UCLA Football: Utah's Home Stadium Casts A Long Shadow Ahead Of Bruins Matchup

Why UCLA fans have a right to fear next weekend's opponent.

Your 3-0 UCLA Bruins will have their work cut out for them this Saturday, when they travel to Salt Lake City for a bout with fellow undefeated Pac-12 heavyweight the Utah Utes.

The Bruins will be dealing with some uncomfortable team history, as Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times details.

Per Bolch, the Bruins have not won a road game on Utah's home turf, Rice-Eccles Stadium, since the 2015 season, when Dante Moore was 10.

Bolch notes that, since the COVID-19-abbreviated 2020 NCAA season, the Utes have won 16 straight contests at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Their last defeat at home transpired on Sept. 15, 2018, in a 21-7 vanquishing at the hands of the Washington Huskies. 

“That place, they just have a lot of energy, they have a great fan base,” said Bruins center Duke Clemens. “They take a lot of pride in their football over there, so you can always expect a good, loud crowd when you go play at Rice-Eccles.”"

The Utes are quite the draw in a state without a pro NFL club. Bolch notes that Utah has posted 78 straight sellout contests since its first game of the 2010 season (when Dante Moore was five, if we're still using that metric).