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University of Utah football head coach Kyle Whittingham talks with media in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, as winter workouts begin. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
The one constant during the NIL era of college football has been change, and Utah experienced a lot of it this offseason.
Following one of the most disappointing seasons of the Kyle Whittingham era — the Utes went 5-7, missing a bowl game for the first time in a full season since 2013 — there was a lot of work to do for Whittingham and his staff.
In total, Utah replaced three full-time staff members, bringing in offensive coordinator Jason Beck and wide receivers coach Micah Simon from New Mexico and running backs coach Mark Atuaia from Washington State.
About half of the roster will be new in 2025 as well, thanks to a large graduating class and 24 outgoing transfers.
Unlimited transfers, alongside NIL money, has made constant roster turnover the norm in college football and Utah is no exception.
The Utes did well to keep some high priority players like offensive linemen Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu, and the team added key players like New Mexico quarterback Devon Dampier (3,934 total yards in 2024) and Washington State running back Wayshawn Parker (137 carries for 735 yards and four touchdowns; 11 receptions for 108 yards and one touchdown in his freshman season last year).
“We feel like we’re able to hang on to the nucleus of our roster with a few exceptions,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said in a Tuesday press conference.
Transfer portal and Utah football
But just as the transfer portal giveth, it also taketh, and the Utes lost a few big pieces — most notably defensive tackle Keanu Tanuvasa to BYU and cornerback Cameron Calhoun to Alabama.
Other key losses for the Utes included running back Mike Mitchell and defensive tackle Simote…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/losing-keanu-tanuvasa-cameron-calhoun-234508952.html
Author : Deseret News
Publish date : 2025-01-14 23:45:00
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