Northwestern vs Utah 12/31/18 - Holiday Bowl - NCAAF Picks & Predictions

On December 31, the No. 22 ranked Northwestern Wildcats play the No. 17 ranked Utah Utes at SDCCU Stadium in San Diego, California in the Holiday Bowl. Northwestern ended its regular season 8-5 after losing to Ohio State 45-24 in the Big Ten championship game. Wildcats quarterback Clayton Thorson threw for 267 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in the loss.

Utah finished its regular season 9-4 after losing to Washington 10-3 in the Pac-12 championship game. The only touchdown in the game was scored by the Washington defense and each team traded a field goal to round out all the scoring. Utah lost its starting quarterback and top running back in November and then lost top receiver Britain Covey to an injury in the game last Saturday with Washington. Northwestern QB Clayton Thorson has thrown for 2,942 yards, 15 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Isaiah Bowser leads the Wildcats in rushing with 796 yards and six touchdowns. The leading receiver is Flynn Nagel with 66 receptions for 759 yards and two touchdowns.

Utah quarterback Jason Shelley has thrown for 860 yards, 3 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. The leading rusher is Armand Shyne with 479 yards and 5 touchdowns. The leading receiver is Jaylen Dixon with 23 receptions for 475 yards and one touchdown. The top players statistically at quarterback, running back and wide receiver have all been lost to injuries for Utah