Top 10 stories list

1. Beginning with its first outright MWC championship and a Liberty Bowl victory, the University of Utah's football team put together an undefeated season in 2004, resulting in the first non-BCS school invited to a big-money game.

2. Ranking second was the coaching shuffle involving not only Meyer, but three other institutions — BYU, Utah State and Weber State. For the first time since the 1920s all four schools were looking for coaches at the same time. And one by one, the schools filled their vacancies, with Utah and BYU naming assistants Kyle Whittingham and Bronco Mendenall, respectively, and Utah State tapping Arizona State's Brent Guy, while Weber State hired former Utah head coach Ron McBride for its sidelines.

3. Third on the list was the offseason signings by the Utah Jazz. Owner Larry Miller opened his wallet and aggressively filled several spots on the team, including handing big money contracts to Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur. Additionally, long-term deals were completed with guards Carlos Arroyo and Gordan Giricek. Completing the signings before the season got under way was locking in All-Star Andrei Kirilenko for maximum money. With that the Jazz look to have solidified the team for the future.

4. The No. 4 story of the year was the resignation for health reasons of long-time Utah basketball coach Rick Majerus. The departure led the Utes to eventually hire Eastern Washington's Ray Giacoletti, while Majerus resurfaces as a basketball analyst for ESPN. Before the year was out, however, Majerus was headed back to the coaching ranks as the head coach of Southern California. Then just as suddenly, he was out as USC coach and back in the ESPN fold.

5. Alex Smith earned the No. 5 spot on our list, though some suggested he be included in the No. 1 story. But Smith earned accolades separate from the team, including Sporting News' player of the year as well as finishing fourth among voters for the Heisman Trophy. His individual achievements alone deserve ranking.

6. Sixth on the list was last season's Jazz team. The overachievers — predicted by some to finish with only single-digit wins — just missed the playoffs. And if they had been playing in the East, they would have been the fifth-seeded team in the postseason.