Zack Moss Could Break Two More Records On Saturday Against Cal
Oct 25, 2019, 6:21 PM
(Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – After he broke the school record for most career rushing yards in Utah football history, running back Zack Moss has two more goals that could be broken on Saturday when the Utes host California at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Moss achieved the record when he ran in a 32-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to give the Utes a 21-3 win over the Arizona State Sun Devils last week.
This week could solidify Moss (even more) as the best running back to have ever played at the University of Utah.
HYPE for @Utah_Football's all-time leading rusher, the king, @PresMoss2 👑 #GoUtes
📹: @NateDowdle pic.twitter.com/5BLbsLR4Pu— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 24, 2019
The senior has 31 career rushing touchdowns, which is tied for the school record with Del Rodgers for the most in school history. Rodgers played at Utah from 1978-81. Moss needs just one rushing touchdown to hold the record.
Moss is also tied for the school record with the most 100-yard rushing games. He has 14 games of passing 100 yards on the ground in his career, which is tied with John White and Devontae Booker.
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About Cal
The Utes will host the Golden Bears, who have lost their last four games after starting the season with a 4-0 record. They are coming off of a 21-17 loss at home to Oregon State last week.
Cal has two players on the defensive side of the ball that has been outstanding and a big reason why the Bears are known for their defense. Inside linebacker Evan Weaver leads the entire country with 105 total tackles, 59 solo tackles, 15 tackles per game and 8.4 solo tackles per game.
Fellow linebacker Kuony Deng will look to create havoc on Utah’s offense as he is the other threat on defense for the Bears. He has 66 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks. Deng appeared on the Netflix series “Last Chance U” as a member of the Independence Community College football team.
Cal has wins over UC Davis, Washington, North Texas and Ole Miss, while picking up losses to Arizona State, Oregon and Oregon State.
They have some problems at the quarterback position with starter Chase Garbers likely out for the rest of the season and backup QB Devon Modster suffered an injury in the fourth quarter against Oregon State.
Modster played the Utes in 2017 as a member of the UCLA Bruins. He completed eight of his 12 pass attempts for 103 yards and one touchdown. This season, he has thrown for 380 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
When Modster was injured last week, true freshman quarterback Spencer Brasch entered the game and completed two of his six pass attempts for 24 yards and one interception.
The Bears’ offense has been struggling since Garbers suffered the injury, they are last in the Pac-12 with 324 yards per game, last in passing yards per game with 193.7, 10th in rushing yards per game with 130.3 and are last in the conference with 19.9 points per game.
Utes History Against Golden Bears
Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, Utah is 2-2 against Cal. Overall, they are 5-6 dating back to 1920. In 2011 at Cal, the Bears had a 34-10 win over the Utes after scoring 34 unanswered points before Utah scored 10 straight. When the two teams met in 2012 at Rice-Eccles Stadium, Utah beat Cal 49-27.
The series took a two year break due to the Pac-12 scheduling format. They collided in 2015 when Utah was ranked No. 5 in the country and California was No. 23. ESPN’s College Gameday hosted their show on campus and Utah’s defense created havoc on now Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff. They forced him to throw five interceptions. Utes running back Devontae Booker racked up 222 yards and 2 touchdowns.
In their last meeting in 2016, Utah entered the game ranked No. 18 when they faced Cal in Berkeley. The Bears jumped out to a 14-0 lead before the Utes scored 17 unanswered. Cal scored two touchdowns and Utah had just one, losing to Cal, 28-23.
The Utes and Golden Bears will kickoff at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday at 8 p.m. in the Ute Proud and “dark mode” game. The matchup will be broadcast on FS1.
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