Stanford's hot start was too much to overcome:

Both signing periods are finished and the Utes ended up with Top 20 class. Give it a read:

https://utah.rivals.com/news/utah-finishes-with-top-20-recruiting-class

Big start to our three game homestand. Stanford has underachieved, again, but is capable of stealing one from us. An absolute must win for us to remain in NCAA bubble talk.

We won the first game 71-66 behind 20 points from Stefanovic and 18 from BC.

Some interesting stats were we shot 58% from 2 and 43% from 3 while they shot 42% and 32%, The game should not have been close given those disparities except we had 16 TOs to their 6 and were minus 8 in off. rebounds. This led to Stanford having 26 more field goal attempts than us.

It's unlikely we'll shoot that well again so we need to take care of the ball and rebound.

I’m pretty floored by this. The overwhelming thought was either Utah or Georgia.

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I was hoping to drop one for Walker Lyons today and then pop all of these out, but with that being said, I had some former players break down recruit highlights over video this year. Stanley Raas still needs to be uploaded, but I’m having trouble with his video file. I’ll also possibly add a couple PWOs.

Please watch and subscribe to the channel and we’ll focus on videos more going forward.

The Utes are waiting on anyone else today, so between the two signing days, here’s your 2023 class:

https://youtube.com/@utenationtv

Should we be worried?

Conference play is half over. Here are my mid-term grades.

Brandon Carlson - A. Playing at an all-conf. level.
Marco Anthony - A. Doing everything we want him to do.
Rollie Worster - B+. Would be higher but his shooting percentage is poor.
Gabe Madson - B. Above average defender. Our best outside threat which creates space for BC. Shot selection needs to improve.
Ben Carlosn - B-. Good rebounder. Gives us added toughness. Limited offensively.
Lazar Stefanovic - B. Good A/T ratio. Not a good shooter and dribbles excessively so O tends to stagnate when he's in IMO.
Will Exacte - B. Has some nice offensive skills. Needs to cut down on TO's, Has a bright future.
Keba Keita - B. Active and physical. Raw and needs to improve his 1-1 defense. Has a bright future.
Bostyn Holt - B- . Above average athlete, which we need. But he looks unsure of himself on offense.
Luka Tarlac - C. Has struggled with some injuries and hasn't carved out a role yet. Still, an intriguing player for the future.
Mike Saunders Jr. - D. Was expected to be a key player. Hasn't turned out that way. Don't expect his role to change.

Coaching staff - A. Team has outperformed expectations. Roster was upgraded (Carlson, Exacte, Keita) and returning guys took steps forward (BC, Madson, Worster). Toughest part of the schedule is coming up.

Simmons was visiting Utah this weekend and made his commitment:

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The belief is that he’ll sign an LOI tomorrow, but as of 7PM tonight, I’ve been told Utah hadn’t heard anything. I’m still checking when I can. I honestly don't know what way to call this one right now.

Say what you will about the event, but it’s a nice showcase for Tyler…

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Can Utah close on TE Walker Lyons?

I’m going to be putting out some stuff that will still make that day fun, but ultimately there’s one player Utah will be waiting on: Walker Lyons.

Right now not even his high school staff knows what he’s doing. I’m hoping to have a better idea either tonight or tomorrow.

WR JeyQuan Smith was another that was a possibility, but he’s wanting to go somewhere with track, which eliminates Utah.

She is the best player wearing a Utah uniform in any sport this year. What a game!

Ski to Covey 2 Utes!!!

Australian basketball player Alex Condon, a power forward, is down to 3 schools: DT. Mary’s (SMC) Florida & Utah. Utah is his third & final visit. He’s the son of a former professional Aussie rules football player and likely would have been a top 10 pick in upcoming draft. He decided to focus on hoops, however. He plays at the AIS where Bogut and the rest of the Utah Aussies came from and he also plays with the global NBA academy. He’ll be in town with his dad.

Right now SMC is the presumed favorite because he already had friends there.

Chris Burgess is his lead recruiter. Burgess and Smith have gone to Canberra, AUS & Spain since fall to recruit him.

Here’s Sean’s article in Simmons. Right now this is purely a depth play with the hope of getting more out of him.

https://utah.rivals.com/news/indiana-wr-simmons-transferring-to-utah

I have a contact at TCU saying that he interviewed with TCU this week. It sounds like he’s trying to move closer to his soon to be imprisoned wife? Alex anything you’re hearing on your side? That would be a big blow for the program in my opinion….

I’ve been told this rumor is completely false. I’m locking this thread and the other one from here on.

The Oregon streak over Utah continues:

Starting five: Branden Carlson, Ben Carlson, Gabe Madsen, Marco Anthony, Rollie Worster.

I know Dana Altman’s Oregon teams are 22-2 against the Utes. I know they beat us by 10 in the Huntsman Center a few weeks ago. I know they have great athletes and play on the ugliest court in the NCAA.

But I like what I’ve seen of the Utes the last three games. Worster and Carlson have been great. Marco has been consistent and tough. If Madden can knock down a few 3s, I like our chances. In the wins over WSU, Washington and Oregon State, the Utes NEVER trailed. Three straight, comfortable-margin, wire-to-wire victories has me optimistic against the most inconsistent Oregon team Altman had ever fielded.

Am I crazy? Will the Ducks continue to dominate the series? I hope not.

Bernard had no shortage of teams inquiring about him once he hit the transfer portal. This is a big win for Utah:

https://utah.rivals.com/news/how-utah-got-bernard-to-withdraw-from-transfer-portal

I heard he withdrew his name from the portal?

Alex will add more son (he's driving) but here's some info from him:

Bernard took trips to South Carolina, Missouri, and Colorado, with Colorado really wanting him badly. With all that, everyone on this board is aware of the black cloud that was around the running back room this past season. Because of that, it made Bernard a rare exception to be welcomed back after entering the portal. Ganther let Bernard know constantly that he was a priority and that they wanted back, and how important he was to their plans. Most importantly, JaQuinden was the biggest recruiter to get him back because he sees the potential of their 1-2 punch, and Micah sees that as well. Ultimately, the decision came down to Micah missing his teammates and the love the coaches and team gave him during this process, as well as the unfinished business and him knowing that he has a big role in the offense moving forward. Sometimes you don't know how valuable you are or how much you might miss something until you step away from it, and that's what happened to Bernard in this situation.

Alex will chime in when he gets a moment.

A defensively dominant performance in Corvallis: https://utah.rivals.com/news/takeaways-runnin-utes-shut-down-oregon-state