: Byrd Ficklin absorbed a big hit from Simeon Coleman, stayed on his feet and extended the ball across the goal line for a touchdown. The true freshman was checked out by the medical staff after the hit (45-14, 3:25).

Ball!: Utah's defense continued its impressive performance, forcing its third turnover of the night as Brendan Sorsby had the ball knocked free by Kash Dillon, giving the Utes prime field position on the Bearcats' 26-yard line after Levani Damuni recovered the loose ball (38-14, 5:46).

Utah punts back to Cincinnati: The Bearcats started their next drive on their own 19-yard line after Utah's fourth punt of the night (38-14, 6:40).

Utes get the ball back: Cincinnati lined up to go for it on fourth-and-8, but a false start penalty made the Bearcats rethink their strategy. They decided to send the punt team onto the field instead, much to the displeasure of Brendan Sorsby. Utah started its next drive on its own 25-yard line (38-14, 10:51).

Cincinnati moves the chains: The Bearcats hadn't had much success on third down but managed to convert on third-and-9 with a 12-yard rush from Manny Covey. Cincinnati's previous third down conversion was with 1:08 left in the second quarter.

3RD QUARTER

Touchdown Utah!: Rice-Eccles Stadium was bouncing after Mana Carvalho returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown, just minutes after the Utes offense put seven on the board on the previous drive. Carvalho took advantage of some great blocking and did the rest, bursting up the middle of the field before making the punter miss (38-14, 1:36).

Touchdown Utes!: Creed Whittemore caught a short pass, broke a couple of would-be tackles and powered his way into the end zone for his first touchdown of the season, albeit on just his third catch of the season at that (31-14, 2:19).

Penalties mounting for Bearcats: Mikah Coleman brought down Devon Dampier by his facemask, resulting in a 9-yard penalty to put the Utes on the Bearcats' 9-yard line. That was Cincinnati's seventh penalty of the night (24-14, 3:28).

Utes on the move: Utah crossed 200 rushing yards on the night following three straight run plays to open its second drive of the third quarter. Daniel Bray took a sweep to the outside for a 15-yard gain, then Devon Dampier picked up 11 on a designed quarterback run (24-14, 3:23).

Bearcats don't capitalize off turnover: Cincinnati's ensuing drive off the Dampier interception lasted just three plays before the Bearcats punted back to the Utes, who started at their own 48-yard line thanks to a 23-yard return from Mana Carvalho. Utah defensive back Don Saunders got away with a lot of contact while defending Jeff Caldwell on third down, causing quite the reaction from Brendan Sorsby. (24-14, 5:55).

Dampier throws interception: Christian Harrison read Devon Dampier's eyes and jumped in front of a pass intended for JJ Buchanan in the end zone, giving Cincinnati's its first turnover of the game (24-14, 6:50).

Buchanan can't haul it in: JJ Buchanan had the height advantage on Cincinnati defensive back Matthew McDoom, but it didn't matter as the 5-foot-9 senior stayed with the play to knock the ball out of the hands of the 6-foot-3 freshman.

Dampier leading the way: Following a powerful run for 14 yards, Devon Dampier zipped a pass to JJ Buchanan for another 14-yard gain, setting the Utes up on their opponent's 30-yard line (24-14, 9:10).

Touchdown Bearcats: From being backed up deep in their own territory down 17, to trailing by 10 in the blink of an eye after an 88-yard catch-and-run from Cyrus Allen gave the Bearcats the spark they needed to get back into the ballgame. Allen ran right by Smith Snowden in coverage to break free down the field (24-14, 10:35).

Utah drive stalls: Some strong running from Wayshawn Parker got the Utes down to the Bearcats' 39-yard line, but the drive stalled there a few plays later. A screen pass on third-and-10 to Daniel Bray resulted in no gain, bringing Utah's punt team onto the field while Bray limped off the field (24-7, 10:55).

Injury update for Utes: ESPN reported Utah would have Spencer Fano and John Henry Daley for the second half.

HALFTIME RECAP

Empty possessions for Bearcats: After answering Utah's opening drive with a score, Cincinnati couldn't add to the scoreboard despite reaching the Utes' 25-yard line twice more in the first half. The Bearcats missed a 42-yard field goal early in the second quarter, then came away empty in the red zone following a rare fumble from Brendan Sorsby on the ensuing possession.

Utes defense looking stout: The No. 1 defense in the Big 12 against the pass got the better of the league's top air attack in the first half, making it difficult for Brendan Sorsby to establish any sort of rhythm. Sorsby went 8-for-20 through the air for 113 yards and an interception, as Utah's defensive backs played exceptional coverage on downfield passes. And after giving up 119 yards on the ground in the first quarter, Utah yielded just 12 rushing yards in the second quarter.

Utah dictated throughout: Converting six third downs and a pair of fourth down tries, Utah was able to put together long drives and dominate the time of possession. The Utes ran 14 more plays and doubled the Bearcats in time of possession (20:45 to 9:15), limiting Brendan Sorsby and company's chances to touch the ball and put up points.

2ND QUARTER

John Henry Daley injured: Utah's leader in quarterback sacks was limping while being helped off the field after combining with Jackson Bennee on a tackle (24-7, 0:27).

Interception... and then a fumble: Smith Snowden picked off Brendan Sorsby but Cincinnati got the ball back after Cyrus Allen stripped Snowden during his return, giving the Bearcats a new set of downs on their own 3-yard line. That was Sorsby's first interception since Week 1 (24-7, 1:08).

Spencer Fano injured: Utah's stout right tackle was helped off the field and went into the medical tent following the Utes' third touchdown of the night (24-7, 1:19).

Touchdown Utes!: After an offsides penalty inched the Utes closer to the goal line, NaQuari Rogers plowed his way into the end zone for his fourth touchdown of the season (24-7, 1:19).

Bray putting on the move: Daniel Bray took another sweep for a 10-yard gain after bouncing and spinning off would-be tacklers, putting the Utes on the 4-yard line following a face mask penalty against the Bearcats (17-7, 1:52).

More trickery from the Utes: An inverted handoff between Wayshawn Parker and Devon Dampier created just enough confusion for Dampier to hit Ryan Davis in stride for a 46-yard gain, setting the Utes up on the Bearcats' 25-yard line (17-7, 2:59).

Solid pass break-up: Blake Cotton made a nice play on a ball intended for Cyrus Allen, leading to a three-and-out for Cincinnati after Brendan Sorsby nearly threw an interception on third down (17-7, 3:53).

Utah's kick is good: Despite a shaky snap, Dillon Curtis knocked through a 33-yard field goal after Devon Dampier couldn't connect with Creed Whittemore on a shot to the end zone on third down, extending the Utes' lead to double-digits (17-7, 4:23).

Daniel Bray keeps the chains moving: Daniel Bray hauled in a short pass from Devon Dampier, made Bearcats defensive back Ormanie Arnold miss and picked up 21 yards on third-and-4 (14-7, 7:34).

Fumble!: Brendan Sorsby had the ball punched out by Johnathan Hall and Jonah Lea'ea jumped on it for the Utes (14-7, 10:16).

Big play for Bearcats: Brendan Sorsby dropped it in the bucket for Cyrus Allen, picking up 45 yards through the air and setting the Bearcats up on the Utes' 33-yard line. Sorsby had just one completion before the drive started. (14-7, 11:25).

Utah's offense stalls: A few solid pick-ups on the ground got the Utes midfield but no further, as Devon Dampier misfired on second and third down to bring on Utah's punt team (14-7, 11:49).

Cincinnati can't add points: Stephen Rusnak's first missed kick in four years kept the score at 14-7 after missing a 42-yard attempt. Utah took over from its own 24-yard line (14-7, 14:17).

1ST QUARTER

Cincinnati hammering Utah on the ground: The first quarter ended with a 41-yard rush from Tawee Walker, setting the Bearcats up on the Utes' 23-yard line coming out of the break. Cincinnati started the game averaging 14.1 yards per carry for 119 rushing yards (14-7).

Touchdown Utah!: Wayshawn Parker took a direct snap, faked a handoff to Devon Dampier and took advantage of some nice blocking up front to burst away for a 39-yard score. The creative play call capped off a seven-play, 75-yard drive (14-7, 1:01).

Bearcats touchdown: Cincinnati answered Utah's score with an eight-play, 75-yard scoring drive, capped off by a 22-yard rush from Brendan Sorsby on a quarterback counter play. Bearcats ran the ball five times for 61 yards on that drive (7-7, 3:53).

Cincinnati on the move: Brendan Sorsby made a smart read on third-and-3, pitching the rock to Manny Covey for a 19-yard gain to keep the chains moving (7-0, 5:19).

Penalty wipes out defensive play: Jonah Lea'ea brought down Bearcats running back Zion Johnson for a loss on second down, but the play was moot after Blake Cotton was called for offsides (7-0, 6:44).

Touchdown Utes!: A 16-play drive, which included two fourth down conversions and three third down conversions, was capped off by a 34-yard score by Ryan Davis, who made two defenders miss after hauling in a pass from Devon Dampier (7-0, 7:05).

Missed opportunity for points: It looked like the Utes had a chance to put points on the board but a deep pass to the end zone fell incomplete after Dallen Bentley and Jackson Bennee seemingly ran the same route and collided (0-0, 9:17)

Dampier does it himself: After not finding anyone open, Devon Dampier tucked it and plowed his way to the 50-yard line on third-and-10, giving the Utes a new set of downs (0-0, 9:44).

Utes move the chains: A strong second effort from NaQuari Rogers on fourth-and-1 gave the Utes just enough to move the chains and keep their opening drive alive (0-0, 11:33).

Big play Bray is back: Daniel Bray went in motion and was left uncovered by Cincinnati's defense, giving Devon Dampier an easy target to hit for a 20-yard gain (0-0, 13:48).

Utes defense gets off the field: After Logan Fano batted a pass attempt on second down, Aliki Vimahi got his hands on the ball on third down, bringing Cincinnati's punt team onto the field (0-0, 14:12).

Utah on defense first: The Utes won the toss and deferred, giving the ball to Brendan Sorsby first.

PREGAME

Utah legend in the house: Utes icon Eric Weddle is ready for Saturday's pivotal matchup. His son, Gaige, is a four-star prospect in the 2028 class.

MORE UTAH NEWS & ANALYSIS

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Cole Forsman
COLE FORSMAN

Cole Forsman has been a contributor with On SI for the past three years, covering college athletics. He holds a degree in Journalism and Sports Management from Gonzaga University.

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