Why Utah Football Will Win the Pac-12 South in 2012

In the last regular season game of 2011, Utah lost a heartbreaker to Colorado.  Utah's kicker, Coleman Peterson, missed three field goals in the Utes' 17-14 loss.  The loss crushed Utah's hopes of representing the Pac-12 South in the inaugural Pac-12 Championship.

There isn't much stopping them from playing in the Pac-12 Championship Game in 2012.  Here are the top five reasons why the Utes will win the Pac-12 South this year.

5. Schedule

For the second straight year Utah has a very favorable schedule.  The Utes don’t have to play Pac-12 North powers, Oregon or Stanford.  

Utah's toughest game of 2012 will be when USC comes to Salt Lake City to play the Utes.  Both Utah and USC have a bye week before this monumental matchup.  The big difference is Utah's coach Kyle Whittingham is 6-1 coming off regular season bye weeks while USC's coach Lane Kiffin is only 1-2 after a bye week in his college head coach career. 

4. Recruiting

Being in the Pac-12 has its perks, and recruiting is one of them.  This year Utah had their best recruiting class in the history of the program.  It was ranked 28^th by Rivals.com and 32^nd by Scout.com.  Utah will have a lot of young talent to work with in upcoming seasons.

3. Defense

Defense was the Utes’ strength in their first year in the Pac-12.  They led the conference in interceptions, scoring defense, and pass defense efficiency.  The Utes also allowed only 20.2 points a game, which was the fewest in the Pac-12.  They were also third in rush defense and fourth in pass defense in the Pac-12.  With more than half of the defensive starters returning, the Ute defense will only improve in the upcoming season.  

2. Returning Players

Utah will return 14 starters in 2012, with eight starters returning on offense and six on defense.

The list of returning players includes starting quarterback Jordan Wynn and defensive lineman Star Lotulelei.  Jordan Wynn will be coming back from a season-ending shoulder injury.  As a starter at Utah, Jordan Wynn is 11-4.  Star Lotulelei elected to return for his senior season instead of entering the 2011 NFL draft.  Last year, he was the recipient of the Morris Trophy, which is awarded to the most outstanding lineman in the Pac-12.

1. John White IV

White had 1,519 rushing yards in 2011.  That was good enough to be second in the Pac-12, and ninth in the nation in rushing.

With White having a phenomenal season in 2011 he’ll start 2012 where he left off last year.  The main reason White will be key is he’ll have three starting offensive lineman returning for their senior year.  Also, with starting quarterback Jordan Wynn returning from injury, defenses will have to play the pass more aggressively than they did last year.  This will open up the run game.