There's still a month of preparation time, more than the 26 or so days a team has in camp before a season opener.

"Right now we've just got to train and get stronger," said linebacker Stevenson Sylvester. "Get ready for whoever we play."

The Utes have four conditioning sessions scheduled this week. Everything else is sort of on hold.

Quarterback Brian Johnson insists there's little or no speculation on possible BCS opponents or destinations.

"We really haven't paid any attention to it at all. We've just kind of been enjoying our Thanksgiving break," Johnson said. "We got back today and we'll just take it from here. We'll watch this weekend and see what happens. We'll be curious to find out on Sunday."

EXTRA POINTS: The Utes will gather for a private dinner with their families at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Sunday to watch the BCS Selection Show ... Whittingham said he spoke with Urban Meyer on Sunday night. The friends often bounce ideas off of one another. A practice, Whittingham acknowledged, that will "change slightly" if Utah and Florida square off in a bowl game ... Thanks to the BCS schedule, Johnson was able to spend Thanksgiving at home in Texas for the first time since 2004 — the year the Utes were invited to the Fiesta Bowl ... Whittingham declined to comment on his future, particularly the job opening at Washington. He did, however, say Utah is a great place to work.

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E-mail: dirk@desnews.com