When the University of Utah and BYU football teams meet for the 101st time on Sept. 11 in Provo, the game will get the primetime treatment.
Kickoff at LaVell Edwards Stadium is set for 8:15 p.m. on ESPN, the Pac-12 announced on Thursday afternoon as the league announced a slew of kickoff times.
The Utes’ Sept. 2 opener at Rice-Eccles Stadium does not yet have a kickoff time, but a Nov. 5 trip to Stanford will kick off at 8:30 p.m. (Fox Sports 1). The Oct. 9 trip to USC and the Nov. 26 season-finale vs. Colorado at Rice-Eccles do not have start times, but both games will air on either FOX or Fox Sports 1.
2021 UTAH FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Sept. 2, vs. Weber State, TBD (Pac-12 Network)
Sept. 11, at BYU, 8:15 p.m. (ESPN)
Sept. 18, at San Diego State, 5 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
Sept. 25, vs. Washington State, TBD
Oct. 9, at USC, TBD (FOX or FS1)
Oct. 16, vs. Arizona State, TBD
Oct. 23, at Oregon State, TBD
Oct. 30, vs. UCLA, TBD
Nov. 5, at Stanford, 8:30 p.m. (FS1)
Nov. 13, at Arizona, TBD
Nov. 20, vs. Oregon, TBD
Nov. 26, vs. Colorado, TBD (FOX or FS1)
Utah’s press release states that the athletic department is planning to host a full crowd at Rice-Eccles, whose attendance will rise to 51,444 upon completion of the Ken Garff Performance Zone in the south end zone this summer. The football program has sold out 64 consecutive games dating back to the 2010 opener vs. Pitt.
Utah and BYU will renew acquaintances one year after the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the 2020 contest, which was to be played in Salt Lake City. The two sides agreed to simply move along with the agreed-upon game contract, which has the 2021 game being played in Provo. The expectation is that the 2020 game will simply be tacked on at the end of the current agreement.
Beyond 2021, the Utes and Cougars are slated to play in 2024, 2026 and 2028 in Salt Lake City, and 2025 and 2027 in Provo. The next available opportunity to make up the 2020 game would be in 2029.
On Wednesday, the Mountain West announced its CBS Sports television package, which includes Utah’s Sept. 18 game vs. San Diego State set for a 5 p.m. kickoff on CBS Sports Network.
Utah-San Diego State will not be played in San Diego, but rather in Carson, Calif., at 27,000-seat Dignity Sports Health Park, whose primary tenant is the LA Galaxy of the MLS. The game being played in the South Bay is necessary due to the ongoing construction of SDSU’s new stadium, being built on the site that housed the old Qualcomm Stadium in Mission Valley.
