Not safe yet, prevailing smoke is Smith is trying to lure Burgess down there as associate head coach
Quannas White is the exact type of sneaky hire Dr. Chris Hill was famous for making. White is on his 8th season under Kelvin Sampson at Houston and was recently promoted to Associate Head Coach. The staff at Houston has proven to do more with less for years…exactly the type of coaching talent that’s needed at Utah. And Houston plays the most exciting brand of basketball that’s hard-nosed, up tempo, in your face defense…I think White would be my ideal hire to finally bring Utah MBB back to prominence.
College Basketball’s best assistant coaching staffs (Houston)
I don’t associate with Ute fans outside of this website and my immediate family, but I haven’t seen anyone throwing him under the bus. I haven’t seen anyone state he’s less than at least a top 20 coach.
Sure, some whine about certain things he does,but even those people know he’s a damn good coach.
Ranking of Sports Media Markets
Good post and I stand corrected. Here’s a link to the media markets that shows which schools are associated with each market. SLC at #27 is comparable to Indianapolis at #25. Kentucky goes with Lexington which is small in comparison at #63. As you pointed out, Illinois shares Chicago #3 with a list of schools but the 2 B1G schools are Northwestern and Illinois. However, my point still stands. Media market size isn’t as important as it was 10 years ago. More important in determining the value a school brings to the table is measuring Brand in terms of overall TV ratings. Another thing to keep in mind is that one thing Utah has going for it is geography. Because Utah isn’t competing with Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky for a spot. There is going to be a pod of at least 6 schools in the West, maybe 8 or 10. That said, Utah’s competition is with Colorado, ASU, Arizona, Stanford, and Cal. I’ve seen some media people pair Utah/Colorado with the current 4 B1G Western schools. Utah’s success over the past decade has lifted the brand considerably. Colorado has seen a meteoric rise due to the Coach Prime effect that there are concerns around whether that will last or not, especially if Deion were to leave Colorado. But the other big thing going for Colorado is it would bring back the Nebraska/Colorado rivalry. And rivalries are part of the whole Brand equation because rivalry games draw the largest amounts of eyeballs. It’s actually one of the reasons why TSPP is brought up because of the Holy War being one of the Top 15 ranked rivalries in CFB. From what I’ve seen, I’m most concerned with Colorado, Stanford, and ASU. I believe Utah has passed up Arizona and Cal. And it appears that although the B1G Presidents would much prefer to bring in Stanford/Cal due to their elite academics, the TV Networks will end up overruling them in favor of schools that bring better TV ratings such as Utah. For that reason, I like our chances over the Bay area schools. The one reason why Stanford concerns me is their long-standing relationship with Notre Dame. Maybe Notre Dame would advocate for bringing in Stanford in order to finally give up Independence and join the B1G. The B1G will do whatever Notre Dame wants if it were to join the conference. But for Utah to be in strong contention for being one of the schools considered out West is nothing short of a miracle and we have Kyle Whittingham, the entire coaching staff, and a long list of school administrators to thank for getting Utah to this level…truly REMARKABLE!
Wasn’t it something to do with personal family issues? The upshot is that he’s no longer associated with Utah. That being said, this article from last week’s Deseret News still has him as a transfer to Utah:
Which transfer players could make biggest impact for Utah in 2024?
Yeap. One of the referees last night was BYU’s baseball manager for a decade. I guess that because he’s no longer associated with BYU no one thought it was a big deal.
Jim, you ever hear of the “Golden Rule”? When I was growing up in Miami that was interpreted as “thems that’s got the gold make the rules.” No doubt that there’s a lot of money associated with college football and basketball. The problem is that all of that money is concentrated, relatively speaking, in a few handfuls of programs.
Look at it this way, if college athletes are deemed employees of schools nationwide, and we know that the vast majority of college sports programs do not make money in the current, more equitable system. where’s the money going to come for the Weber States or Idahos or UVUs of the world to both maintain an athletic infrastructure AND play college athletes?
I still feel incredibly fortunate that we were able to join the PAC 12. It felt like Christmas every day during those initial years. I could hardly believe it was happening; I never thought the day would arrive. Since then, the University has grown significantly, with new buildings, improved finances, and greater recognition. The excitement of that 2010 announcement and the holiday-like feeling still lingers for me each year. So, yes, there’s a sense of nostalgia and loss associated with leaving the PAC 12, given how much it has meant to us.
Nevertheless, the University has positioned itself exceptionally well for the transition to the BIG 12 and any potential future expansions. As a Ute fan, I’m grateful for the PAC 12 experience, and I anticipate being equally appreciative of the BIG 12 experience. It presents an opportunity for teams and fan bases unfamiliar with Utah to experience what we have to offer. Hopefully, we’ll extend a warm welcome to them and, after a solid beating in football, send them home with the best possible losing experience.
GO UTES!
True. And no program, no player really wants to rock the NIL boat or say anything that ‘devalues’ them. I just think these ‘offers’ are potential but rarely realized and money in the athlete’s pocket. Or affiliate deals like the trucks where there is value, but they also have to pay taxes, etc. with their own cash (unless supplemented). I also think there are some conditions associated with some, which doesn’t seem right (you have to start enough, etc. to make value for your NIL for the benefiting party). But mostly it’s just boosters passing money to the athletes above board rather than below the table as before. Where’s momma’s house or paid for car (ala Reggie Bush, SMU)?
Would you keep a guy that lied to your face and potentially derailed your season by not being honest about his injury situation? I know I wouldn’t. This is not Whitt’s first rodeo. If he didn’t know the extent of Rising’s injury that’s as bad as thinking he could play this year with a blown-out knee. I’m sure that there’s a lot of smoke and innuendos associated with this issue that we’ll never be privy to because it paints a lot of people in a bad light.
Utah @ 
BYU 
