ST. GEORGE — Utah Tech will have to run the gauntlet in the upcoming football season while Southern Utah might be in position to make a statement.
That was the consensus after the United Athletic Conference held its second annual media day on Tuesday in Arlington, Texas.
A poll of UAC coaches selected Central Arkansas as the favorite to win the nine-team Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) conference.
Utah Tech, meanwhile, was predicted to finish next-to-last in eighth.
Interstate 15 neighbor Southern Utah was ranked third in the UAC preseason poll, behind the Bears from Little Rock, Arkansas and second-place Tarleton State.
For media day, each of the nine UAC teams sent their coach and representatives to a press conference with hosts Kendra Sheehan and Byron Anderson.
First-year Utah Tech head coach Lance Anderson appeared with linebacker Sam Kanongata’a and UMass transfer tight end Eni Falayi.
In response to Sheehan’s introductory question, Anderson described his quick ascension to Utah Tech’s sideline after replacing former head coach Paul Peterson last December.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” Anderson said. “It’s been very enjoyable. These guys have really worked hard, and the entire team has. I love the attitude, the work ethic that these guys have put in.”
Utah Tech finished 2-9 overall last year and was 1-5 in UAC games.
“We know that we have a big challenge ahead of us,” Anderson added. “We know that it’s going to take a lot of work but I think we’re off to a good start.”
Anderson comes to Utah Tech after an extensive career as an assistant at Stanford, working under coaches David Shaw and Vic Fangio.
“This is a great opportunity for me to implement all the things I’ve learned from these great coaches,” Anderson said, noting that Stanford provides a good model for the kind of team he wants Utah Tech to be.
“We’re going to be tough, we’re going to be physical, we’re going to work hard. We’re going to do things right,” he said. “We’re going to do things the right way. I’m excited for the challenge.”
According to a press release, Utah Tech redshirt sophomore long snapper Ryan Kean was the only Trailblazer to make the preseason UAC All-Conference team.
Kean, from Corona, California, earned first team All-Conference honors last year after finishing nearly perfect on all of his long snaps.
Utah Tech kicks the season off August 31 at 8 p.m. at Greater Zion Stadium against Montana State. The Bobcats defeated the Trailblazers 63-20 last year in Bozeman.
2 T-Birds get preseason honors
Defensive lineman Rylen Sua-filo and linebacker Kohner Cullimore were Southern Utah’s two representatives named to the preseason UAC All-Conference team.
Entering his third year as head coach in Cedar City, DeLane Fitzgerald told Sheehan that the T-Birds’ biggest problem is replacing long-time starting quarterback Justin Miller.
“We’re waiting for one of the guys battling for the position just to be consistent for us,” Fitzgerald said, “and once we find out who that consistent player is going to be, we can go forward from there.”
Southern Utah finished 6-5 last year. Four of the T-Birds’ five losses were decided by three points or less.
“We finished 4-2 in the conference and we finished winning every game in the last month of the season last year and we return almost all of our players,” Fitzgerald said. “We’re better. Now we have to go prove that we’re better.”
The T-Birds open the season at Rice Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City against the Utah Utes on August 29. Utah is the preseason favorite to win the powerful Big 12 Conference.
Fitzgerald will start the season under a one-game suspension by the NCAA after committing two transfer portal violations in January.
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.