PREVIEW \ Fiesta Bowl

No. 5 Utah (11-0)vs. No. 19 Pittsburgh (8-3)
Time: 8:30 p.m. Saturday
TV: WYTV (33), WEWS (5), WTAE (4)
Coaches: Urban Meyer (20-2 in second year at Utah) and Walt Harris (52-43 in 8th year at Pitt).
Payout: Each school receives $11-14 million.
Bowl records: Utah is 6-3. Pitt is 10-13.
Last bowl appearance: Utah beat Southern Miss, 17-3, in last year's Liberty Bowl. Pitt lost to Virginia, 23-16, in last year's Continental Tire Bowl.
Series history: First meeting.
Last game: Utah beat BYU, 52-21, on Nov. 20. Pitt beat West Virginia, 16-13, on Thanksgiving.
Stat that matters: The Utes' 15-game winning streak is longest since Utah won 15 straight from 1928-30.
Game facts: This one is the "lame-duck bowl" as Meyer is headed to Florida while Harris is headed to Stanford. Having turned the Utes into the first team in a non-BCS league to play in a BCS bowl, Meyer's departure is much more amicable. Utes QB Alex Smith (second in nation in QB rating, 185-of-280, 2,624 passing, 28 TDs, four interceptions, 563 rushing, 10 TD runs) should have gotten more Heisman consideration after guiding a balanced offense that ranked third in the nation in scoring (46.2 ppg) and total offense (502.7 ypg). Safety Morgan Scalley (third in nation with six interceptions) and LB Spencer Toone (107 tackles) are the backbone of the defense. Despite guiding the Panthers to their first BCS game, Harris is bolting after not getting along with Pitt administration on a number of issues. His work with QB Tyler Palko (115-of-193, 1,582 passing, 16 TD passes, two interceptions in the last five games) has been outstanding. WR Greg Lee (61 catches, nine TDs) has NFL talent. So-so defense must play its best game of year.
Scripps Howard