Utah football 5.5 to 6 point favorites vs. Michigan

The Utah Utes and Michigan Wolverines highlight the first main action of the 2015 college football season on Thursday night as Pac-12 After Dark gets underway. Unsurprisingly, Utah opens as slight favorites at between five to six points, settling in at 5.5 points.

Utah is the more established team and they are playing at home. Regardless of the talent Michigan might have, they are probably a work in progress. The Utes are coming off a nine win season which saw them go into Ann Arbor and smother the Wolverines offense to a halt. It’s unlikely Michigan will take that many steps forward, even with Jim Harbaugh manning the helm.

Still, 5.5 points is never an easy thing to do with Utah. Here's the scoring margin for Utah victories in the Pac-12: 2, 6, 3, 3, 4. Although they did beat the Wolverines by 14, they won't be the mess they were last year. 5.5 point is a lot to imagine Utah winning by if the teams are even talent-wise. You have to believe that the Utes are heads and shoulders above the Wolverines.

The over/under is currently situated around 47, which is a little high for two teams who are probably stronger defensively than offensively. Which way would you bet?