After two weeks on the road, the Utes return to Rice-Eccles Stadium this weekend to take on Air Force Academy in their third Mountain West Conference matchup of the season.

Utah's secondary took a big blow Saturday night when senior strong safety Joe Dale left the game in the first quarter with what coaches said was a knee injury.

For the second straight week, the Utes played spoiler on the road, beating UNLV on the Rebels' homecoming weekend, 35-15.

Utah's start to their first conference game of the season was shaky at best Saturday, but emphasized one crucial component for the Utes' potential success this season - their ability to overcome adversity.

Colorado State has yet to lose three straight games under the helm of head coach Steve Fairchild, a trend the Utes will look to reverse in this weekend's Mountain West Conference matchup.

With a bye week after its 30-14 win over the Cardinals at home, the defense has had time to work on making that kind of performance a consistent one, as it prepares for its first conference test of the season.

On the streets of South Central Los Angeles, it's not uncommon to see teenagers in handcuffs, as many get wrapped up in gang crime early in their lives. For a young kid just trying to find a way through it all, getting out unharmed doesn't always seem like a realistic possibility.

Injury Update

The bye week came at just the right time for the Utes, who got hit by the injury bug in their game against Louisville before the break. Four starters (Matt Asiata, Zane Beadles, Lei Talamaivao and Joe Dale) were forced to leave the game against the Cardinals because of injuries, including a season-ending knee injury to Asiata, who had surgery Monday to repair his torn ACL.

The BCS should've been disbanded a long time ago and college football, like the rest of the competitive world, should be working on a playoff-style system.

Although the Utes got the win over Louisville on Saturday night, it came at a cost. Four Utah starters were forced to leave the game because of injuries, including offensive starters Matt Asiata and Zane Beadles and defensive starters Joe Dale and Lei Talamaivao.