I am a bit uneasy about it. I do trust Whittingham and if he believes Johnson is ready for this, I guess so am I.

He knew more about the game then he was physically capable of implementing himself. He played over his abilities. That’s the kind of guy you want coaching.

As for his experience, etc., well . . . the bad thing is yes, it’s his first coaching gig, might have used more experience, been exposed to more philosophies.

Good thing is he’s ensconced in that culture already, has the respect of the players already, won’t ad too many wrinkles to the system, and has a huge leg up in the credibility department.

Think about Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson and Michigan’s Rodriguez. Two new coaches, bringing in entirely new offenses and philosophies, one instantly successful using existing personnel, one not. The difference was the coach getting players to accept him and buy inot him as a coach and a person they would follow.

I think Brian has that, and so my preditiction is . . .

He does wonders for us and we clean up next year while under his tutelage young Wynn becomes extremely proficient.

I love Brian and what he did for Utah Football, so I’m a thousand percent behind this.

One last note: This sends a message to Utah players and recruits that we are family, we care about our own, we promote within our ranks, we’re a meritocracy, not the former nobility/feudal system extant at most colleges.

if he does a great job then promote him to oc. i like it when college teams keep it in the family.

And it isn’t as if Whittingham is the kind of coach to let a bad decision fester and damage his team—he makes changes if he was wrong.