Block U, a Utah Utes community

I'm sure all the major publications in Nebraska have linked to this a million times over, but it is interesting to see Mr. Doyel writing about our basketball team. I get where he is coming from, though. It's worth noting that he likes to cause controversy every time he opens his mouth, but this time it's pretty good stuff.

The Hornets announced today, April 20, that the search for a new head coach will begin immediately and Jeff Bower will resume his sole duties and focus as the team's general manager. "Jeff stepped in to coach in a difficult situation and did a phenomenal job this season serving both roles as head coach and general manager." said Hornets President Hugh Weber. "We had a lot of setbacks with injuries but still competed every night even though our players missed a total of 230 games due to injury. This move allows Jeff to focus as the team's general manager and build off of our great draft successes last season. He has been a valued part of shaping our franchise for a long time and we feel fortunate that Jeff will continue in a major role as GM. We will continue to supplement and evaluate our resources on the basketball side so we can compete and maximize our personnel decisions at the highest level."

Brian Johnson, the winningest quarterback in Utah football history and the 2008 Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year, has joined the Ute staff as an assistant coach, head coach Kyle Whittingham announced today. Johnson will oversee the quarterbacks and fills a vacancy left by J.D. Williams, who accepted a position with UNLV after one year as Utah's cornerbacks coach. "The addition of Brian Johnson to our coaching staff is a huge positive for our program," says Whittingham. "Brian was an outstanding player for us, has natural leadership ability and possesses a complete understanding of the game. Brian's intelligence, knowledge of the quarterback position and tireless work ethic will help make his transition into coaching a smooth one. Our players respect and admire Brian, and they will respond well to him in his new role."

It's always a gamble when choosing an FCS coach and a good portion of the time, it doesn't work out. The last time a Mountain West team hired a successful Montana coach, he failed (Joe Glenn & Montana) and we all remember Mick Dennehy at Utah State (also a successful coach at Montana). With that said, it is a hire with coaching experience and I think that is important. This is something lacking with Mike Sanford and it obviously came out he wasn't head coaching material. Now we'll see if Hauck is D1-A material.