Utah ranked 7th in 2024 preseason poll

[ProudUte]

Preseason poll

I know this is virtually meaningless, but it is nice to get recognition. Hopefully, it helps with recruiting.

[DataUte]

Let those portal transfers see it and be part of 3rd conference championship in 4 years!

[Tony (admin)]

How? Half the team is gone. LOL

[GameForAnyFuss]

Because half of every other team is gone too, that’s how.

[Tony (admin)]

Which half?

[GameForAnyFuss]

The same half that left our team.

[Utah]

This is where people need to chill. Look at our returning starters:

Rising
Jackson/Bernard
Kuithe/King
Pittman/McClain

Our DL comes back. Our LB’ers come back.

Then you sprinkle in that our schedule gets exponentially easier…

People forget that Rising put up almost 40 points a game in the PAC-12 last year. He went toe to toe with Ohio State. And our defense only gave up 20 points a game this year. And the bad games? Those were mainly due to having no offense, except maybe the Arizona game, where we had no one.

We will be just fine next year. Three losses would be a disappointing season.

[Jim Vanderhoof]

I wish I was that confident. We have to replace 2 all American safeties. Road games in the Big 12 are hostile environments. Pittman-McClain doesn’t exactly strike any fear. Losing Matthew’s was a big loss. I hope you’re right with your assessment. We need some portal love!!

[Anfernee]

The Big12 is no gimme but I’d feel much less confident if I knew SC, Oregon, UCLA and Washington were on our schedule. I like our roster especially as it pertains to the new conference.

[Charlie]

At this point much is respect for the body of work over the last few years. Having a 6 year QB with the level of success Rising has had is very big. The defense will take care of itself. Adding Rising to the passing game and Bernard to the run game will make everyone on the offense more productive.

[Utah]

I’m gonna kinda unload here. I like you Jim, and this isn’t an assault on you but it might feel like it. I’m just using your post to vent. Here it goes:

F**k the Big 12. I am so tired of hearing how hard the Big 12 is. It isn’t. Good lord. Texas is gone. Oklahoma is gone. There isn’t a single venue that will be as hard to play in as playing in Eugene or Seattle.

Jesus Christ people. The talent in the Big 12 is so far below what it was in the PAC-12. I showed you guys recruiting the last 5 years and how Utah is better than everyone. And the last three years? Utah is significantly better.

There are so many that are acting like Kansas State and Oklahoma State is the same and Oregon and Washington.

They aren’t. Oklahoma State just went to the Big 12 title game and barely held their own against BYU and lost to South Alabama. If we were in the Big 12 this year, and we switch our USC over to Texas or Oklahoma…we’d be healthier and have a better record and are probably in the Big 12 title game…WITH A F**KING PIG FARMER AS OUR QB.

Our schedule is significantly easier next year. And our team will be better than we were this year. We didn’t have Rising and lost Barton for half the year. Those two alone will make a HUGE difference.

Then you add in a healthy Jackson and Bernard?

Come on people. Respect Utah. There is a reason why this publication has us at 7. We are damn good.

What were our toughest three games this year: USC, UW, Oregon. Compare that to next year: Arizona, TCU, UCF. Those aren’t the same.

If we aren’t a playoff team next year, it’s a disappointing year.

[Utah]

We have as good a shot as anyone in the country at being undefeated next year. And that’s not a compliment to the Big 12.

Times have changed and we have headed back to a MWC level conference. Our expectation every year is once again a conference title and playoffs, just like it was in the MWC. We expected to compete for a BCS game there. We should expect that again.

We have gone from a big fish in a small pond (MWC) to a big fish in an ocean (PAC-12) to a bigger fish in a lake.

And no fish in the lake is bigger than us. And if you think Whitt will relax now, that he is closer to national title than he has ever been before? You’re nuts.

[Charlie]

I agree on some points, other points maybe we should wait and see. I liked the Pac more than the Big 12 as well, better locations, but the Pac has had ups and downs they just had a great year last year. In other years each of Washington, Oregon, USC and UCLA have had years of little resistance. As for the Big 12, they are not the MWC. Year in and year out, don’t expect to fax in wins against TCU, Kansas St, West Virginia. UofA, ASU and Colo will be joining us and those schools will have teams in the next few years that will be hard to beat. Year in year out, the MWC will not at all have ranked teams anything like the Big 12. The Big 12 lost Texas and Oklahoma but they picked up 4 from the Pac that will often be ranked.

I like our chances in the Big 12 as well and should be favored next year. However, staying on top of the Big 12 will be more difficult than I think you believe. The Big 12 is not the SEC but I think there is more sunlight between them and the MWC than them and the SEC. Try to enjoy the ride.

[Utah]

I think you and I are closer to agreement than not. But, the new Big 12 isn’t as hard as the PAC-12. Not even close. Talent wise, especially. The PAC-12 had so much more talent.

Teams don’t go undefeated in the PAC-12. And that is not because the PAC-12 sucks. Oklahoma went undefeated almost yearly. The fact that you could argue that the top 4 Big 12 teams next year will be Utah, Arizona, Colorado and someone else tells you all you need to know.

And I don’t get why everyone’s rebuttal is “TCU, Kansas St, West Virginia could win!”

Yeah, they could. But they shouldn’t. That’s the difference. ESPN predicted that Utah would get between 7-8 wins every year due to that talent levels in the PAC-12. I’d bet that ESPN predicts Utah wins 10+ next year.

And why would staying on top be harder in the Big 12? We recruit California, Texas and Florida better than any non SEC/B1G team and not in that state. Why would this go down? Especially if we win the Big 12 next year.

Sure, NIL changes things. But it changes things for everyone. I’d rather be in Utah, which is the third best state to recruit from in the West, winning conference titles than be Kansas St, West Virginia, etc struggling to get to 8 wins.

In our most injured season ever, against our toughest schedule ever, we won 8 games.

TCU is the only other program at this level with our level of success. And they aren’t in a great place right now. Sonny Dykes won with Patterson’s people and struggled last year. Was it Patterson? Was it Dykes? We don’t know.

Sure, the Big 12 is better than the MWC. But it is still a long ways behind the PAC-12, and we are a championship level PAC-12 team.

This idea that the Big 12 should be tough for us…if we continue to do what we do, it shouldn’t. If we want to go into the B1G, it shouldn’t. If we are a top 30 recruiting team and closer to 20 than 30, it shouldn’t.

Now, we play the games for a reason. Anyone can win at any time. BUT, we come into this conference the most talented team with the most recent success, with the best returning starters, the best recruiters, the best coaches.

We should expect to be successful and be in the conference title game next year.

[2008 National Champ]

I get that you are unhappy Utah is joining the Big 12. You’ve made that patently clear in multiple threads. There’s nothing wrong with that emotion.

Most of the hyperbolic reasonings you are throwing out are just flat wrong and too numerous to rebut while still retaining sanity.