Estimated read time: 9-10 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah football had big aspirations for its 2023 season — even with Cam Rising's injury status still in question going into August.
The team hoped to defend its conference championship as it pursued the rare three-peat title, but there's a reason why the feat is so rare. It's difficult to win consistently in college football and maintain one's spot at the top of the figurative food chain.
That point was punctuated with the bevy of injuries sustained before and throughout the season that left head coach Kyle Whittingham guessing any given week on who would be available to suit up each coming weekend.
In total, Utah had at least 10 season-ending injuries and more than 30 players that were included on the school's two-deep roster that missed at least some time due to injury. In some cases, the backup to the backup was hurt, and Utah had to rely on its depth — sometimes heavily — en route to an eight-win season.
It was a win total that was a few games off from the lofty expectations heaped upon the team — mostly self proclaimed — and a disappointment to a subset of the Utah fan base.
Whittingham called it one of the most difficult coaching jobs of his career as he navigated the ebb and flow of injury chaos that persisted throughout the season amid an improved pool of Pac-12 teams. It was enough chaos, even, that Utah athletic director Mark Harlan said it may have been Whittingham's best coaching of his career.
"As I reflect on the season and still doing a deep dive on everything, it's become apparent to me this might have been the best coaching job that Whitt and the staff have accomplished in my time here," Harlan recently told KSL.com in a wide-ranging interview. "As I think back to a year ago, with what the roster looked like and where it ended up, winning eight games was quite an accomplishment."
An accomplishment that never could have happened years ago as Utah made the jump from the Mountain West to the Pac-12. Utah found out quickly that depth was key to winning consistently as a team in a Power Five conference. It's why for years after joining the Pac-12, Whittingham preached the gospel of depth any chance he could.
If back-to-back championship didn't speak to why that was necessary, it was the 2023 season, in which Utah remained a conference title contender until a narrow defeat on the road to a team that eventually played in the national championship game, that spoke volumes.
Harlan said it wasn't just what "everyone saw on Friday nights or Saturdays" that convinced him of that, but more the "work that went in during the week" from Whittingham and the coaching staff. In short, it was a "very impressive year," Harlan said.
"In terms of where we wanted to end up, of course not," Harlan added. "We really had aspirations to three-peat, which is apparently pretty hard to do, because it's never been done in the league, so I'm very proud of the team, proud of coach and everything he accomplished. And now, really looking forward to getting after it again this first year in the Big 12."
But even the fact that a Las Vegas bowl appearance felt like a disappointment to the team and fans shows how far Utah has come as a program that consistently chases conference championships, New Year's Six bowl games and potential playoff berths.
"It's certainly another sign of how far we've come," Harlan said. "And let me say, the Las Vegas Bowl, the week, was fabulous for the guys. Really appreciate everybody in the bowl, thought they really treated us just incredible. Obviously, we didn't play the way we wanted to play, but, again, I think it goes to a lot of the reasons — we're not in the excuse business — yet goes to a lot of the reasons that we all saw this year.
"But it does say a lot about the program, that the expectations are to win championships here. Now, the expectations are to be in this new expanded playoff formula. We're going to invest in that way to be in that position as we have been. We're going to turn over every stone to make sure that we're in that derby every year. Our fans have high expectations, but guess what, so do our guys and so do the coaches, and so we're all aligned in that way."
A move from the Pac-12 to the Big 12 doesn't change that fact for Harlan and the department he oversees. And in case there was any doubt the football team would still have Whittingham as its coach, Harlan said there's no indication the longtime coach has any reason to retire just yet.
"I think the feeling that he has is that as long as he's still enjoying it, as long as he still has his health and his energy and his passion, he's our coach," Harlan said. "And look no further to what he said after the Las Vegas Bowl to the guys: We're gonna go after a Big 12 championship. ... So he's ready to roll. I think he's excited about getting into the Big 12, excited about what the new playoff will look like. When he's ready, he'll let me know."
A jump to the Big 12
Though a move to the Big 12 should feel like less of a hurdle for Utah than it did transitioning from the Mountain West to the Pac-12, there are still hurdles along the way for the Utah athletic department. And the biggest factor may just be the unfamiliarity with what Utah is getting itself into with the move — new venues, new teams, etc.
Whittingham has worked hard to rebuild his roster for the 2024 season — including a roster that will feature Rising, Brant Kuithe, and several incoming transfer players that should supplement an already competitive team — and will likely be a favorite going into their first season in the conference.
But conference titles aren't won on paper, and Utah athletics has to balance looking ahead to the future, while the rest of the teams still compete in the Pac-12. It's a balancing act to stay present in the Pac-12 while keeping an eye on the future and studying what the move will entail.
Harlan said Utah has created several committees — 11 different working groups — on the administrative side to look ahead while still focusing on the present. Some are looking at what broadcasting games will look like, what travel will entail, and others will look at health and safety of the athletes, among others.
"We're defending so many championships," Harlan said. "Every time we match up, it's a historic moment, because the last time you're playing them here, the last time you're playing there. ... These moments are occurring weekly, and we want our students to have the best possible experience as they go through this. At the same time, now that our fall sports are done, they are all laser focused on the next step for them.
"It's an exciting time," he added. "I think the melancholy that was going on maybe in July, August has left the building. I think now it's more excitement about what's next, and I've certainly seen that with our student-athletes, and I've seen it across the board with all our coaches and administration. We're really excited about this next step."
As these various working groups and committees look ahead and do a "sport by sport analysis" of their place in the Big 12, Harlan believes his various athletic programs, starting with the football program, have a great chance to compete at a high level in the new-look Big 12.
"I think that there are real opportunities for us to go in and compete right away and chase down championships right away, but there's some really good teams in this conference and a lot of parity — different teams winning on different years; that's what you want," Harlan said. "I think it's highly competitive, and I think we've also noticed that the enthusiasm to attend events in this conference is at a very high level.
"When they get there to be able to compete in those kind of environments, we're just going to attack it with complete enthusiasm and do our homework," he added. "But I think we can slide in there and be competitive very quickly."
Bringing back the Utah State series
A move to the Big 12 created an immediate problem for the Utah football team for the 2024 season. Utah already had Baylor and BYU — soon to be conference foes — on the schedule as nonconference games. With football games being scheduled years out in advance — sometimes even a decade out — there were few options available to Utah.
Harlan said Jeff Rudy, associate athletics director for football administration and the person largely responsible for the football schedule, "burned the phone for more hours than you can imagine" trying to find the right matchup to fill both games.
But it quickly became apparent that finding two nonconference games would be arduous.
Utah didn't feel as though it could reschedule two nonconference games quickly, so Harlan and his staff worked with the Big 12 and Baylor to keep that previously scheduled home-and-home series — the first part came last season in Waco — a nonconference game, while moving the BYU game to a conference game. All parties agreed.
That still left a hole in the spot of the BYU game, though.
Eventually, Utah State was identified as the natural best option available — an in-state opponent that would present the Utes a good challenge while resuming an old rivalry game not played since 2015. It was announced as a two-for-one series, with the first being played at Utah State and the other two played at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Sept. 19, 2026, and Sept. 13, 2031.
The series came about almost fortuitously, Harlan explained.
Utah State's athletic director Diana Sabau, who took over the position on Aug. 21, 2023, is a friend of Harlan's. The two agreed to lunch, Harlan said, to "get her feet on the ground" in her new role. As the two prepared for lunch, Rudy informed Harlan that Utah State just so happened to have an opening on their 2024 football schedule.
"I laughed and we went to lunch, and I told her that it felt like a two-for-one was appropriate based on the market and the model, and she agreed," Harlan said. "And then I said, 'Oh, by the way, we've got to go there next year.' She kind of looked at me, and kind of a smile appeared on her face, so we're excited about it. It's great when you can have games in state.
"I didn't realize until somebody told me — I go fast sometimes — that we're playing three in-state teams next year, which is very unique. ... We're excited about the schedule next year."
