Three things to watch in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl:

1. How does Colorado State look after the departure of Jim McElwain?

Shortly after McElwain was named Mountain West Coach of the Year he left for the SEC and he's already making waves at Florida, picking up his first commitment from Daniel Imatorbhebe on Tuesday. But where does that leave the Rams? They still have a potent offense, averaging nearly 500 yards, but will the focus still be there for this bunch? Offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin, the man responsible for that high-powered offense and its output, will be leading Colorado State in the postseason. Can the Rams avoid distraction and keep on doing what they've been doing? We'll see.

2. Utah's pass rush against Colorado State quarterback Garrett Grayson

Grayson threw for 3,779 yards and 32 touchdowns this season, but he has not faced a pass rush quite like Utah's. First, there's Nate Orchard, who won the Ted Hendricks Award (best defensive end in college football), after recording 17.5 sacks this season. But he's not the only guy quarterbacks need to worry about. Defensive end Hunter Dimick recorded 10 sacks this season, and Pita Taumoepenu, Lowe Lotulelei, Jason Fanaika and Jared Norris all recorded at least four sacks apiece.

3. Do the special teams of Utah continue to star?

It isn't very often that special teams get a lot of attention. But when your lead returners bring back every one in seven punts for a touchdown, when your punter wins the Ray Guy Award, and your kicker is a former U.S. ski team member (who's also a former Mormon missionary and a proud father), then your special teams unit gets a lot of attention. It made the difference in several games for the Utes this season, and with Colorado State's special teams (63rd nationally in kickoff return defense, 68th nationally in punt return defense) the same could be true on Saturday.