I agree completely, and would add, that I’d be a bit less irritated with the conference membership, if the 4 teams that joined a year prior to the PAC 4, had not joined. Specifically,:
UCF, and Cincinnati as they are not great programs, and don’t make any sense geographically, Houston, as they are not a great program, and BYU because, well, they are BYU, and I REALLY enjoyed NOT being a conference with them.
I’d add that West Virginia doesn’t make any sense geographically either.
If we could boot those 5, and be the BIG 11, I’d probably enjoy the conference a tiny bit more.
But let’s face it, after the PAC, and the success we had there against it’s best teams, we’re probably in for a long wait for things to get that much better.
I have zero interest in the Big 12. I don’t want to be in a conference with the Zoobs ever. And the only school in the Big 12, other than BYU, that I care about is WVU, but that’s because I hated them the I was a student at Syracuse.
The four corner schools (other than BYU) should have done everything it could to get into the Big 10. Beating USC every year was fun.
I really wasn’t into the season, even before our current troubles. The only game I watched was the BYU game because I wanted Utah to show how delusional BYU was that they even had a chance in the CFP. I guess others did that for us.
Just read this on ESPN. Nothing revelatory, but the tone of Whit’s comments lead me to believe he will hang it up. Honestly, it might be time. Still, with everything he has done for the program, it would be so sad to see it end like this. As for Rising’s situation, I love what he did for Utah football in 2021 and 2022. He was a warrior and gave it his all. But an eighth year for an injury-plagued QB on a team that has had incomparable QB woes the past season and a half? No thanks.
But, with his comments about the portal and needing to have “plug and play” schemes on offense & defense anticipating a higher turnover reality among the players, Whitt is definitely following his own advice to honor the process.
Being someone of a similar age, I get the idea that there comes a time when the job isn’t worth it anymore; and enjoying the grandkids and hobbies kicks in. At some point the grind really becomes a thing you don’t want anymore.
Whatever he chooses needs to be his decision at this point. Someone in administration making it for him would be wrong.
Yeah the article doesn’t offer any insights on where things might be headed; but given the fact our season ends on Friday we may know the answer sooner than later.
Maybe it’s just me, but Whit hasn’t looked like he has the same fire and intensity as he has previously had. He looks tired of it all. But who could blame him? Utah has had 45,000 injuries the past two seasons. Plus, he’s dealing with players transferring and transferring in left and right, not to mention NIL crap. He’s set for life financially, so I could totally see him saying, “I don’t need this crap anymore” and enjoying his grandkids and golf, tennis, and riding his motorcycle. But going out 4-8 or (hopefully) 5-7? That would suck.
Have you seen any evidence that Utah didn’t do everything possible to be in the B10? Literally every single B12 school would leap at the chance to make that switch.
Utah is not in the B10 because they were not wanted enough to split the revenue. It is that simple.
Like it or not, the B12 was and is our best option.
I don’t like it at all, but Yup!
It was the only real option we had. I sincerely hope, and vaguely believe, we will do what is necessary in the near term to be ready for a better option when the next realignment comes.
The Big XII was our best option and may continue to be our best option to compete financially. I really don’t see a situation where the U can financially compete in the Big10 or the SEC.
Utah would be able to compete in either the B10 or the SEC if it were a member and getting equal distribution- just like we did in the P12. Utah would still be at a disadvantage compared to the big dogs like Ohio St. and Georgia, but still in the ball park. Utah would be in a similar financial situation with schools like Iowa, Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Ole Miss.
Utah won’t be able to regularly compete with those schools because the B10 and SEC do not want to split revenue with teams that dilute the distribution. The P12 schools that were left behind lost a lot. We are not in as bad a situation as Oregon St. and Washington St.- but not in nearly as good a position as when we were in the P12.
Impressive insights, reporting and writing from the Trib’s Jason Bataco about Ludwig, Whitt, the Utes and the changing nature of football.
Bryson Barnes saw the complexities of Ludwig’s offense firsthand the summer before he joined the Utes in 2021. Ludwig sent Barnes a 50-page general information packet on the Utes’ offense. He said it took him about a year and a half to become confident with the system before he was ready to play.
“It’s definitely a learning curve because everything is so precise in that offense,” Barnes said. “There’s so many little intricate details that other colleges just don’t really care about and don’t worry about. But, when it comes to Lud’s offense, every little detail matters.”
Now Utah’s head coach is searching for an antidote for the times.
“You can’t have a scheme that’s so complicated and so in-depth that it takes a guy two or three years to learn it because you don’t have that time anymore,” Whittingham said. “So, that’s another conversation we’re having, another facet of what we’re doing that needs to be streamlined.”
Guy Holliday says that, while Whittingham is demanding — as he is with all of his coaches and players — he never took over Ludwig’s control of the offense.
“I think the biggest misnomer is that Whitt controls the offense,” Holliday said. “He really doesn’t. He gives the coordinator full autonomy, like any good head coach, he realizes the importance that the offense must marry up to the defense and special teams.”
The NIL probably played a big part. I’m not sure that exonerates him for not fitting the play calls to fit the players.
I’m not sure who’s supposed to help develop the QBs but aside from Brian Johnson and Rising, who really developed? We know Tyler Huntley did well, but was it because of the play calls or his athleticism?
I realize that things are going to be much more plug and play, at least for college ball. I read recently, I wish I could recall where, that the NFL is starting to look at college QBs who’ve started at least 2 years because so few QBs are developed any longer in the NFL.
So, this long-ish post is mostly thinking out loud, so to speak, but also wonder what will happen. Was part of the issue for Ludwig, that his plays were so complex, or QBs not smart enough to get it, or something else all together, or a combination?
It certainly seemed to me that when Wilson got pushed into the starting role, he was expected to have the offense down pat. We all saw that he was too busy thinking and not doing. Shouldn’t the OC have made things simpler for him, at least to start, then increase the complexity?
As I’ve said before I’m not a coach, I just play one on the internet.
I’d argue that he did. When it became apparent that Wilson was struggling with the reads and interception prone, what choice did he have but to work Bernard more?
You may very well be right. I did not get an opportunity to watch may games live this year. And when the losses piled up I didn’t pay close attention to the replays, just kinda listened while it was in the background.
This was a great article. I think it’s important into a big part of the struggle this year. But, in my mind, it also makes a case in a way for why Rose should have been #2 from the get go. It definitely does not squelch the rumors that NIL considerations had an impact or that the team thought Rose should have had the job when Rising went down.
I agree it’s a really impressive article, far beyond the typical. Finding and getting quotes from Mike Belotti, Drew Lisk, Barnes, Holladay - that’s way beyond what is expected, it’s like a historic S.I. work.
Brian Johnson in the Sugar Bowl was the apex of QB play in Lud’s system, the last two years have really exposed the risks of that complex of offense.
Wilson had some fraction of the offense, and as a true FR really struggled. In Year 3 Rose seemed much better prepped by the time he got the call late in the season…but it was also apparent the whole offense was motivated, suggesting chemistry issues.
Just how was Lud supposed to take a groups of lower to mid tier recruits and create a superior offense while keeping everything simple? If it was simple every team would have an elite offense.
