Utah opened a new era Thursday night by hosting Idaho at Rice-Eccles Stadium, with Morgan Scalley making his first regular-season start as head coach after Kyle Whittingham stepped down following 21 seasons. The game kicked off the 2026 season at 7 p.m. MT on ESPNU, and it gave Utah an immediate look at how the program would look under the coach who had already led it to a 44-22 Las Vegas Bowl win over Nebraska in December.
The search interest around Idaho Vs Utah is tied to more than a season opener. Utah entered ranked No. 22 in the preseason and was picked to finish third in the Big 12 in a preseason preview, which made this a real measuring stick even against an FCS opponent. Idaho, meanwhile, came in after a 4-8 season in 2025, when a coaching transition year ended a three-year run of FCS playoff appearances, and Thomas Ford returned for a second year trying to steady that side.
Utah had the numbers that usually travel well into September. It scored 41 points per game in 2025, ranked fourth in FBS in scoring offense, eighth in opponent-adjusted offense and led the nation with a 6.0 yards per carry average. It also returned Devon Dampier, Wayshawn Parker and an upgraded wide receiver room, with Braden Pegan and Kyri Shoels combining for 1,700 yards last year. Scalley said that group was the best wide receiver crew Utah had ever had, and the offense had the kind of depth that can make a new coach look settled fast.
But the line in front of it is where the cleanest question sits. Utah lost all five starters from 2025 on the offensive line, including two eventual first-round NFL draft picks, and now has to replace that protection without losing the rhythm that powered last season’s scoring burst. Solatoa Moea'I and Keith Olson returned as the sixth and seventh linemen, while Cedric Jefferson and Kelvin Obot were added to bolster the front, but how quickly that unit gels matters more than any preseason ranking. Idaho had its own warning sign, too: it opened its season by surrendering 38 points, 319 passing yards and five total touchdowns to Cal Poly, including a long final drive and a game-winner after leading by three points in the final minute. That kind of finish does not erase a season, but it does show how thin margins can get for a team still trying to climb back.
Utah also brought back a defense that allowed 18.9 points per game in 2025, ranked 18th in FBS and 37th in opponent-adjusted defense, so Scalley’s first regular-season game was not only about offense looking the part. He inherited a team built to win now, and he has already shown in one bowl game that the transition does not have to look like a reset. The real test is whether the offense can keep its pace while the line reforms around it, because that is what will decide whether Utah starts looking like a Big 12 contender or just another team with a good preseason number.
