Why hasn't Utah 'won' the South?
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- This topic has 10 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 7 years ago by shakeitsugaree.
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shakeitsugareeParticipant
Spoiler: you won’t like the answer
With all of the weeping and gnashing of teeth regarding the current state of Utah football, I started wondering: do we have a ‘good’ program, or should we ‘nuke ’em all’ into orbit?
I took a look at the win totals/Pac12 South champions since the inception of the league; here’s what I came up with:
Zona: 4 (2011), 8 (2012), 8 (2013), 10 (2014), 7 (2015), 3 (2016) average 6.6
Devils: 6 (2011), 8 (2012), 10 (2013), 10 (2014), 6 (2015), 5 (2016) average 7.5
Buffs: 3 (2011), 1 (2012), 4 (2013), 2 (2014), 4 (2015), 10 (2016) average 4
UCLA: 6 (2011), 9 (2012), 10 (2013), 10 (2014), 8 (2015), 4 (2016) average 7.8
USC: 10 (2011), 7 (2012), 10 (2013), 9 (2014), 8 (2015), 10 (2016) average 9
Utah: 8 (2011), 5 (2012), 5 (2013), 9 (2014), 10 (2015), 9 (2016) average 7.6Highest win average:
USC 9
UCLA 7.8
Utah 7.6
Devils 7.5
Zona 6.6
Buffs 4South champions:
2011 UCLA
2012 UCLA
2013 ASU
2014 Zona
2015 SC/Utah – SC by tiebreaker
2016 ColoradoIt’s no surprise that number of total wins are less important for winning the south than number of conference wins. So, how does a team increase number of conference wins? Depth is a good answer, but if that were the only factor, SC would have won every year.
Truth is, in order to win our division, a team has to have a combination of the right coaches, healthy players, and favorable schedule. In short – luck. It takes a combination of being good, and being lucky. Just sayin.
Go Utes
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ladyinredParticipant
It’s so sad that last year was really ours for the taking up until November. We were all so disappointed, bitched and moaned about the offense, Kyle recognized the problems and staffing changes were made. Yet now, last year looks sooo good. *sniff*
As for this team, this year, I just want to see them play a single game to their potential. -
THEeyepatchParticipant
Last year, the Utes were both good and lucky but still managed to lose @ Cal and home against Oregon. By the last game, Colorado wanted it more over a Ute team that were playing for scraps. Good analysis but Utah is cursed to forever lose to teams it shouldn’t… At least under Whittingham.
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shakeitsugareeParticipant
Last year, the Utes were both good and lucky
So, which part of the year was lucky? The part where we lost so many OLinemen that we were down to our 5th string walk on center? The part where all four RBs went down, and we had to beg Joe Williams to come out of retirement?
With all due respect, you’re letting your disappointment cloud your judgement. What reasonable expectations have we not met? A nine win average? You’re only getting that if you have the endowment and history of USC – and even then, you would only have one (shared) south crown.
I get that you’re p**sed off, and you want to find a scape goat, and Whitt is the most obvious whipping boy – but take a step back and look at the entire body of work – and then give me some factual, non-emotional evidence that Whittingham’s performance warrants dismissal.
Thanks for the kind words about my post – I didn’t ‘thumbs down’ you BTW.
Cheers
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UtahParticipant
Beautiful. A literary work of art.
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ladyinredParticipant
Agreed.
I just ran across this article. Look who makes the writer’s list of candidates at #8. A name I’ve seen mentioned in many coaching search discussions. Lots of programs would love Whit and can see the situation more clearly than some Utah fans.
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noneyadbParticipant
I believe a lot of fans especially ones that come on these message boards, jump on Whitt for not meeting expectations set by Meyer, and the ’08 season. See posts of people wanting Gary Andersen to return… What this team accomplished last year with all the injuries, a 53% QB ranked 115th in fbs and still win 9 games, it’s a miracle they stayed competitive.
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UtesRockParticipant
QB position, play calling and execution in the red zone.
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shakeitsugareeParticipant
I agree those are things that Utah can improve on – will it translate to a South championship? No way to know. Can’t hurt
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TexanUteParticipant
Will the rebuilt Ute team be expected to win the South next year?
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shakeitsugareeParticipant
Not sure I understand your question – when did I say anything about a rebuilt team?
What I said is that Utah is third in total wins since the beginning of the league. The team that is first, USC, has a single (shared) Pac12 South crown. The team that is last, Colorado, has a single Pac12 South crown. UCLA has two, despite the fact that they average only 0.2 wins more per season than Utah. So the second best team in the division has the most Pac12 crowns.
Is there a pattern? No, there is not. As much as humans don’t like to admit it, much of this is left to chance. We like to have cut and dry, clear and simple reasons for everything, but it is simply not the case for most phenomena. The element of luck is as much a factor as coaching and recruiting.
Or, can you present data to the contrary?
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