Devon Dampier threw for 253 yards and three touchdowns, Elijah Davis returned an interception 97 yards for another score, and No. 14 Utah came from behind to beat Kansas 31-21 on Friday and keep its slim Big 12 championship hopes alive. Larry Simmons cau ght two TD passes, Wayshon Parker ran for 95 yards and Utah (10-2, 7-2, No. 13 CFP) picked off Jalon Daniels three times in the final game of his college career, helping the Utes reach the 10-win mark for the third time in the last five years. More impor tantly, the Utes can still play for a conference title. They need Arizona State to beat Arizona on Friday night, then Texas Tech to lose to West Virginia and BYU to beat UCF on Saturday - a long-shot scenario, to be sure, but a reason to turn on TVs. Uta h won despite allowing 290 yards rushing, one week after beating Kansas State after allowing 472 on the ground. Daniels finished with 187 yards passing and a touchdown, and also rushed for a TD, though his turnovers led to a smattering of boos from Kansa s fans, many of whom have endured the QB's highs and lows over the past six seasons.Daniel Hishaw Jr. had 107 yards rushing and a touchdown for the Jayhawks (5-7, 3-6). Leshon Williams ran for 104. Utah looked as if it might turn Senior Day into a rout in the opening minutes, but the Kansas defense - which had let Leipold's team down so often this season - finally seemed to find its fight. The Jayhawks bottled up the Utes, who had been averaging 279.6 yards on the ground, and early on Dampier was having little success through the air, twice misfiring on fourth-down attempts. Utah led just 10-7 at halftime in a game it desperately needed to win. The Jayhawks briefly pulled ahead after the break, when Whittingham went for it on fourth down rather than kick a field goal on a cold, blustery day. Kansas made a stop, drove 67 yards, and Daniels' scoring sneak gave them a 14-10 advantage But the momentum swung for good on his two red-zone blunders early in the fourth quarter. First, Daniels was picke d off while trying to throw the ball out of the end zone, and Utah needed just four plays to go 80 yards for a go-ahead touchdown. Then, after Kansas marched downfield again, Daniels was picked off by Davis near the goal line, and the junior cornerback r eturned it 97 yards to give the Utes a 24-14 lead with 7:52 remaining. Utah wound up scoring 21 points in the fourth quarter to put the game away. - Utah/AP College Football
(DS#21 QB) Jr/2027  QB Devon Dampier, Utah
News Source: Utah/AP College Football
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