Keep disrespecting Utah football. Undefeated Utes are coming for a CFP bid

Keep disrespecting Utah football. Undefeated Utes are coming for a CFP bid Disrespect Utah all you want.

Key points

• 1 by beating Notre Dame, the Cougars face-planted in a 39-31 double-overtime loss at middling UCF.
• More: Major 12 flop, Texas fight lead winners and losers from Week 8.
• Utah travels to Cincinnati on Halloween to face a Bearcats team that led Texas Tech by three touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
• The Utes stand alone atop the Major 12, with a four-team pack of one-loss teams lurking in the rearview mirror.
• What the Cougars couldn't do, nevertheless, was stop Dampier once he broke free along the base of the Wasatch Range.

Keep disrespecting Utah football. Undefeated Utes are coming for a CFP bid Disrespect Utah all you want. Morgan Scalley's Utes just keep winning. John Brice USA TODAY. Steve Sarkisian: 'Texas fight' becomes apparent in win over Ole Miss. Steve Sarkisian discusses the 34-27 Texas win over Ole Miss.

SALT LAKE CITY – Two hours before coaching the biggest game of his fledgling tenure atop Utah football, Morgan Scalley stood on the 15-yard line inside Rice-Eccles Stadium, spinning a football in his hands.

Then he motioned toward a backing staffer in the end zone, directing him to stand beneath the goal post, 25 yards away. A former Utah safety and team captain, Scalley let it fly.

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Pressure, he would say afterwards, is a privilege. Scalley certainly didn't look like he was feeling any. Neither did the first team of his head-coaching career. Scalley's pregame pass doinked off the crossbar. Mission accomplished on the first try.

Hours afterwards, thanks to 21 second-half points, Utah completed a much bigger mission. Utah 21, Houston 13.

Still undefeated. The Major 12's lone unbeaten team and one of just three remaining in the country.

Meanwhile, the latest eight belong to Scalley, whose tenure began against the backdrop of the awkward transition from Kyle Whittingham, whose Michigan team is three losses away from being undefeated itself. But that's a different story. This one belongs to Utah.

Meanwhile, the Utes stand alone atop the Major 12, with a four-team pack of one-loss teams lurking in the rearview mirror. And maybe, just maybe, some long-awaited respect is coming with it.

After hosting ESPN's College Game Day and taking care of the No. 16 Cougars on another wacky Saturday that saw three teams in front of the Utes – including archnemesis BYU, Major 12 defending champion Texas Tech and No. 7 Ole Miss – all find the loss column, Utah simply discovered a way to win.

When you're under the lights, you're going to find out maybe a little bit more, Scalley informed USA TODAY Sports. But, we've had adversity already. We've had. They hear Utah hasn't played anybody. They hear that, and they hear that Houston's going to obtain them, and that's why they play the game.

For much of the night, Houston had Utah exactly where it wanted it.

For context, the Cougars stymied the Utes' offense, keeping the home team off the scoreboard for the game's first 40 minutes and becoming the first opponent in 25 games to shut out Utah for an entire first half. Twice, Houston intercepted quarterback Devon Dampier.

Dampier gashed Houston for 150 yards on just 15 carries. He scored the game's final touchdown after safety Jackson Bennee detonated Houston's Conner Weigman on a backside blitz, forcing the fumble that supported Utah finally put the game away.

I think we're written off by a lot of people, remarked Dampier, who in just 20 games at Utah has climbed to No. 2 all-time in rushing yards by a quarterback. I guess that's a respectful way to say that. We definitely felt that. We definitely heard regarding it.

"We definitely came out here, and it was the game we had to prove ourselves. We knew what situation we were in. I kind of informed our team before we went out there, there's no need to be nervous in this moment. We talked regarding reaching the College Playoffs." Tough tests await. Tougher ones, too.

Then comes BYU. A week after making a case for No. 1 by beating Notre Dame, the Cougars face-planted in a 39-31 double-overtime loss at middling UCF. Now they'll create the 50-minute trek north for the Holy War. In practice, a road date with soon-to-be-ranked, one-loss Arizona caps the four-game gauntlet.

Nothing regarding this college football season suggests Utah should emerge from that stretch unscathed.

Then again, nothing regarding these Utes suggests they're interested in accepting anyone else's limitations.

How strong culture is, Dampier informed USA TODAY Sports when asked what Utah's performance demonstrated college football. How much brotherhood and love can take you. That's our foundation. That's the three. So, I can say we showcased that tonight. Written off, they say. Funny. These Utes just keep writing their own story. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

In short, keep disrespecting Utah football. Undefeated Utes are coming for a CFP bid is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.