The 2019 team is back for one last ride, after falling short in the conference championship game. While the Alamo Bowl certainly isn’t what the Utes had hoped for, given their lofty ranking going into conference championship week, they’ll face a talented Texas team and will need to play a good game if they want to secure their 12th win of the season and likely finish in the top ten.

The Utes will be missing some key players in this game, due to injury and precaution, but all that means is that others will get the chance to step up and prove what they can do. Here are the five most important players for Utah’s matchup against Texas.

Javelin Guidry

The top playmaker on Texas’s offense is wide receiver Devin Duvernay. Duvernay most often lines up in the slot, and leads the Longhorns in receptions, yardage and touchdowns by a wide margin, with 103, 1294, and eight, respectively. Duvernay has the speed to hurt defenses deep, and with Julian Blackmon out with an injury, the Utes will need to game plan around Duvernay in order to keep him from making big plays over the top.

While Guidry has the speed to play one-on-one with Duvernay, don’t be surprised if you see a safety bracketing his side as well to give a little extra help. Texas has other playmakers in their receiving corps, but nobody is targeted as often as Duvernay, and if the Utes can limit his production, they’ll be well on their way to keeping the Longhorn offense under control.

Bryan Thompson

The Longhorns’ passing defense ranks 97th in the nation in efficiency. Teams have thrown for 27 touchdowns against them, and on average, they give up 306.4 yards per game and 8.03 yards per attempt. None of those numbers are good, and Utah should be able to move the ball through the air against them.

The Utes missed Bryan Thompson against Oregon. Thompson gives the Utah offense another dimension with his speed and size on the outside. Even though Thompson’s role wasn’t as big in the second half of the season, as Brant Kuithe emerged, he is the type of player that opposing defenses have to account for on every single play. With Thompson back from injury, look for him to be incorporated into the game plan both as a target and to open things up for Utah’s other receivers.

Zack Moss

The strength of Texas’s defense is against the run, but they’re not elite, giving up 139.8 yards per game and 4.2 yards per rush. That ranks 47th nationally, and the Utes should be able to get some things going on the ground against the Longhorn defense.

Ute fans and college football fans everywhere are lucky enough to see Zack Moss suit up one more time for Utah, before he’s off to the NFL. Moss broke just about every rushing record in the Utah books this season, and despite missing one full game and most of another, he is having his best statistical year as a Ute, with 1359 rushing yards, 374 receiving yards, and 17 total touchdowns. Moss is already all but guaranteed to be an early round pick, but as he has throughout his career, he decided to put the team first and help them to potentially get to 12 wins for the first time since 2008. Even though Texas is porous against the pass, Utah’s offense should still center around their star back, as they work to finish in the top 10. If Moss gains 161 or more yards on the ground, he would break one final record as a Ute, surpassing John White’s record of 1519 yards, set in 2011.

Bradlee Anae

Speaking of potential record-breaking performances, another Ute is on the cusp of writing his name into the record books as an all-time leader. Bradlee Anae tied Hunter Dimick’s sack record, with 29.5, and has one last game to become the sole owner of that record. That record is likely to fall on Tuesday night, as the Utes will face off against an offense that is 109th in sacks allowed, and gives up 2.75 per game.

Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger is talented and mobile, and can make defenses pay if he can escape pressure. While Anae will no doubt be eager to write his name into the record books, he’ll need to be disciplined and make sure not to over-pursue or be too aggressive as he chases that record. Fortunately, Anae has been excellent in that respect all season long, and there’s no reason to think that he won’t be in his final game as a Ute.

Leki Fotu

The final name on this list is another guy who has been outstanding for the Utes throughout his career, and has been a key reason for Utah’s success in stopping the run over the past few years. Leki Fotu has been a force in the trenches, and leaves a legacy as one of the best defensive tackles to ever play for the Utes. He’ll get one last opportunity to make life hell for the guys lining up across from him before heading off to do the same in the NFL.

Texas’s rushing attack is average, ranking 53rd nationally. They gain 172 yards per game and 4.66 yards per rush. While the offense mostly runs through Duvernay, the Longhorns have two talented running backs, as well as Ehlinger, that can get things going on the ground. Between the three of them, they have gained nearly 2000 yards on the ground, and have found the end zone 19 times. That being said, Utah is far and away the best defense the Longhorns have faced this year, so they may be hard-pressed to find any success on the ground.