This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

I've been buying and playing the NCAA Football series all the way back when it was Bill Walsh football. It's what keeps me sane from July to the end of August. 

Last year. I mentioned how cool it was Brian Johnson would be on the cover of NCAA Football 2010. I'll probably own that game for decades to come, even though I've lost most of the past NCAA Football games I've owned. 

It was so cool that Utah, of all programs, could produce a player worthy of that cover. Especially when it was the cover of a game I've loved since the mid-90s. 

So today is a happy day. When I'm done with work, I'll go buy my copy of NCAA Football 2011 and test out how good the Utes are. I'll probably play the Pitt game (and hopefully win) and maybe even do a quick simulation to see if perfection could be had. 

One thing I've always done with NCAA Football is that in dynasty mode I'd take Utah to the elite of elite and then accept an invitation to either the Pac-10 or Big 12. As I'm sure with most Ute fans, it was always a dream that felt out of reach. 

But it worked in NCAA Football. You'd replace a floundering program in a BCS conference and then dominate to multiple championships. 

Well in NCAA Football 2012, you won't have to work your way up to the P-10 anymore with Utah. They'll automatically be there. 

How cool is that?

For now, though, we'll have to settle one last time for the Mountain West. 

Now a message from EA...

When you go to a particular school or grow up around college football, you are more than just a fan. It’s who you are. We thought we could leverage this pride in your roots and show that "where you come from" is more than just a statement about geography. By positioning NCAA Football 11 as a game that understands this pride and is authentic to these traditions, the takeaway should be that anything that is in college football is in NCAA Football 11.

And this doesn’t just include game play (though that’s a huge part of it). It’s rivals and mascots; it’s legends and stories. It’s those things that are at the very fabric of the game itself. Of course the game is great this year as well. With authentic entrances, mascots and specific offenses for each team, the term "where I come from" takes on a much larger meaning. While playing NCAA Football 11 is ultimately a great sports sim, it should also give you a sense of the pride and emotion one has for being a fan of a team they will never not be a part of.

Happy gaming!

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

Utah enters its final season as a non-BCS program in a few months.  It's a historical leap that hasn't happened since the BCS formed in 1998  (Cincinnati, Louisville and South Florida were all replacement members when they departed for the Big East) and because of this transition, I expect this year to be of the most emotional and hardest seasons in recent Utah history. 

So many rivalries have been built over the decades among Mountain West schools.  Beyond just BYU and Utah, the Utes have a history with the Wyoming Cowboys, Colorado St. Rams and New Mexico Lobos.  These teams have been duking it out in some instances since the old Skyline Conference.  But come November, Utah will officially play its final conference game with some very familiar conference foes. 

What awaits is unknown.  We expect the Utes to do well in the newly expanded Pac-12 - but that's all speculation. 

What we do know is that no team in the Mountain West has achieved what the Utes did over the span of the last eleven seasons.  We're the only team in Mountain West history to play in two BCS bowls.  We're the only team in Mountain West history to finish second in the nation.  We're the only team in Mountain West history to go undefeated since the conference formed (and hell, we did that twice).  Sure, there were some down years (2000, 2002).  But overall, as Phil Steele put it, Utah has been the Mountain West team of the decade. 

I suspect Boise State or Texas Christian will claim that title in the next decade.  But for the entirety of the conference, Utah took the Mountain West to heights no one ever could expect.  Especially from a program that ended its play in the WAC only managing one conference championship in a thirty year span. 

That will be the storyline of the year - one of the programs that helped establish the Rocky Mountain Conference, then the Western Athletic Conference and eventually the Mountain West Conference, is now leaving for their delux apartment in the sky. 

Everyone will be gunning for Utah.  Go check out rival forums.  Even though the Utes did nothing wrong, there is a new hatred for the program.  Probably because they don't see us as one of them anymore.  

We're now BCS and each game will be treated as a contest between the non-BCS and the BCS.  So I expect every team will get up to play Utah.  Though we're used to that.  They did it in 2005 after we bulldozed our way through the conference and they did it again last year.  The fact the Utes have been the most successful program in the conference nationally means that generally, you'll get their best game.  I don't want to make it sound like I'm conceited - but it does make sense.  Beating Utah carries a lot more weight nationally than beating Wyoming.

Of course, I expect TCU to find a similar target on their back.  But in the end, it won't be nearly as large because, when it's over, they're still one of them and we're not.  When November rolls around and the final seconds tick off the clock at Rice-Eccles Stadium against BYU (hopefully a win), we're officially done with the Mountain West and they're officially done with us.  Nothing we do, even if we make the BCS or national championship game, will count for the conference.  It now all rolls over to the Pac-10. 

Because of this, I know we're in for a tough season.  But I also think the Utes want to go out on a high note.  They're not just content with getting their invite to the Pac-10.  This isn't about mailing it in and then coming back in 2011 to establish the program as something more.  

Kyle Whittingham will have his team ready.  

I'm just not sure it'll be enough for a great final season.  Maybe a good one.  Maybe even a near-great one.  But if it's going to be great, the season will come down to the following games: 

Pitt
TCU
@ Notre Dame
BYU

Three of those four games will be played at Rice-Eccles Stadium.  Utah should be favored in two of those four (Pitt and BYU).  That leaves TCU and Notre Dame as the biggest games of the season.  Pitt is up there because it could set the tone for the Utes' season from the start - but I'm not sure it's as big as TCU and Notre Dame. 

You could also add Air Force. 

Ideally, the Utes win 'em all.  That probably isn't going to happen, though.  So, as I've said a few times this spring and summer, I think 11-1 or 10-2 are realistic predictions. 

What do you think?

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

I'm a lucky Ute.  I've grown up during an era of amazing football.  I don't remember long stretches of losing seasons.  I don't remember ever being humiliated by BYU (though 1996 comes close).  I don't remember failing to qualify for bowl games on a consistent basis.  Yes, I am a lucky Ute.  Those of us who grew up in the 90s and 00s have witnessed the best stretch of this program's history.

Which is awesome from a fan's point of view, but can be hell if you're trying to list your favorite memories.  The games and moments that define why you're a Ute.  There are so many memories, I honestly don't know where to begin.  But I'll try.  My favorite moments after the jump...

Continue reading this post »

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

The greatness of a team can only be achieved through the success of its players.  For Utah, their best seasons could not have happened if it weren't for the special collection of talent the program has produced.  

Then there are players who might not have offered up great seasons, but nevertheless were great themselves.  Scott Mitchell was a fantastic quarterback at the U - but the accomplishments of the program during his time here wasn't all that great.  He's probably best remembered for his 1988 Holy War performance, where the Utes thoroughly dismantled the stunned Cougars. 

Unfortunately, there were no conference championships or bowl games during his stretch as Utah's quarterback.  It doesn't mean, though, he was any less of a great player.  Mitchell just didn't have the coaching staff and supporting cast to achieve greatness - especially on the defensive end. 

So each player's role is different.  It wouldn't be fair to limit one's success based on the overall performance of the program.  If that were the case, Lance Rice would be considered one of the best quarterbacks in Utah football history for his 2001 performance. 

With all that considered, I've probably got to go with Brian Johnson.  Which is a tough decision, because the man he replaced (Alex Smith) did it first and better here at Utah.  Of course, that's no knock against Johnson.  It's just reality.  Smith's stats and overall accomplishments are something you won't see often here.  Especially being drafted number one overall.  But it isn't necessarily all about ability on the field.  Johnson gets the edge not because he's a better quarterback  (this isn't about our greatest Utes).  No, he gets the edge similar to how 2008's Utah team has the edge over their 2004 counterparts in my eyes.  There is just too many good memories to not have it be my choice as favorite. 

Especially when you consider his performances in the Holy War and Sugar Bowl.  Then, of course, there was the whole leading Utah back from the brink twice.  Those games, those moments, are ones I'll be talking about for years to come.  They were certainly magical and I don't want to make it sound like I'm slighting Smith here, because I'm not.  It's just Smith's success, collectivity, kind of blurs together.  Outside of 2003 and maybe the Fiesta Bowl, it's hard to find a collection of games that stand out from one another.  2008 had that and more. 

It also doesn't hurt that Johnson returned to Utah and is now on the coaching staff.  Though Smith certainly was put in a better post-college career situation when he was drafted by the Niners.  

So overall, they were both fantastic quarterbacks.  I'll readily admit Smith was the better player.  But Johnson is my favorite because he created the better memories. 

Who's your favorite Ute?

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

It may sound like an oxymoron - tailgating at Utah.  But, believe it or not, it does happen.  In fact, outside of maybe Air Force, the University of Utah was consistently voted the best tailgating school in all of the Mountain West.  Of course, that's like being queen of the Laramie prom.  But still, I'd like to think we're pretty good at this tailgating thing. 

Where we'll fit in the new Pac-10 is unclear.  Certainly not in the top-three and probably not as bad as the bottom-three. 

So I guess somewhere in the middle. 

Which, for a school located in conservative Utah, ain't such a bad thing.  Right? 

Continue reading this post »

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football.

Unless you're an older fan, you probably didn't experience near-greatness on the Hill until around 1994. The best teams prior to that were those who either beat BYU, or just made the annual Holy War competitive. 

Then 1994 came and the entire program changed. That was the year Ute fans finally got a taste of greatness. Sure, it was a bit bitter toward the end with losses to New Mexico and Air Force - but it was the first real great season in the modern era of Utah football. 

It established the Utes' potential and really laid the foundation for the two greatest seasons in program history - 2004 and 2008.

In my view, both seasons were great for two different reasons, even though their outcome was extremely similar. 

Continue reading this post »

This post is sponsored by NCAA Football 2011 and is part of a week-long series that will further introduce Utah football. 

I don't remember the exact moment I became a Utah fan. I don't even remember why I began cheering for the Utes in the first place. It just happened. It's kind of like walking. You know you did it, you just don't remember doing it for the first time.

For me, though, my fandom is rooted in my family. We weren't typical Utahns because we weren't LDS. We never had been LDS. My family emigrated over from Ireland and somehow found their way to Salt Lake City, Utah. It was an unlikely place for a group of Irish potato famine survivors fresh off the boat - but it's where they called home. 

My mom's parents were huge into sports. That's probably where I get my love for it because, outside of the occasional NFL game, my father is fairly apathetic. But grandpa and grandma loved college sports. 

For grandpa, he cheered for three teams. The first was his alma mater Utah State. He was an Aggie. He proudly graduated from there shortly before marrying my grandma and never lost his love of 'em. Then there was the Notre Dame Irish. He and my grandma loved the Irish for obvious reasons. Finally, there was Utah.

Neither graduated from the U. Grandma attended St. Mary of the Wasatch Catholic College here in Salt Lake (it not longer exists) and as I mentioned, grandpa spent his college years up in Logan. But they were Salt Lakers. Grandma graduated from West and grandpa from East. So they grew up very familiar with Utah football - especially during a time of great success. 

So the seeds were planted fairly early for both. 

Then I came along. Like I said, I don't remember when I began cheering for them. I just remember watching old college football games with grandpa in his den. At first, it was mostly Notre Dame games and that's where I established my love of Irish football (it solidified during the 1993 Carmelite Fair when the Carmelite nuns had made up Catholics vs. Mormons t-shirts to give away for the pending Notre Dame-BYU game - Irish won! - later that year).

But it wasn't long before I began cheering for the Utes. They were the home team and it was natural. As natural as walking. 

I remember my first Utah game was that same year of that Carmelite Fair - so 1993. Utah had yet to become consistently good under Ron McBride and the football program was still living in the massive shadow of BYU. But we could never, ever cheer for the Cougars. That was beaten into my brain from birth. 

So grandpa and I went to the old Rice Stadium to watch Utah take on Idaho. What a great first game, right? 

Well the Utes lost. That just shows you how far this program has come. My first game was a loss, at home, to Idaho. Who, at the time, was not even division one. Embarrassing. 

I guess it showed me what I would be willing to endure as a Utah fan because obviously I had a blast, since I've kept coming back all these years. 

Now I don't remember much from that game. Just that grandpa was visibility agitated and that led to him swearing the entire ride home. 

But I believe I can trace being a fan back to that moment. It was one of the first of many Utah games I'd watch with either grandpa or grandma. 

Neither are around anymore. Grandpa went in 2002 and grandma the week after the 2003 Holy War. 2003 was special because we got to watch one last Holy War together in her hospital room. The Utes won, of course.

I've got to think they're still up there watching these games with me. And I'm sure grandpa is still cursing loudly. Much to grandma's chagrin. 

That's my story. What's yours? How did you become a Ute fan? 

For me, one of the best things that helps bridge the gap between spring and the football season is the release of NCAA Football 2011.

It certainly helps you get through the dog days of summer and this year will probably be no different.

Well in seven days, NCAA Football 2011 hits the market and to commemorate this event, Block U will be counting down this week by reintroducing Utah football to a larger audience and certainly getting the wonderful stories about each Ute fan's journey on their way to cheering for Utah. 

This also will introduce our program to our future conference mates. We'll get to share the traditions and history of the program we love and hopefully those Pac-10 fans will learn more about what makes us proud fans of the University of Utah. 

The series progresses throughout the week and will end the day before NCAA Football is released. 

Here's the upcoming schedule: 

Monday: How We Became Utes

Tuesday: Our Favorite Utah Teams 

Wednesday: Tailgating at Utah (it does happen, believe it or not)

Thursday: Our Favorite Utes 

Friday: Our Favorite Moments 

Monday: Our Expectations For 2010

Tuesday: NCAA Football 2011 is released

Since I am one man, with one story and one opinion, I'd love to have your participation this week. The more you help, the more we can introduce Utah football to not only the Pac-10 - but the remainder of the country.