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No. 7 Utah Utes Travel to Florida to Battle the Gators in the Swamp Saturday Evening

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Football

The No. 7 University of Utah Utes (0-0) will kick off the 2022 season in The Swamp, taking on the Florida Gators on Saturday, Sept. 3. The game is set for a 5 p.m. MT/7 p.m. ET kick inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on ESPN.

NON-CONFERENCE NOTE
Utah is 27-3 in regular season non-conference games since joining the Pac-12 in 2011 and is 33-8 since 2011 in non-conference games (including post-season). Utah's game against Florida on Saturday will be the first time the Utes have faced an SEC opponent since the Utes' historic Sugar Bowl win over Alabama (31-17) in 2009.

BY THE NUMBERS
• Saturday's game will be just the second-ever meeting between Utah and Florida.
• Utah Head Coach Kyle Whittingham is 75-54 all-time against current Power Five teams.
• The Utes have five players from the state of Florida with the last time the program playing in the state being their trip to Gainesville in 1977.
• Utah returns 17 starters from the 2021 season.
• Saturday's game vs. Florida will mark Whittingham's 215th game at the helm.

NEED TO KNOWS
• Utah is 77-50-1 all-time in season openers with just two season-opening losses in the last 15 seasons.
• Utah ranks No. 7 in the Preseason AP Poll, the highest preseason ranking in program history. The Utes have either been ranked or received votes in the last eight AP preseason polls, also finishing the year ranked or receiving votes in five of those years.
• Utah has eight consecutive years of winning seasons, dating back to 2014. The Utes have finished with a winning season in 15 of Whittingham's 17 years as head coach.
• Utah was picked to finish first in the Pac-12 in the preseason poll, receiving 26 first-place votes.
• The Utes have won the Pac-12 South Title four times (2021, 2019, 2018, shared title in 2015), including three in the last four seasons, winning the championship game in 2021.
• The Utes had 13 student-athletes earn preseason All-Pac-12, tying for a league-high six first-team selections in Cole Bishop (S), Braeden Daniels (OL), Van Fillinger (DE), Brant Kuithe (TE), Clark Phillips III (CB) and Tavion Thomas (RB).
• Utah finished the 2021 season ranked in the top-three of the Pac-12 in 16 statistical categories, leading the league in first downs, rushing offense and defense, team sacks and tackles for loss and time of possession.
• Utah has sold out Rice-Eccles Stadium in 70 consecutive games, dating back to the 2010 season opener. Utah increased its stadium capacity from 45,807 to 51,444 with the expansion of the Ken Garff Red Zone in 2021.