With the No. 2 Utah Utes (9-0) entering the 2026 college football season, nobody expected them to be undefeated.

Morgan Scalley’s Utes are exceeding expectations. There are individual stat production expectations. Does Scalley have the quarterback with the best stats? No. A running back leading the nation in rushing yards? No. He must have an elite receiver at well over 1,000 yards at this stage in the season? No. Here's the breakdown.

-QB Devon Dampier: 2,053 yards, 20 touchdowns. Dampier is 37th in passing yards.

-RB Wayshawn Parker: 762 yards, 6 touchdowns. Parker is tied for 24th in rushing.

-WR Braden Pegan: 591 yards, 8 touchdowns. He is 59th in receiving.

-Utah doesn’t have a pass rusher in the top 100.

-Utah doesn’t have a tackler in the top 100.

-CB James Chenault Jr is tied for 22nd in the nation for interceptions.

There are two common sayings that many football fans learned a long time ago. Both favor Scalley and the Utes. “You can only beat the teams in front of you” and “we only worry about what we can control."

The schedule has become a hot topic almost every season. Some want less inclusion of sub-Power 4 competition, while others want more. However, regardless of who is scheduled, teams can only beat the teams in front of them. A head-to-head matchup between Utah and Texas Tech could make the Big 12 title race easy to determine. Even games against teams like Georgia or Notre Dame would seem convenient now.

Utah worries about the teams in front of them. Through nine games, they have beaten everyone they have faced and done so with impressive margins. Whether the conversation is Utah or Georgia, the same metric applies. You only get credit for the games and teams you play.

Unlike more popular names recently thought of as more high-profile programs, Scalley has not lost. Georgia, Notre Dame, Miami, Indiana, Alabama, Texas, Ohio State, Oregon and every other team not named UCLA have taken losses. In most cases, losses with surprise expectations.

The only coach at this stage that even feels within Scalley’s range is Bob Chesney at UCLA. Admittedly, Chesney has had to navigate a season that saw the loss of his QB1. Ohio State has experienced the same fate, but unlike UCLA, Ohio State is spiraling and taking losses while UCLA is not.

Read More: Where Utah Ranks in the Latest College Football Playoff Ranking For Week 11

Even the Chesney argument fails to reach Scalley levels as it's not year one for Chesney. UCLA also only has one win against a ranked opponent, which was Oregon. The Ducks are in the midst of the worst season in twenty years.

Utah has three weeks left to assume a few things. Win out and the Utes go undefeated for the first time since 2008. An undefeated season would certainly put them in the Big 12 title game. If they win that title game, they will earn a first round bye in the College Football Playoff. Finally, winning out would almost assuredly land Scalley the Coach of the Year award.

Utah faces No. 22 Arizona, TCU and West Virginia to round out the season. All three are winnable games. They'll travel to Tucson to take on Arizona on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, FOX).

Source: Yahoo Sports