Big 12 Breakdown and The Big Question For Each School : #3 Utah
By Cade Welty and Sean A Dillon
We’re breaking down the Big 12 as we get closer to the 2026 season. We’re breaking down each team getting closer and closer to #1. Today we look at Houston.
#16 – Iowa State #15 – Colorado #14 – Kansas #13 – cincinnati #12 – Oklahoma State #11 West Virginia #10 UCF #9 Baylor
#8 – TCU #7 – Arizona State #6 – Arizona #5 – Houston #4 – Kansas State #3 – Utah #2 – ???
Utah: Does the logo carry?
After Utah went 7-2 in conference play with an overall record of 11-2 that saw a Las Vegas Bowl win over Nebraska, it felt like a season that got away. With their only two losses coming at the hands of BYU and Texas Tech, who played each other in Arlington for a Big 12 title. The end of 2025 would mark the end of an era for Utah as long time head coach Kyle Whittingham and the program no longer saw things similarly. Whittingham at the time announced he would step down and leave the University of Utah.
As Whitingham packed his bags and hopped onto his motorcycle to head to Ann Arbor the Utes looked to hire a replacement. Morgan Scalley would be tapped to lead Utah into their “new era” as he was their defensive coordinator from 2016 until 2025 (got promoted). It does need to be noted that Scalley did guide them to the win in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Was it the coach or the program?
For the program they have had either Urban Meyer or Whittingham at the helm since 2003. So there is a reason to believe the Utes will take a bit to return to glory under first time head coach Morgan Scalley especially since it is only their third head coach in 20 plus years. Judging the debut season will be difficult as this Utah staff and team is hardly recognizable from a year ago. But before we dive into the roster construction and how they will look this coming August in Salt Lake City, we need to discuss some expectations from Scalley.
One of the first things that Scalley wanted to get across was how the culture wasn’t going to shift in Salt Lake City.
“Our culture on the field is being relentless, smart, nasty ball hawks.” and “We’re out to win games, and there’s a certain recipe that you have to follow to win those games, and I’m not out to prove anything other than that the culture matters.”
It isn’t just the coach as now veteran QB Devon Dampier has also taken more of a leadership role. “I want to give the vibe to my team that you see the way I work, you see that I want success for everybody. Why not come follow?” in a tweet from Brandon Judd
With program culture kept in place just a different coach leading it. Now we can move over to see if the roster can do the same.
The 2026 Utah Utes.
Utah is only returning 5 players from the 2025 roster with only bringing back two offensive players. Those are QB Devon Dampier and Wayshawn Parker but they will be without offensive coordinator Jason Beck the brand new offense will be under Kevin McGiven. Before being hired at Utah McGiven was at Utah State last year where they averaged 30.9 points per game in the MWC. The offensive style was very similar to 2025 Utah with running two quarterbacks in a RPO based offense. Unfortunately for McGiven he doesn’t have the royalty of an offensive line with two 1st round picks. And Utah only brought in two OL in the portal from Montana State and Ohio State. The WRs are talented with Ricky Johnson from Mississippi State who hasn’t seen a lot of playing time but has higher upside. Also bringing in Braden Pegan from Utah State, Kyri Shoels from San Jose State and they quietly have built a higher upside WR room. That WR room has been quoted by Scalley as one of the best groups he has seen while at Utah.
Defense:
The defense lost their disruptors and looked to replace an entire defensive line as well. The portal replacements for the Utes on defense are younger players who could take time to develop. Ethan Day is our headliner for the portal unit as he was a part of solid UNT defense recording 4.5 sacks and 23 solo tackles. Utah does get to keep Jackson Bennee as he was a quality safety with 4 INTs and 43 solo tackles. The unit has a lot of new players but Morgan Scalley has been good at developing young defensive talent.
The whole team on the field is a giant question mark with the majority of top end talent leaving the program to join their old coach at Michigan or other major programs. The biggest concern is not how hard their schedule is or the culture. It is that they can develop the guys to replace some of the talent that either left or went pro to the NFL. They avoid TTU but they have a stretch of three games where they will be fully tested. Hosting BYU then on the road at Arizona and TCU which all three of the teams share the same aspirations as the Utes. It will be a tall order to maintain a 10-2 regular season.
For Utah it is more than proving they are bigger than one coach. Sure it is Scalley’s first full year as head coach but if you prove to be the team to beat in the conference then we might see Utah’s first ever CFP berth. But as always, only time will tell.
Utah 2026 Football Schedule :
Conference Games *
9/3/2026, Idaho , Time : 8:00 P.M. CT
9/12/2026, Arkansas , Time : 9:15 P.M. CT
9/19/2026, Utah State , Time : 2:30 P.M. CT
9/26/2026, at Iowa State *, Time : TBA
10/10/2026, Kansas *, Time : TBA
10/17/2026, at Colorado * , Time : TBA
10/24/2026, Houston * , Time : TBA
10/31/2026, at Cincinnati *, Time : TBA
11/7/2026, BYU *, Time : TBA
11/14/2026, at Arizona * , Time : TBA
11/21/2026, at TCU * , Time : TBA
11/27/2026, West Virginia * Time : 8:00 P.M. CT
Sean’s Thoughts:
My friends, bow your heads. Let us pray. Dear football gods, please let Utah fans have something to cheer about this year. After being insufferable since they came into the Big 12, and having nothing to show for it, may they enjoy the Morgan Scalley Era. Amen.
Look, the Utes’ schedule is weak until November. Not 2025 Texas A&M weak, but on a similar note. Then they hit the Holy War, followed by back-to-back road trips. Will Scalley’s wags step up or be laughed at for yet another year?
Staff turnover, a total rebuild of the O-line… it’s like a prosecutor trying to trick me on the witness stand: “How could a 1955 Bel Air Chevrolet with a 327 cubic-inch engine and a four-barrel carburetor get correct ignition timing at 4 degrees before top-dead-center?” It’s a trick question! “Chevy didn’t make a 327 in ’55—it didn’t come out until ’62.” The whole thing is going to take a total overhaul, and Devon Dampier is going to be running for his life until they figure it out.
The Two Utes:
As for the defense, Morgan Scalley wants everyone to know the culture isn’t changing and the “Relentless, Smart, Nasty, Ballhawk” mantra remains intact. Which is so cute, except he’s trying to teach RSNB to an entire transfer portal defense that’s still using GPS just to find the locker room and keeping getting “recalculating” on their phones.
Everyone forgets about Houston, whom I said was sneaky good. The winner of Utah vs. Houston could be in the driver’s seat if they take care of BYU. But can Wayshawn Parker & Devon Dampier have a breakout season when they actually need to?
Yes, I have the Utes at 3 rather than calling them the “2 Utes,” but this might be the year where a first year head coach truly surprises in the Big 12.