Trailgoat

Sipping the Koolaide until the OSU game. Utah has everything in place to win the B12. Mostly all good for Utah to run the B12. Some of my fears/questions. How do Rising and Kuithe respond being out of football for so long? Can KW coach his team to play high level football throughout the season in the limelight? How does Utah respond to critical…[Read more]

No chance in hell FSU or Clemson are going to the B12. The ACC GORs and TV contracts all the ACC schools signed are the main barrier followed by the brands and revenue generating power of FSU and Clemson would be too much for the BIG/SEC to pass up. Media goons spouting BS. FSU and Clemson have a history of national brand success.

B12 programs are auditioning for the super conference beauty pageant whenever Espn, Fox, BIG and SEC decide to breakaway creating a Super Conference. If the ACC implodes like the P12. Clemson, FSU, Duke, NC and a few others in the ACC have too much national brand power and revenue generation to not be picked up by the BIG or SEC in some form. That…[Read more]

OSU is a must win game on the road for Utah. The OSU game tells us a lot how good Utah truly is compared to the Big 12 competition. Can Rising and KW win a big game on the road? Utah beats OSU and OSU loses to KSU the next week on the road essentially eliminates OSU. A lot at stake for Utah early on in the season.

Solid post and questions. IMO, the fist three games are crucial for Kuithe and Rising to knock the rust off, mentally and physically. Almost two years out from a top level sport takes time to get back, some never do. Woods and Ryan injuries remain a mystery to me unless I missed something, hopefully not for the coaches :). Ryan and Woods could be…[Read more]

RB blocking is a questionable. If Utah is going to throw the ball 25+ times a game, a solid blocking RB is critical for pass protection. This is the biggest loss with JQJs departure. Unless I’m missing someone, the current RB group is on the smaller size. Glover is a decent blocking back. Bernard will force teams to respect his pass catching…[Read more]

Regardless of the content and absurdity, the free national PR for Utah is never a bad thing.

Cautiously, yes. Concerns: injuries coming out of Fall camp, first three weeks of Rising’s return, Oline depth. KW has historically struggled to win as the coach under the national spotlight and there’s yearly WTF loss keeping Utah from being viewed as a great program. Bar is set very high this year with B12 Championship expectations and college…[Read more]

Agree. Who knows how it all shakes out. Guessing the top shelf league mirrors the NFL with 32 to 40 teams. At some point the SEC, BIG, ESPN, and Fox will rip the bandaid off and form their own league with the top money generators. Not sure Utah has the financial donor support, competent administration, or media market share to be in the top tier.…[Read more]

Good catch NarfUte. Maybe this is a new strategy shift by the athletic dept to get fans in the Huntsman? Go the Hollywood recruiting route. If Utah can get Keanu Reaves, Ryan Gosling, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Mark Wahlberg in the rotation, Utes sell out every game. Utah could also go for a Globetrotter format next season? Add in some new, up and…[Read more]

Harlan needs to go. Look at his two big hires at Utah (Farden and Smith) combined with his history at USF. Educate me on what Harlan has done to better the Utah athletic program that wasn’t already in place or in motion during Chris Hill’s tenure? First red flag for me was Harlan parading himself out if front of the Ken Garff donation and RES…[Read more]

Agree MD, KW making one last run this year. Ride off in his truck with Rising, Ludwig, Kuithe, and Bernard. All of the above and others I am missing have given their all for the UofU program. Good time to call it a career considering the volatility ahead facing college sports. Hopefully KW stays visible in the Ute football consulting role…[Read more]

Agree, Not excited. The NIT is a side show for ESPN to make some cash filling air time during off days of the NCAA tourney. Add in at least 2-3 missed lay-ups and countless missed uncontested shots within 10 feet of the basket. Season likely ends Wednesday for Utah against Indian St basically a home game for the Sycamores at Hinkle Fieldhouse. No…[Read more]

College basketball continues on the decline. Personally, the college BB game overall is hard to watch. As for Utah, poor free throw shooting, missed lay-ups, ball watching defense, long stretches of overall bad basketball is not fun to watch. As for talent, half the team is made up of mid to lower level D1 players.

Purely a pot stirring opinion…[Read more]

Good point. UNLV is the perfect investment for big money entities to dump cash for players and coaches. The location, facilities, and entertainment are all there in LV. Surprised it hasn’t happened yet, or in the works. UNLV could be the Bishop Gorman of college football. Like it or not, this is where it’s headed. In terms of fans wanting to check…[Read more]

Utah at the moment has a worse/almost equal record going into the last four conference games than last season in a league overall down (USC, UCLA, UO) compared to last year. If Utah goes 3-1, they are 10-10 in conference, same as last year to end the season. Utah is not beating UO in Eugene. Cal could be a tough out for Utah even at home. Utah…[Read more]

Keep Rising healthy with a game plan like UO did for Nix last season. Oline gets back on track. Can’t overlook Utah coached teams struggle playing well in big games when the target is on their back and the 1-2 games every year, usually on the road, Utah forgets to show up and play. Three losses is not going to get it done, two losses likely won’t…[Read more]

Agree, non-playoff bowl games are a holiday money grab for the networks and coaches. Most schools lose money or barely break even on the non-impact bowl games. If Utah does not make the play-off I doubt there’s much interest from fans and players to play in some meaningless bowl game especially after the NU bowl game. No way a healthy Rising,…[Read more]

IMO, Harlan won’t stick around long enough to fire Smith next year. Tough situation for the BB team moving to the B12 next season. Harlan’s years of riding the Chris Hill bandwagon are fading. Chris Hill was not perfect, I get it. Harlan’s had to make two big hires so far in his time at Utah, Farden and Smith. Harlan jumped ship when things got…[Read more]

Painful to watch. This team struggles to play fundamental basketball. Can’t make free throws, leave a ton of easy baskets on the floor, a lot of ball watching, missed lay ups. When things start going South, the team checks out. Could not get to half time fast enough. Utes need a huge turn around if they have any chance of getting back in this thing.