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SALT LAKE CITY — By now you’ve likely heard the rumors that Kyle Whittingham is leaving the University of Utah and will accept a coaching role at BYU, and new Oregon State head coach Gary Andersen will jump ship to become Utah’s new head coach.
If you’re reading these rumors for the first time, you’ve had a successful Christmas vacation void of the up-and-down roller-coaster ride of Twitter — congrats! For those Utah (and some BYU) fans that have stayed up-to-date on the rumors, it’s been an emotional week for those that support Whittingham and the current coaching staff or want to see changes made on the hill.
The rumors stem from reports of a fractured relationship between Whittingham and Utah Athletic Director Chris Hill. According to those close to the situation as told to KSL.com, Whittingham has been said to be frustrated throughout the process of contract negotiations with Hill over re-signing several members of his coaching staff.
As KSL.com reported earlier this month, Whittingham and Hill were in discussions to re-sign defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake and other members of the coaching staff. After Sitake and defensive line coach Ilaisi Tuiaki left to accept coaching positions at Oregon State, Whittingham was upset Hill would not give Sitake a better offer, according to the Deseret News.
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Over the Christmas break, several conflicting reports had Whittingham either leaving to seek another coaching position or remaining as Utah’s coach. The problem: sources are saying conflicting things to various media types. While all may be correct based on the information given to them, nothing has been confirmed by the university — by Hill, Whittingham or the athletics department.
And frankly, Whittingham may still be on the fence about whether he wants to remain Utah’s head coach based on the perceived support he’s received from Hill. The one thing that’s certain, though, is that silence from the university may not be the best answer to the rampant speculation, particularly when from the outside it looks as though Utah is a disorganized mess.
While the University of Utah should not be forced to address every rumor thrown out there, one that pits the athletic department — Hill — against one of its most successful football coaches — Whittingham — is only going to cause commotion for fans, boosters and recruits, thus hurting the university moving forward.
As the saying goes, “where there’s smoke there’s fire”; however, how big that fire is and to what extent is still unknown until the university makes an official statement. Whittingham is undoubtedly looking after his best interest — support from the university and job security — and that of his coaching staff, but so is Hill who has to weigh decisions based on the program’s future — whether popular or not.
Until a decision is made and released by the university, everything is on the table and likely will be discussed ad nauseum until the saga reaches its conclusion.
Here is what we know: Whittingham is under contract until December 2017, pending termination by either himself or the university. Sitake, Tuiaki and Christensen are moving on to new football programs. Anything beyond that is purely speculative until confirmed by the university.
As journalists we all want to be connected in the areas we report, and most hopefully strive to do it accurately and correctly based on the information provided to us from reliable sources. While sometimes we err, and KSL.com has erred in the past, few haphazardly throw out information based on a whim. If so, credibility is thrown out the window and few will respect the reporting.
