Utah quarterback Devon Dampier passed for three touchdowns, Elijah Davis notched a crucial pick-6 in the fourth quarter and the No. 13 Utes ended their Big 12 campaign with a 31-21 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks on Friday in Lawrence, Kan.
With Utah clinging to a 17-14 lead with about eight minutes to go, Davis picked off Jalon Daniels and dashed 97 yards for his second TD interception return for the Utes (10-2, 7-2).
Dampier was 15 of 25 for 253 yards and two TD passes to receiver Larry Simmons, who tallied 97 yards on three catches.
Wayshawn Parker gained 95 yards on 12 carries, while Dampier added 50 on 11 tries.
Utah will need a trio of losses by No. 20 Arizona State, No. 5 Texas Tech and No. 11 BYU to make an appearance in the Big 12 title game.
The Utes earned their eighth 10-win season under coach Kyle Whittingham since he took over the program in 2005.
The Jayhawks (5-7, 3-6) lost their third consecutive game in a bid to become bowl eligible and fell for the fifth time in the final six contests.
Daniels went 10 of 27 for 187 yards with a TD and three interceptions. Daniel Hishaw Jr. ran for 107 yards on 22 carries with a score. Leshon Williams produced 104 yards on 15 carries, while Emmanuel Henderson Jr. gained 113 yards on three receptions.
Kansas outgained Utah 477-414 in total yards, including 290 on the ground.
A 10 1/2-point favorite in the teams’ first meeting since 1996, the Utes scored first when Dillon Curtis drilled a 34-yard field goal at 8:39 in the first quarter, but Hishaw finished a 73-yard drive with a seven-yard run at 12:03 of the second for a 7-3 lead.
On the following series on third-and-3, Dampier faked a keeper, fired a strike over the middle and sent JJ Buchanan on a 58-yard score less than three minutes later for a 10-7 Utah lead.
In the third, Daniels’ third-down sneak accounted for Kansas’ second lead 14-10 at the 8:15 mark.
Following Jackson Bennee’s interception of Daniels in the end zone, Dampier completed a four-play, 80-yard drive with a 28-yard scoring strike to Simmons with 12:26 to play for a 17-14 edge.
After Davis’ pick-6, Daniels cut it the deficit to 24-21 on a 21-yard pass to Leyton Cure with 5:32 left to make it 24-21.
However, on third-and-5 before the two-minute timeout, Dampier showed run and lobbed a 48-yard TD to a wide-open Simmons for the knockout punch and the win.
