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Utah football reveals special helmets for Week 10 game vs. Cincinnati

Utes going with an all-black look for showdown against Bearcats
Cole Forsman|
Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham watches the team warm up before the game against the Colorado Buffaloes at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham watches the team warm up before the game against the Colorado Buffaloes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

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The helmets Utah will wear Saturday for its pivotal showdown against Cincinnati have been given a special touch.

After teasing an all-black uniform combination on social media Tuesday, the official Utah Football account on X revealed on Wednesday the team will don hand-painted helmets with the fan-favorite "circle and drum" logo on the sides.

Tuesday's teaser for Utah's Week 10 uniforms indicated the Utes will wear black jerseys with the throwback inscription for letters and numbers, black pants and a standard-looking black helmet that didn't include the uniquely-crafted emblem on the sides.

ESPN700 host Sean O'Connell hinted that video didn't show the actual helmets Utah was planning to wear Saturday during an episode of his show, prompting speculation online that the Utes could be waiting to unveil hand-painted ones at some point later in the week.

Those theories wound up being confirmed after an updated 23-second video showcasing a 360 degree view of the throwback-esque helmets was posted to the official Utah Football account on Wednesday.

Saturday will mark the second time this season Utah wears specially-crafted helmets for a Big 12 game. The team chose to highlight certain aspects of Ute artistry during its Sept. 20 contest against Texas Tech, with a helmet that included patterns and shapes inside the school's "interlocking U's" logo.

It'll also be Utah's ninth different uniform combination this season. The Utes rocked throwback jerseys, white pants and "interlocking U's" helmets during their blowout win over Colorado last Saturday.

Utah (6-2, 3-2 Big 12) looks to follow up its historic 53-7 blowout over the Buffaloes with a victory over a Cincinnati team (7-1, 5-0) that hasn't lost since its season-opener to Nebraska in a pivotal clash from Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday.

The Bearcats extended their win streak to seven last Saturday with a strong finish against Baylor, which nearly erased a 24-0 deficit before Brendan Sorsby and company iced the game late with a couple of touchdown scores to pull away, 41-20, at Nippert Stadium.

Cincinnati's potent ground game could face a hindrance with leading rusher Evan Pryor likely ruled "out" for Saturday's contest at Rice-Eccles Stadium, according to Bearcats head coach Scott Satterfield. The 5-foot-9 redshirt senior paces the team in total rush yards (478) and yards per carry (7.2, also No. 1 in the Big 12).

If Pryor is unavailable for Saturday's contest, Cincinnati would likely lean on 5-foot-8 back Tawee Walker, even more so than it already has, to carry the load against the Utes' defense. Walker already leads the team in total attempts (90) and is second to Pryor with 466 rushing yards on the season.

Kickoff between the Utes and Bearcats is set for 8:15 p.m. MT on ESPN.

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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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