SALT LAKE CITY — As the third-best team in the Pac-12, there's plenty of reasons why No. 22 Utah should be frustrated with ending up in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl — a bowl designed to select the sixth-best team from the Pac-12.
Although not ideal, Utah players are content with their postseason destination and are ready to embrace a matchup against in-state rival BYU.
"We can't control what the bowl committee do. We were just thinking deep, down inside, we wish we could play another team," senior Gionni Paul said. "We didn't think we were going to play BYU — it's like Washington State playing Washington in a bowl game.