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Show Thanksgiving 2007 THE RIVALRY Whittingham recounts life on both sidelines Natalie Dicou STAFF W R I T E R Once Utah and BYU fans pick a side, they rarely waver. In fact, trading red for blue, or vice versa, is often seen as a shocking betrayal. But for Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham, the transition went surprisingly smoothly. "I was loyal to Utah the day I got here," Whittingham said. The switch didn't seem like a huge jump for Whittingham—who took a job as a defensive line coach at Utah in 1994—partly because of his California upbringing. Whittingham spent his formative years outside the Utah-BYU rivalry zone. He moved to Utah in eighth grade after his dad, Fred Whittingham, became BYU's defensive coordinator. , "It's hard to go against your father, so yeah, absolutely, I was a fan," Whittingham said. Whittingham didn't necessarily spend his childhood dreaming of playing for BYU. "I just loved football," Whittingham said. "When I came out of high school, the pro- RECORDS continued from Page 7 lowing the seasonNov. 17,2001 Undefeated and unchallenged, BYU sat at No. 8 in the national rankings and was hoping to become the first non-BCS team to earn an invitation to a BCS bowL Utah had ideas of its own, though, and carried a 21-10 lead late in the game. But Doman once again led the Cougars on multiple scoring drives, and when all was said and done, BYU left Lavell Edwards Stadium with a 24-21 win. Nov. 22, 2003 Playing in a near white-out in Provo, de- BYU and Utah were fighting over him, Whittingham gave BYU serious consideration. "I don't think that anybody in the country wouldn't have a certain draw to go back to their alma mater," Whittingham said. Whittingham, of course, decided to stay put. To explain his decision, he likes to use the word "investment." "All I can say is that I had such an investment here at the University of Utah," Whittingham said. "I'd been here for 10 years. I had recruited several of the players on the roster and put so much time and effort into the program." As a coach, Whittingham says the rivalry is less frosty from his standpoint than from a civilian's. The coaches and most of the players are separated from much of the animosity felt between rival fans. Many didn't grow up in Utah and are here for a salary or the opportunity for an education. The bitterness hasn't had an opportunity to take root. "I've only been on both sides as a player and a coach," Whittingham said. "It's a very intense, emotional game, but it's not the same as what fans experience. They're going at each other's throats." n.dicou@chronicle.utah.edu gram (at BYU) was very good, and coach (LaVeil) Edwards was a great coach." The fact that his dad coached at BYU played a big role in Whittingham's decision to play for the Cougars. "Not many guys have a chance to play for their fathers " Whittingham said. "Now some guys wouldn't want that chance, but I did." The Whittinghams and the rest of the Cougars teamed up for four-straight Western Athletic Conference championships from 1978 to 1981. "I couldn't ask for anything more out of my college career," Whittingham said. After college, Whittingham spent a few years in the United States Football League. Then, in 1987, he made bis NFL debut after the regular players went on strike. His NFL career lasted three games. "It wasn't a great professional career by any means, but I had a chance to play a little bit beyond college, and I was excited about that" When Whittingham first showed up at the U at the age of 33, he hadn't been associated with BYU for more than a decade. "There was a lot of time that went by between when I got hired here at Utah and when I was last at BYU," he said. Whittingham believes that his time away from BYU cushioned his- transition from Cougar to Ute. "It would've been a much bigger adjustment if I'd come straight from one school to the other," Whittingham said. "It wasn't nearly as big a deal as people may think" By the time he began his career at Utah, Whittingham's father had retired and his brothers, who had played at BYU, had also moved on. It wasn't difficult to convince his •family to support the Utes. "Blood is thicker than water," Whittingham said. As for his decision to take the head coaching position at Utah instead of BYU, Whittingham doesn't want to "rehash" all the details. But it's clear that his life—along with the two rival football programs— would be much different today if Whittingham had chosen to return to BYU. In what ways, we'll never know. One thing is for sure: If he'd gone to Provo, he wouldn't be allowed to sport a goatee. "I guess that's something that would not be allowable," Whittingham said with a laugh. At the end of the 2004 season, when both fense proved to be king. Neither the Cougars nor the Utes could mount any semblance of an offensive attack, and a 41-yard field goal from Utah's Bryan Borreson gave the Utes all the points they needed to win their first outright conference championship in nearly 50 years. gave the Utes an improbable win. POLYNESIANS Nov. 25, 2006 In what will live on as one of the best games in the history of the rivalry, the Cougars (9-2, 7-0) saw a 14-point first quarter lead evaporate behind the play of Utah quarterback Brett Ratliff. Trailing 27-24 with about three minutes left in the game, Ratliif marched the Utes 83 yards before connecting with wide receiver Brent Casteel for a 19-yard touchdown. Beck responded by leading the Cougars down the field and, with no time left on the clock, finding a wide-open Johnny Harline in the left front part of the endzone. The 13second final play prompted Cougar fans to coin the phrase "Harline is still open." c.brunner@ chronicte.utah.edu continued from Page 7 Nov. 19,2005 With starting quarterback Brian Johnson out because of an injury, backup Brett Ratliff caught the Cougs off-guard with some shifty running, leading the Utes to a 24-3 advantage at the half. BYU's John Beck led the Cougs back, tallying 21 points in the third quarter and tying the game at 34 late to send the contest into overtime. In the extra period, Ratliff connected with wide receiver Travis LaTendresse for a 25-yard touchdown catch that Both teams' starting lineups on both sides of the ball are made up in large part of Polynesian players. BYU backs Manase Tonga, Harvey Unga and Fui Vakapuna will be running the ball against Ute defenders Malakai Mokofisi and Kenape Eliapo. The brotherhood between the Polynesian players is a tight"one, but that doesn't mean they take it easy on each other. "That doesn't really matter once you're on the field," Mokofisi said. "It's just what we grew up on. We start playing football and rugby pretty early on. We just like bitting and are built for the game." e.wiltiams@chronicle.utah.edu Neighborhood ~ > Health Centers . Moran Eye Center lOlocabom University Orthopaedic Center . Huntsman Cancer Insitute University Health Care Exactly who you need us to be. • |
