Head Coach: It’s amazing to think about but Kyle Whittingham is entering his 20th season as the head coach of the Utes with a 162-79 record. He’s seen them through so many chances and is now ready to embark on another one with Utah entering the Big 12. It’s been awesome to see him continue to build this program and stay for as long as he has. Defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley was recently named “Coach-in-waiting” on his new contract extension which makes you wonder how much longer until we see Whittingham’s last ride.
Program Outlook: In 2011 Utah joined the Pac-12 as an upstart program looking to establish themselves in a power conference for the first time. It took some time, but by the end of their time in the Pac Utah left as one of the top programs in the conference including entering last season as the back to back conference champs. Now Utah enters a new conference once again, but they aren’t just looking to compete, they expect to come in and contend for conference championships/playoff births immediately.
How does the 2024 Roster look?: This is looking like one of the strongest rosters in the Big 12, there’s a lot of production back and that’s a misleading number, no one who threw a pass last year is back but…Cam Rising is back after being marked “questionable” for half the season before people starting asking questions and he revealed his injury was much worse than originally known publicly. He was the star of this offense and they sorely missed both him and TE Brant Kuithe to injury last year. Utah has a lot of receivers back who could step up with more consistent QB play, and they add Dorian Singer who was severely underutilized at USC. The Utes defense was forced to carry the load last year as the offense frequently found itself in a conservative protect mode. There’s 8 starters back, and they selectively added a few guys to help in the secondary so no reason to expect a drop off. Health is going to be key overall, Utah had a lot of injuries last year but it also means they have more experienced depth this year.
Screenshot from fbschedules.com1
2024 Schedule Thoughts: Utah has a fun schedule. They have a “non-conference” conference game against Baylor because of a previous agreement and a couple in-state matchups. Overall this is a favorable schedule for Utah to reach the playoff. The Utes avoid the Kansas schools, and a few other contenders. The biggest challenge is going to be some of these road tests, Oklahoma State/UCF will be tough teams Utah faces in environments they aren’t familiar with, they also can’t afford to trip up against Arizona State, historically games in that state have been a house of horrors for the Utes.
Vegas Projection: Utah’s win total is set at 9.5 with the odds greatly leaning toward the over. Utah is also the odds on favorite to win the Big 12 at +300 and their playoff odds are at +260. These indicate Utah is clearly in the playoff mix.
2024 Best Case: The offense stays healthy and the defense remains stringent. The Utes open 3-0 easily and then go on the road in a showdown with Oklahoma State who’s also undefeated. It’s a back and forth battle but Cam Rising runs in a touchdown in the last minute to win the game. Utah doesn’t see a letdown against Arizona, beats the Wildcats and follows it up by dominating down the stretch including winning on the road over a very hyped up Colorado team that was finally in the middle of their breakthrough under Deion. Utah is tested late at UCF but the Utes are unbothered and win the game. Utah then handles Kansas State to win the Big 12 and get the 2 seed in the playoff. Utah beats a SEC team in the first playoff game then takes down Ohio State to make it to the National Championship. The Utes face Georgia there and battle hard but ultimately falls short of Georgia in that game but it’s still an incredible season as the Utes announce they’re a team that can contend for national titles. Meanwhile BYU is forced to start over after a miserable season.
2024 Worst Case: Utah isn’t ready for a new conference and new environments. They struggle to find footing on offense and the defense regresses. The Utes open 2-0 but it quickly crashes with an upset loss at Utah State, and the Utes reel from there losing to Oklahoma State, Arizona and then at Arizona State. It’s an incredibly disappointing stumble to 5-7 with losses to BYU and Colorado. Worse yet BYU actually has a good season and their fans ask Utah how they’re enjoying the Big 12.
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