Risk of the mackfield with Montgomery three receivers on the right hand side, Utah showing some pressure.
Now they back away from them.
Now they bring a safety up, four man rush risk looking surveying, throwing down the field, and it's intercepted at the forty, at the fifty, at the forty, at the thirty, a convoy to the end.
Zone and a touchdown.
It's a Via Bond with a pick six in his final game as a Utes.
Wow.
Well it's not eleven o'clock circa four or five months ago. It is two thirty on a Wednesday afternoon. Hopefully we brought a little nostalgia to the listeners today as the voice himself, the Voice of the Utes, Bill Riley, stops by on a Wednesday afternoon.
Ryle's happy Wednesday. How you doing spend.
Some good things going good on a Wednesday. I don't know what's gone faster, the fact that I've been off the air, not doing my show for four or five months, or the football season. It was like the football season went by really glad. I know it wasn't the season anybody wanted. I get that part of it, but it just felt like it was like the Southern Utah or the Baylor game just the other day.
I can't believe the season's over.
Yeah, I mean I talk about it all the time.
All we do when football is gone is complain and wait for it to come back, and then we're like miserable when it's here and then it's gone. It's like you need to enjoy it even when the season isn't what you hoped it would be, because it does come and go really quickly.
Yeah.
I've always said it's the season we wait longest for and it goes by the fastest. Nobody ever said, man, that NBA season just flew by. Nobody ever said, oh, that NHL or that baseball season flew by. But we always talk about football season like it was a blink of an eye.
No doubt, no doubt.
So Ryle's on a Wednesday afternoon, I have to ask you, Early Signing Day hot or not?
I would say not.
I feel like the transfer portal has overtaken.
National Signing Day? Does that make sense?
In the old days, we were all about the signing day and press conferences and who I just feel like everybody is like, Okay, that's great, but most of these kids aren't even going to play for a couple of years, if or even with our program in a few years. The transfer portal opens next week. Who can we go out and get Yeah?
No, I'm with you there.
I wonder how many of our listeners have any sort of context or frame or reference as to why I'm posing the question that way. But we don't need to dig into it any further. I will ask you, Yeah, a different time. It was a different time, for sure, in a lot of different ways. Bill, a different time. But I'll ask you. I'm not going I mean, I've got the list in front of you. We're doing kind
of just live tracking here. Instead of going down the list, I'll just ask you, is there any buzz about any of these young players that Utah has locked in that you're hearing about up on the Hill.
No, I mean it's kind of quiet today to be really fair. Again, I just think even schools and universities they're publicizing it, but it's just not quite what it was. It's very interesting to me that the quarterback they landed, not the kid from southern California, but the Texas State commit flipped just a couple of days ago. You know, does that have anything to do with a potential offensive
coordinator Flip. And then the Thatcher kid, the linebacker, who I think is going to be a really really good kid too. I like him a lot as well. But it's just so hard today. It used to be oh man, which one of these guys is going to play next year?
You know?
What are they going to be in a couple of years? And now it's just kind of like, Okay, I hope they stick around to develop because college football's become such a here and now, Spence. It's not about you know, you know, being in a program two or three years in biding your time. It's about, okay, how quickly you're going to get on the field. And if I can't get on the field, where can I go and get on the field?
Now?
Yeah?
Yeah, well okay, so let's just move on from it. Then there's really nothing to dig into. And as I tell our listeners, we'll continued to update Shah on the breaking news that comes down if any of us rolls our way, but we do. We are in a spot now. We're waiting to hear who the play caller is going to be next year. As far as the OC. The offensive coordinator Ben Rbuckle, who was the name that was kind of floated out ends up at Oklahoma after doing
a really good job on the polue. So I'll just ask you if any buzz you're hearing anything about any names, any idea when we may hear an announcement.
I think, well, I think it's the priority right now. I mean, I think the longer this goes, it feels more and more to me like Kyle Whittingham's coming back. I don't know anything, I honest with people have I've been bombarded all day long with text messages for the last four or five days. Kyle's been very hush about it. He told me over the weekend with Weary more Lander. He goes, hey, I'll let you know if something changes. I'm like, great, thanks. I haven't heard anything from him.
So so I think if we're going to play the car, you know, it's always there's not going to be a press conference. If Kyle Whittingham comes back, might be release says hey I'm back for a couple more years whatever. But I'm approaching this as business as usual. So to your point, the offensive coordinator is the most important hire right now. I do know that they coveted the Arbuckle OC from Washington State, and a lot of people saw
that connection and bringing the Materier kid his quarterback with him. Well, Oklahoma apparently swept in last second and must have made him an offer he couldn't refuse because he's now in Norman, Oklahoma. My guess is the quarterback Matier goes with him. So now it's on to the next I'm reading a lot
of the same stuff that you're reading. I do know that this name, the mac Leftwich name from Texas State is somebody I even heard a week or two ago when our Buckle's name was starting to come up too. He runs a really good offense. It's a balanced offense. They throw it quite a bit, but they run it as well. At Texas State. He's one of those young and up and coming former college quarterbacks. Really done some good things, one of those hot young names. People say
Texas State. Well, Texas State's pretty good program and he's had a lot of experience and he's recruited Texas So I think that's a name to keep an eye on. And then there's some other stuff out there as well. I mean there's a guy at Tulane to people like a lot. They've mentioned the ULV coach, although he might have plans to go bigger or try and get a head coaching job, But I think the name that's intriguing to me right now is the OC from Texas State, mac Lethwich.
So you I want to follow up you touched on coach with But I want to follow up because of course, as you know, I mean, if I'm getting text ryles, I can't imagine what your phone is sounding like and looking like with everybody really wanting to know what's going to happen. And I started the show off today surmising that because there is no news, I do believe that means he's coming back. And I suppose the exception would be if he hasn't decided. But that seems pretty anti
Kyle to me. He's not a wishy, washy like emotional guy. He strikes me as the type there would just decide and boom, move on to whatever's next. And I don't think he would put Morgan in a spot of ambiguity, and I don't think he would put the program or Mark Carlan the ad in a spot of like okay, wondering what the deal is? So for me the fact that there is no news does me and the coach with will be back on the sidelines for Utah?
Is that kind of where your head is at right now? Give me your thoughts on that.
Yeah, just because he's talked so much Spence about doing what's best for the program, because it's it's his program.
He's done.
He's sunk twenty years as head coach in thirty years of his life at the University of Utah.
He is more.
Synonymous with this football program than probably any player that played for him over the last twenty years.
And he's talked in the last couple of weeks.
About whatever his decision is, he was going to do the best for the program. Well, holding out and making a decision a week or ten days that isn't what's best for the program.
And at least in my mind, you know, if you're going to.
Make that decision, you make it, You make that change, you let the new guy get in. That's Morgan Scalley coach and waiting and go from there. So the fact that we're sitting here on Wednesday now, maybe it has something to do with National Signing Day. I don't know. I don't think that's the case. But you know, it's not as if you just started thinking about it Friday after the game. It's probably been something he's been mulling
over for a little while. So the fact that we're sitting here on Wednesday and we've really heard no news, I'm kind of with you. I don't know this again, no news, you know, officially to Bill Riley, But my inkling would be because he's talked about doing what's right and what's best for the program, it kind of feels like it's trending toward him returning.
Yeah, I'm with you on that, all right.
There was a rumor yesterday that Noah Flafida was hitting the transfer portal.
That has been dispelled.
Noah's father told the ESPN that he's staying at Arizona. I only bring it up, Bill, because yesterday I was just kind of talking aloud about the possibility of you Ti hitting the transfer portal to find quarterback. You watched every game up close, You called all these games up close. Do you feel like the answer under center is in the room or in the transfer portal?
I think you probably have to go find somebody. Spence, I do.
I think I like some of the stuff I saw from Brandon Rose. I do, and Brandon's got a couple of years left of eligibility. But you know, I to me, and it's really going to be up to the new offensive coordinator, whoever that happens to be, to evaluate what his room looks like. But I think the head coach knows they have to have somebody, you know. I think Isaac Wilson could still be a terrific quarterback. But Isaac Wilson was thrown into a tough situation as a true freshman,
and I think it takes a little time to marinate. Heck, look look at Dylan Ryola Spence who's at Nebraska. He was supposed to be the second coming of Patrick Mahomes this year and he's just been okay. He's had a lot of downs and ups. I just think it's tough at the power forward level as a true freshman without any game experience to come in and be successful. So I still think I'm still a guy that thinks Isaac
Wilson could be a big quarterback. But I think redshirting for a year and maybe sitting back and looking and watching would be very beneficial.
I think that was the plan.
I think the plan all along was sit and learn from Cam Rising for a year, but obviously that went sideways. So to me, I think you're probably going to shop the portal and try and find somebody.
So as of now, I believe, at least from what I understand today, and certainly pieces of news I could have missed. But is it only Jalen Glover who said the transfer portal from the utes.
Or anybody else they've lost.
I feel like the only name I've heard of note has been Jalen and he left prior to the end of the season.
Yeah, I think I saw a couple of notes that some not frontline guys, some guys that were maybe reserve players. Maybe it hit the portal, But yeah, you're right, there's been nobody of note that has hit the portal. In fact, you've seen some of the guys on social media, the Spencer Fanos and the Cam Calhouns and the smith Snowdens, some of these really good, young, talented cornerstone pieces kind
of reaffirmed they're coming back. In twenty five, Logan Fano did the same thing, So, yeah, Glover hit it up. You know, a week or so ago, I saw a couple of you know kind of reserve type players that maybe did, but nobody of note.
Well, that's excellent news, and obviously there's plenty of time. The portal officially opens on the ninth. So here's how I'll pose the question to you, Bill, what gives you the most confidence that this year was an anomaly and a moment in time as opposed to the new normal for Utah.
Football because we haven't seen dips like this. It was back to back, I mean a year ago.
You know.
I teach the class up of to you, and I had one of the kids in my class the other day make a presentation on Utah football and what it was, and he brought up an interesting stat. Had Utah Football's offense simply averaged twenty four points a game this year, they would have gone I think nine to three. Had they averaged twenty eight points a game this year, I think he said, they would have gone ten and two.
Twenty eight points to twenty four points are double digit points lower than what they averaged the two years they won the Pac twelve championship. It just hasn't been like this. I think injuries and attrition and a little bit of bad luck have Befallen this team. The defense was still outstanding. They were in every game in the fourth quarter, with the exception of I think the Colorado game where they were double digits down there, But besides that, they were
in every game. Just some pretty average quarterback play this year Spence and Utah would have been I'm not going to say it would have won the pack.
I don't know if they would.
Have won the Big twelve, but averaged to slightly above average quarterback play and they would have been in that discussion last weekend with BYU and ASU and c is in Colorado and Iowa State. So that to me says there's still a lot of talent in the program, but they've got to get it fixed at the most important position.
Which leads me to Cameron.
Of course, when coach Witt was asked about Cam potentially coming back for year number eight, which is just it's so crazy to think about the potential, but that's the deal now, Kyle said it's up to him. I wonder what Kyle would do if Cam called him and said, hey, I got to talk to you, enrolled into the coach's office and said I've thought about it. There's some Nile money out there, and I've decided to come back for
your aid. If we take Kyle at his word, he just opens the door, right, Like, what do you think Coach Witt does if that scenario presents itself That.
I don't know, because I don't.
It's hard to, you know, after back to back seasons were Cam. I mean Cam's been here five years and he has been hurt season ending injuries in three of those five years. We all forget the COVID year where he hurt his shoulder in that USC first second game of the year, and then of course you had the end of the Rose Bowl, and then he missed the entire season, and then this year too. That's a lot of track record of injury to bring back. I'm not
saying somebody wouldn't give him a chance. I'm not even saying Utah wouldn't. But boy, you really have to weigh that because you see guys all the time.
Once you start.
Getting hurt, that tends to be your kind of tells you the body is just not taking and recovering the same way it used to.
So I think it'd be a really tough.
Decision, and I wouldn't want to hazard a guess as to what Kyle and his staff will do again, though I think it's up to the offensive coordinator too. Spence, you're bringing in an offensive coordinator, and in theory Kyle said, it's got to be a guy that's running a new and different system. It's got to be plug and play. The new OC has to be on board with who his QB is because that's the most important position on
the field. So I would think it would be a kind of a co op decision between head coach and OC as to whether they brought him back.
You know.
The other thing, Bill and I don't know how much meat is on this bone, but I did hear several people surmised last year that the fact that Cameron was coming back potentially may have scared some quarterback prospects to play, you know, wanting to come play here because they simply didn't want to be as backup.
Those are just rumors. I have no idea, But.
I think the other side of it is if Utah wants to be aggressive in the transfer portal to go get one of these top shelf qbs to be here for a year or two, it might just be better for both parties to say Hey, thanks for the memories. But you walk that way, I'll walk this way and we part in love type thing. I mean, that's just kind of what my gut tells me.
Well, yeah, I mean, if you're serious about shopping in the portal for a bit, nobody that's no Noah Fafido or John Mattier is coming here that they're coming here to be the guy. That's what they're coming here to be. They're coming here to be the starting quarterback. And they've got a chance to. You know, again, everybody I under said you've got to win the job in fall camp.
Blah blah blah. But but it's the unwint and wink wink.
As long as you show up and play hard, you're gonna that's that's the thing. So you've got to really make your choice. If you're Utah, you're either bringing Cam rising back or you're going in the portal and shopping for a big time you know, transfer quarterback.
Yeah, only time will tell.
Okay, one more football thing, then I want to do a little basketball with you. We got Saint Mary's on Saturday, which should be an interesting test for Craig. And look, I honestly don't know if there's anything here, But I do know that BYU, you're one of the Big Twelve, talked a lot about the lessons they learned in their
first year in the conference. Now, the main difference here and real important line of delineation is Utah football played a decade of P five football, then P four football now with the Pac twelve, and BYU football independent was not a P four P five program.
They did not have that schedule.
Year and in, year out, So the one year adjustment period for them just makes more sense in my mind than it would for Utah. But are there lessons to be learned for Utah football year one in a new conference? So maybe Utah next year, like BYU year two, can turn some of those close losses into wins and then be potentially looking to be in the race for the conference championship.
Is there is there any meat on that bone?
I think there's small lessons Spence, and I think it's more specific to opponents or venues or styles of play. But to be fair, I don't I don't think that the Big I think the Big Twelve was very competitive, but I don't think it was any better a league or certainly at the top than what Utah saw for thirteen years in the PAC twelve. I don't think there was a roster adjustment or a talent level. I don't think there was a disparity in talent between the two
leagues by any means. So if there were any lessons, they were maybe smaller lessons about opponents in particular, or how coaches like the coach against you, or styles of play more than anything else.
You saw both teams up close.
Who do you like Iowa State Arizona State coming up Saturday in Arlington.
I think I like Arizona State. It kind of feels like a team of destiny this year. It kind of feels like Kenny Kenny Dillingham has found something there. I like Levit a lot. That being said, I did say this, I think Iowa State is the most balanced team Utah played this year. May have been the best team on
both sides of the ball. But I think Arizona State's kind of playing with the purpose and they've got that proverbial you know, that that that that the horseshoe up their rear end just a little bit, getting some breaks and playing hard. And I like Kenny Dillingham too, So I think it's gonna be a good game. I don't think either one of those teams are greatly better than the other, but I'll take a issue.
All right.
Last thing that I'll set you loose. Saint Mary's rolls into town Saturday night. Should be a fun preseason test for Craig's team. They're six and one through seven to one l is to Mississippi State. I've been intentionally watching a lot of Big twelve basketball, and I know Craig,
and I love this about Craig's attitude. He wants to challenge. Well, he's going to get the challenge, because my goodness, it is deep, and even even the teams that aren't ranked in the top twenty five are really really high caliber. BYU get smoked last night against Providence. But give us an update of progress report through seven games on this basketball team, and what's a reasonable expectation, not just Saturday night, but throughout the course of the rest of the season.
I've been saying this for a while. This is a this is a good team.
I think they're going to outplay their preseason expectations by what. I don't know yet, but they're six and one right now. Spence, they lost Their one loss was a neutral court loss in Mississippi to Mississippi State. But I do maintain have lost and Lovering played that game, they would not have lost that game. They got beat seventy eight to seventy three. In that game, they were playing four guards and they had they were small ball all day long in a
bunch of foul trouble. I think they're seven to ZH if they have that now, they're gonna need Lovering and a little bit of Zach Keller. They're gonna need their size and their big boy bridges on Saturday, because Saint Mary's is tough. They're eight and one. Their only loss was to ASU and a close one. They leave the nation in offensive rebounding. NBA fans out there will be interested. The great sharonis Marshall o Onis. His son Augustus is
the stud for this Saint Mary's team. But they're balanced and it's what Randy Bennett always does.
Spence.
He's got a bunch of big bodies that will just bang in the front court and got good guard plays. So this will be the best non conference game for Utah by far, and the best game of the Huntsman Center till Big Twelfth's play begins. Utah's got great depth and they can really shoot it too. They've got five guys who can shoot it, a couple of guys coming off the bench.
But to me, the one thing, if they can keep.
Saint Mary's off the Saint Mary's has twice as many offensive rebounds as their opponents this year. They lead the nation in offensive rebounding. You can keep them a little bit off the offensive glass. I think they could beat Saint Mary's. I think it'll be a great game though.
All Right, my guy, I appreciate the time on a Wednesday, still waiting for you to roll in the studio and hang out with us at some point.
So let's do that soon.
Okay, sounds good, Spence, Thanks all right.
The Voice of the Utes, Bill Riley, brought to you today by Big O' Tires at their extended Black Friday sale.
It ends on December the eighth,