Utah picked right back up where it left off last season, delivering a dominating performance on the ground in a 66-14 win against FCS opponent Idaho Thursday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
The Utes set school records in rushing yards (3,462) and rushing touchdowns (41) behind a dominant offensive line in 2025, and they started 2026 at the same pace.
Wayshawn Parker led the way on the ground for Utah, rushing for 71 yards and a touchdown on 12 attempts while hauling in three passes for 23 yards and two touchdowns.
The three-touchdown night was a career high for the junior running back and served as a glimpse of what he can do as the undisputed lead back this year.
Utah Utes tight end Noah Bennee (89) scores a touchdown during an NCAA football game against the Idaho Vandals at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026. | Tess Crowley, Deseret News

#touchdown #eccles

BYU shook up its athletic department on Thursday, splitting football off from the other 20 sports.
Head football coach Kalani Sitake will report directly to a university vice president while athletic director Brian Santiago will oversee the remaining programs.
The decision's dramatic timing, nine days before the season's first football game, underscored both the hurtling rate of change in college sports and rumors about friction between Sitake and Santiago.
"BYU Athletics shares a common focus on helping our student-athletes succeed not just on the field, but also in the classroom and, most importantly, in their Christian discipleship," advancement vice president Keith Vorkink said in a statement.
BYU head football coach Kalani Sitake speaks as he's joined by BYU athletic director Brian Santiago during a press conference regarding Sitake's contract extension with the football program, held at the Student Athlete Building on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

#Football #kalani #head #university

The landscape of college sports has changed dramatically in the past few years with athletes able to get paid and enter the transfer portal at will. Schools seem to turn over the roster every year as players jump around for more money or more playing time or both.
Sometimes it's hard for fans to keep up with comings and goings and who's getting what. Many lament the current state of affairs and critics of the evolving system long for the days when a scholarship and meal plan were enough to keep a player at a university for four years.
A new Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll asked Utahns what concerns, if any, they have about college sports today. It presented several choices.
The survey found 20% concerned about athletes being paid through NIL and revenue sharing; 17% about the rising cost to attend games; 14% about athletes transferring too frequently and 5% about conference realignment. Another 11% said they didn't know.
Utah Utes football scholarship players Levani Damuni, from left, Tevita Fotu and Solatoa Moea'i celebrate receiving a Dodge truck from the Crimson Collective during an NIL announcement at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

#paid

Thinking about taking your family to a college football game in Utah this year? Be prepared to pay. How much depends largely on the opponent.
The University of Utah opens the season Sept. 3. at home against the Idaho Vandals, a Football Championship Subdivision or FCS school in the Big Sky Conference. A single-game ticket starts at $38 on SeatGeek.
But when BYU plays Utah in Salt Lake City in November, the cheapest seat starts at $331.
Fans yell during the first quarter of the game between BYU and Utah at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News
And speaking of BYU, you could see the Cougars take on the Utah Tech Trailblazers, also a Big Sky team, in the first game of the season, for as low as $88 per ticket, according to SeatGeek.

#starts

The University of Utah men's basketball team appears to be a benefactor from the recent temporary court injunction that permits 2022 high school graduates a fifth year of collegiate eligibility.
On Tuesday, On3's Pete Nakos reported that former Northern Iowa guard Trey Campbell has signed with Utah.
Last month, U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney in Denver ruled that athletes from the high school graduating class of 2022 who recently exhausted their NCAA eligibility are now eligible to compete in college for an additional season, as the Deseret News previously reported.
On Monday, Nakos reported that the NCAA's emergency motion for an administrative stay on that preliminary class-wide injunction was denied by Sweeney.
That would allow Campbell an additional season of eligibility.

#reported #utah #campbell #high

A major bill seeking to regulate college sports hit a roadblock in the Senate last week despite lawmakers racing to have the framework approved before leaving Washington for a scheduled five-week recess.
The long-stalled Protect College Sports Act, which would establish federal regulations for name, image and likeness deals for student-athletes, was injected with sudden momentum last week — but that progress quickly sputtered out as the week came to a close. Among other concerns, some lawmakers raised objections that the bill could create legal loopholes in states that have laws restricting transgender athletes from participating in women's sports.
A group of attorneys general from six red states, including Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, wrote a letter to the two main sponsors of the bill to urge changes before it's brought to the floor for a vote.
"For decades, the integrity of women's sports has been under attack by those pursuing a radical transgender agenda at the expense of the safety of female athletes and equal athletic opportunity," the state attorney general wrote in the letter, which was sent to lawmakers on Friday and obtained by the Deseret News.
The Protect College Sports Act is a sweeping proposal to regulate college athletics by creating a national framework dealing with NIL deals, athlete compensation, media rights, revenue sharing, transfer eligibility, and more. Bipartisan lawmakers behind the legislation have argued federal guidelines are crucial to absolve confusion from 50 states operating under different rules.

#sports #Attorney

A Major League Baseball insider long high on Salt Lake City getting an expansion team took his opinion up a notch during an appearance this week on local sports talk radio.
USA Today columnist Bob Nightengale has called the city a heavy favorite and clear frontrunner as well saying it's in the driver's seat to land a franchise when the league expands. But Monday on KSL Sports Zone's "DJ and PK," he called Salt Lake City a "lock."
"Salt Lake, I think, is a lock. It should be Nashville, but Salt Lake's got the ownership group, Dale Murphy's involved, everything else. I think it's a go for sure in Salt Lake," he said.
Nightengale is among a chorus of national baseball observers who see Salt Lake City in the West and Nashville in the East as the top contenders to join the big leagues.
Former Major League Baseball superstar Dale Murphy talks with a group of young baseball players from the Rose Park area as they join Gov. Spencer ****** and other dignitaries at the groundbreaking of the Rocky Mountain Power District property in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. Gail Miller also announced plans to hopefully bring a Major League Baseball team to the area. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

#lake #city

Editor's note: This story was originally published on Aug. 4, 2024.
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
On Aug. 4, 2012, swimming in what was hailed as the final race of his Olympic career, Michael Phelps helped the U.S. men's 4x100-meter medley relay team claim the gold medal at London's aquatic center.
It was the 18th gold medal of Phelps' record-setting Olympic career. He left the London 2012 Games with 22 Olympic medals overall.
But it turned out he wasn't done.

#phelps

It's May 30, two hours before the Portland Thorns kick off against the Utah Royals. A mother and her young daughter stand next to the players' entrance outside of Providence Park in Portland. They're among the throng of fans waiting behind a barricade hoping to get an autograph from Portland Thorns players as they arrive at the stadium.
Olivia Moultrie, the 20-year-old garnering NWSL MVP attention this season, walks over to the start of the line to greet the fans.
"That's Olivia," the mother tells her daughter, directing her attention to Moultrie.
Portland Thorns midfielder Olivia Moultrie greets fans outside of the stadium ahead of a NWSL game against the Utah Royals at Providence Park in Portland, Ore., on Saturday, May 30, 2026. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News
She's dressed in a blue long-sleeve Nike shirt and red and blue patchwork-style drawstring shorts. She wears her long brown hair down, with the exception of a headband braid.

#thorns

Olivia Moultrie's competitive drive began at a young age. When she was 7, she had a goal to be the best soccer player in the world.
When she was 15, Moultrie won a legal battle to remove the National Women's Soccer League's age barrier. At the age of 18, she made her debut with the U.S. women's national team.
On this episode of "Deseret Voices," the Portland Thorns midfielder chats with Deseret News reporter Krysyan Edler about her soccer exploits and about the role faith plays in her life.
Subscribe to "Deseret Voices" on YouTube, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Note: Transcript edited by Steven Watkins.

#deseret #moultrie

Taysom Hill may be done playing football for New Orleans, but his on-the-field performance and his off-the-field persona have earned him Sainthood among the Who Dats for years to come.
"He's the guy that a lot of our guys can look to as an example of growing in the NFL and finding roles and finding opportunities," said Saints coach Kellen Moore after Hill announced his nine-year run in New Orleans was over. "Everyone, for the last few years, has been chasing to find the next Taysom. But there really is just one Taysom."
That "one Taysom" was going to be Jim Harbaugh's Swiss army knife quarterback at Stanford prior to Hill's two-year church mission to Sydney, Australia. When the 49ers lured Harbaugh away, Hill redirected his post-mission plans to Provo.
BYU figured it had someone special, but it wasn't until Sept. 7, 2013, that the Cougars knew for sure. Facing No. 15 Texas and following a two-hour weather delay, Hill produced one of the single greatest performances in program history.
BYU quarterback Taysom Hill (4) runs away from Texas linebacker Steve Edmond (33) Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013, at LaVell Edwards stadium. BYU won 40-21. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

#taysom #texas #finding

South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley just let the world know that she’s a big fan of BYU’s Diljeet Taylor.
Staley appeared on Citius Mag’s Prefontaine Classic show on Saturday and shared her admiration for BYU’s women’s cross-country head coach and ***** ociate director of track and field.
“I’ve seen the way Diljeet coaches her players,” Staley said. “She’s a mentor. She’s mom-like. She is someone that gives the athlete all of her, like she meets the athlete where they are on any given day.”
In 2024, Staley and Taylor were named to Nike’s Athlete Think Tank, the Deseret News previously reported. They were part of the first coaches cohort of the think tank, along with U.S. women’s national soccer team head coach Emma Hayes and former Olympic volleyball coach Jenny Lang Ping.
“You probably have to hold her back because she wants to get on the track and just kind of will her athletes to the finish line, and that’s what it takes,” Staley said.

Adam Sandler gives Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce heartfelt marriage advice originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
After Adam Sandler officiated Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding, the comedian is bestowing some wisdom about marriage to the newlyweds.
Swift and Kelce tied the knot on July 3 at Madison Square Garden. They were surrounded by 1,000 friends and family members to celebrate their big day. Following the reception, Kansas City Chiefs head coach, Andy Reid, shared the advice that Sandler gave to Swift and Kelce.
"Adam Sandler conducted the service there and he told them, 'Keep kissing,'" Reid said, per The Deseret News. "So, in its simplest form. That's a good thing."
Sandler has been married since 2003 to his wife Jen. The couple shares two daughters: Sadie Madison (born in 2006) and Sunny Madeline (born in 2008).

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on July 6, 2024.
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
If you don‘t like the baseball All-Star game, blame a sports writer.
On July 6, 1933, the first All-Star baseball game was played at Chicago’s Comiskey Park; the American League defeated the National League 4-2 behind winning pitcher Lefty Gomez of the New York Yankees.
A guy named Babe Ruth cracked a home run in the third inning, and the midseason classic became a classic.

Kiss her three times, 'cause she's waited her whole life.
Adam Sandler officiated the wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce at New York's Madison Square Garden on Friday, July 3, and according to Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, the "Happy Gilmore" star gave the couple some "pretty good" marriage advice during the ceremony.
"He told them to keep kissing," Reid recounted to Deseret News. "So, in its simplest form, that's a good thing. It's hard to argue when you give your wife a kiss, or your wife gives you a kiss. And make sure you do it every day, every minute that you have an opportunity to do it. Knock it out, and you won't have problems."
Reid added that Sandler was "hysterical," and "he did a great job in getting them married with a lot of humor."
While the choice of Sandler to officiate Swift and Kelce's wedding took some fans by surprise, the Kansas City Chiefs star worked with Sandler when he had a role in the comedian's 2025 movie "Happy Gilmore 2." Swift is also good friends with Sandler's daughters Sunny and Sadie, whom he shares with his wife Jackie Sandler.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on June 20, 2024.
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
It’s interesting to look back at world records in the 100 meters, the sport’s premier event.
But before we get to that, we note that on June 20, 1968, not one, not two, but three American runners became the first in the world to run the 100 meters in under 10 seconds. They called it the “Night of Speed.”
On this day, in the U.S. Olympic trials in Sacramento, California, Jim Hines put his name in the record books when he clocked 9.9 seconds.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on June 14, 2024.
A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.
Michael Jordan denied the Utah Jazz again.
One year and a day after leading the Chicago Bulls past the Jazz to win the 1997 NBA **** le, he foiled us all again on June 14, as the Bulls clinched their sixth NBA championship in eight seasons in a thrilling 87-86 win at the Delta Center.
Jordan hit the game-winning shot in the final seconds — pushing off, of course— and earned his record sixth NBA Finals MVP on June 14, 1998.

Sami Oblad makes BYU history at NCAA track and field championships

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