Hearing every game that a “Whitt team” is physical, well coached, and executes. However the last two seasons we saw massive failures in execution, the team needing to be more physical, players quitting on bowl practice, etc..
2013- early season game vs Brigham, was a close hard fought game, both teams having a similar talent level. Brigham coming off a beat down of Texas, amped and ready, Utah stood toe to toe and came out victorious on the road.
2016- early season game vs Brigham. You can see the talent beginning to separate, but 6 turnovers allows Brigham to keep the game close.
2016- early season game vs Oregon State. First possession Utah looks dominate offensively and defensively, yet can’t pull away and barely escapes with a W.
2017- early season game vs Brigham, BYU unable to move the ball past the 50 yd line vs a rebuilding LSU. Comments of “only thing stopping Utah is Utah,” talent gap is growing, yet execution and multiple penalties keep the game close.
What’s changed that keeps this team from performing at the level equal to it’s talent?
What’s changed that keeps this team from performing at the level equal to it’s talent?
This is an interesting statement. Have we underperformed? If you look at the end result, the number of men into the NFL, maybe we have.
BUT, if you look at what Whitt has to work with, the lowest budget in the PAC-12, a weird in state school that pushes kids out of state because they don’t want to let god down (how stupid is that), that same religious institution doing everything they can to limit what Whittingham can do financially through the legislature, to the recruiting hurdles caused by said religious institution’s past and present record of bigotry, to Whitt having a MWC team and having to build it into a P5 school, etc…
Maybe Whitt hasn’t underperformed at all. Maybe what Whitt has done, is a god damn miracle.
Whenever this topic presents I always go back to Urban Meyer’s statement about the 2004 team, a good team in a bad program. I think Kyle has been working to build a good program that will offer up great teams. He’s been doing it brick by brick. We’re almost there. This year is pivotal.
Agree, Competing with the p5 schedule with given talent level Whitt has outperformed expectations up to 2016 season. But what has changed since then to cause these teams to now either underperform or not perform to the increased talent level? Dennis Erickson leaving? Constant changing assistants? Multiple 10+ penalty games, 3rd and 40 vs Arizona, terrible red zone offense, 6+ turnover games, escape with a 35-0 lead, to a disappearance of “Sack Lake City?”
Utah @ 
Baylor 
.
