Utah football vs. Colorado by the numbers

Looking to rebound from a loss to its in-state rival, Utah hosts Colorado on Saturday with an opportunity to get back on track and remain in the hunt for a Big 12 conference title.

The Utes, who enter Week 9 coming off a 24-21 setback to BYU, return to Rice-Eccles Stadium to face a Buffaloes squad that's still riding momentum from their upset win over Iowa State nearly two weeks ago.

"We got to be at our best and be ready," said Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham regarding Saturday's contest. "I know they're 3-4, but the combined record of those four losses of the teams they played is 25-3. They played some really good teams, and so they are much better football team than their record indicates."

Here's a look at some key statistics to take note of leading up to the next installment of the Rumble in the Rockies rivalry.

191.6: Average rush yards allowed by both teams in Big 12 play

When opposite strengths clash, it's commonly referred to as an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. In this case, though, the Utes and Buffaloes are two very movable objects when it comes to stopping the run.

"Our run defense this year is not as good as it typically is," Whittingham said during his weekly press conference. "I think a big reason for that is we've seen so much QB run game in the first seven games of the year."

Heading into Week 9, Utah yields 150.7 rush yards per game to its opponents (seventh-most in the 16-team Big 12) while allowing 4.1 yards per carry — a considerable drop off from last season when it gave up 129 yards on the ground per contest and 3.8 per attempt.

It's grown more difficult for the Utes to slow down the run with every mobile quarterback they come across on their Big 12 schedule. In Utah's last four games, it's allowed 196.3 rush yards per contest. During that same stretch, opposing signal-callers averaged 65 yards on the ground.

"The quarterback run game is probably right towards the top of the list of things we need to be concerned with this week," Whittingham said.

On the other side, Colorado has given up over 200 yards on the ground in three of its first four Big 12 games, with the only exception coming against the league's worst rushing attack in TCU. The Horned Frogs, who are the only squad in the 16-team conference averaging fewer than 100 rush yards per game, ran for 94 on 35 carries (2.7 per attempt) in their 35-21 win over the Buffaloes on Oct. 4. Houston, BYU and Iowa State combined to average 5.4 yards per carry against Colorado.

33.9: Big 12 opponents' third down conversion percentage vs. Colorado

The success Colorado's Big 12 opponents have had on the ground hasn't exactly translated to easy third-down conversions. The Buffaloes have been able to get off the field quite consistently, in part, because opposing offenses have faced, on average, a down-and-distance of 7.1 yards on third down. Giving up an average of less than 3 yards on first and second down is a big reason why they've allowed the fifth-lowest third-down conversion rate in conference play.

Conversely, the Utes' offense has been able to keep drives alive by staying on schedule and moving the chains when needed. Even after going 5-for-12 on money downs in the loss to BYU, Utah, which still has the highest third-down conversion rate in the country at 57.6%, has only had to convert a third-and-9 or longer just five times across four Big 12 games. For reference, Iowa State was put in that position six times during its 24-17 loss to Colorado earlier this month.

Needless to say, third down conversions will play a big role in telling the story of Saturday's contest.

-3: Combined turnover margin

Neither defense has been able to cause much havoc through turnovers to this point in the season.

After forcing at least one in its first four games, Utah's gone its last three games without forcing a single turnover. Colorado had a similar streak of four games without causing a turnover, though its clutch interception down the stretch of its win over Iowa State broke that trend in a big way.

The Utes will look to end their own dry spell against a Buffaloes squad that has a combined -4 turnover margin from its four losses. Utah is 5-0 this season when it doesn't commit more than 1 turnover.

Here's a look at where Utah and Colorado rank nationally in other key stats heading into Saturday:

Strength of record ranking

Utah: No. 32 (Big 12 rank: No. 6)
Colorado: No. 71 (Big 12 rank: 13)

Offensive efficiency

Utah: 80.5 (No. 12; No. 2 in Big 12)
Colorado: 66.3 (No. 41; No. 9 in Big 12)

Defensive efficiency

Utah: 81.0 (No. 12; No. 3 in Big 12)
Colorado: 49.1 (No. 82; No. 14 in Big 12)

Special teams efficiency

Colorado: 46.9 (No. 87; No. 12 in Big 12)
Utah: 28.6 (No. 129; No. 15 in Big 12)

Overall efficiency

Utah: 84.2 (No. 10; No. 3 in Big 12)
Colorado: 58.4 (No. 59; No. 12 in Big 12)

Third down conversion rate

Utah: 57.6% (No. 1; No. 1 in Big 12)
Colorado: 42.9% (No. 41; No. 4 in Big 12)

Third down conversion defense

Utah: 32% (No. 23; No. 4 in Big 12)
Colorado: 35.6% (No. 46; No. 9 in Big 12)

Scoring rate in red zone

Utah: 90.9% (No. 31; No. 5 in Big 12)
Colorado: 88.9% (No. 46; No. 8 in Big 12)

Red zone defense

Colorado: 80.8% (No. 46; No. 6 in Big 12)
Utah: 85.7% (No. 79; No. 10 in Big 12)

Average time of possession

Utah: 31:19 (No. 40; No. 5 in Big 12)
Colorado: 28:32 (No. 105; No. 12 in Big 12)