Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
"Coach McBride, Coach Meyer, Coach Whittingham, all of the other coaches and players that have been here, this is a tribute to them and all who have been a part of it." - Morgan Scalley, Utes Defensive Backs Coach and Recruiting CoordinatorThe University of Utah has officially moved into a new era, watching the Mountain West Conference from the rear-view mirror and looking forward to the Pac-12 Conference. There was excitement and gratitude in Utes Defensive Backs coach Morgan Scalley's voice as he recognized, or at least tried to recognize all of the people that have taken part in building the University of Utah into what it is now - a major player.
KSL's coverage continues Friday at noon for the official Pac-12 announcement, streaming live here on ksl.com and on KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 1160 AM.
Utah leaves the Mountain West Conference having won 4 football conference championships, going to 10 bowl games since its inception in 1999, and going 9-1 in those bowl games, which include the 2005 Fiesta Bowl and the 2009 Sugar Bowl wins. What does the future hold? That is always impossible to answer but if recruiting is any indication, things could go quite well. Recruiting is after all as Head Coach Kyle Whittingham calls it, "The lifeblood of the program." Recruiting coordinator Morgan Scalley is optimistic. "The difference has been in the interest. We are getting in homes that we didn't previously simply because we are in the Pac-12. If we win, then we will see a huge boost in recruiting and gain big-time momentum. Locally though, for in-state kids, there is now a BCS team in your home town."
Jeff Johnsen was a highly recruited local player out of Murray High School and was "Mr. Basketball" in the state for two consecutive years in 1995 and 1996. He is obviously elated about the new conference affiliation. "When we were on our run, we had a bunch of players that didn't get recruited by big schools. Guys like (Michael) Doleac were overlooked. Now that we are on the same playing field it is going to be easier to get better players. There is a difference in the players that go to the Pac-10, ACC, and Big East. Utah will now have a chance to get more program changing players every single year."
I remember as a young kid in 1993 going to the Huntsman Center when Arizona was coming to town for a non-conference game. I wanted to watch then star Damon Stoudemire and Khalid Reeves. Those games will now take place annually on the Huntsman Center court. Jeff Johnsen sums it up perfectly. "I am excited for the schedule and road trips. I am excited to go to the schools in Oregon, California, and Arizona as opposed to the other schools we used to go to. All the games will be more interesting."
All of the games will be more interesting, beginning with the football season that begins on September 1st.
