BYU football: Bronco Mendenhall rumored to be a 'viable contender' for Colorado coaching job

Rumor has it that Bronco is leaving for Wisconsin now that Bielema is going to Arkansas. Isn't it interesting, the turns that life takes?

@nightowl

Do you even know what "plagiarize means? Let me walk you through it since your utah professors obviously didn't.

From Webster's

"use (words or ideas) of another as if your own"

Uh... all of the quotes I used were in quotation marks. By doing that I showed I was QUOTING others comments. And you see QUOTING others was the point, if I was claiming those comments as my own then it wouldn't prove the point I was making which is that OTHER people, utah "fans", are the ones calling for whittingham's ouster.

The fact that other utah "fans" actually liked your comment also proves that education does not exist on the hill.

LOL!

I love the angst of the utah "fans" on this article about the BYU head coach. LOL!

Oh by the way. Jay Drew is reporting, and confirming, over on the Trib that Bronco was indeed offered a PAC 12 head coaching job last off season and saying it was probably UCLA. Love the comments from utah "fans" that claim they "know" he wasn't offered that job. LOL!

Oh and sportsfan and superute, thanks for the replies, makes all the effort worthwhile and fun.

Why would a school want to have a head coach who is a defensive genius and has a revolving door policy for their Offensive Coordinator? One who is gruff with the press and fans and mismanages his timeouts so poorly he lets the clock run down at the end of the half despite the fact he has two timeouts left and has to settle for a FG. I don't know, we should call Alabama and ask them. How do they put up with that Nick Saban guy. I know if the Y ever had a coach like that, they wouldn't keep him around.

Also, who would want to build a program based on defense and running more than you pass. Crazy. It sure hasn't worked for Alabama.

But no one else does it, right? Hmm, I guess the same is true at Notre Dame this year, but what have they done?

I hear those two teams are playing soon. Must be sad to be a fan of teams like those who just don't understand coaching and football.

@ DuckHunter.
First, you sound like a typical Y fan, making up stats to support an illusion of grandeur about the BYU program. You're actually trying to claim that Utah only had 5 or 6 winning seasons in their history before Whittingham?? Wow. You know the Utes own the BYU series by more than double, right? The program may have been asleep in the 70s and 80s, but Mac only had two losing seasons during his time. And Utah already has more undefeated seasons than BYU has ever had and has been to TWO more BCS games than BYU.
Some Utah fans ate rightly frustrated with the Utes season this year. But smart fans aren't yet calling for Whit's head. But this Utah program is bigger than any one man and if autah has another losing season next year, it probably will be time to discuss changes.

But don't preach to Utah fans that we need to be grateful for our coach. Puh-lease. From the fanbase that pushed LaVell to retire...

@duckhunter

"Your entire post was false. You do not know whether Bronco was offered the UCLA job or not, you have no sources, you have nothing but your own wishful thinking."

haha so you have "sources" but noone else is allowed to? haha you're defintely the MOST delusional fan (of any team) in this world and thats a fact. sad thing is, you're a grown man actin like you act on here... hahaha but i guess age doesnt determine maturity.. lol goodness gracious.

@eddie

you should probably get off your moms couch and follow your own advice. just sayin bro hahaha

Please take Brandon Doman with your Bronc, oh and don't you think Riley would make a great QB coach? He can teach his kids about grit, and all that king of stuff. Bronc the $2.5 mil sounds nice too.

If the current coaching staff goes into next year unchanged, with the same philosophy on offense, then it's hard to imagine a season with fewer than 7 losses, based on the list of opponents.

However, it's hard to believe Tom Holmoe will allow that to happen. He did not work as hard as he did putting together such a
challenging schedule only to sit by and watch the program falter. (And any loss to a WAC team is the definition of faltering. I don't care how impressed everyone pretends to be with San Jose State!)

Bronco has always said a national championship is the eventual goal and that it would likely take back-to-back undefeated seasons to do that. As things now stand, the big question is whether or not BYU can even have a winning season next year.

@BYUFaninWashSt

Hmm. Very intriguing. I remember that kid when he played for Wisconsin. He was quite a prolific passer.

There is no way Bronco is going to get fired during the offseason, but I would bet better than even odds that he'll leave on his own at the end of his contract--2013. Then Holmoe will be challenged with, I would assume a pretty short list of temple worthy, qualified coaches who would be interested in the job (or calling). I wonder if Holmoe is aware of Bevell. Sounds like a good candidate.

I think Colorado would be a perfect place for Bronco to go. Low expectations as well as a lack of depth. It would be a great place for his coaching style. Then BYU can hire someone like Andy Reid who can excell with the abundance of resources and talent at his disposal. Then BYU can start living up to its expectations

Duck man you're killing me. My Ute friends would LOL if they saw your rumblings. They would ask, "is everyone in Provo like this Duck guy?" Then they would say that's one more reason they're happy to be Utah fans rather than Cougars.

How many usernames do you have here? Eagle, do you have any more smarty comments or provoking thoughts?

Man I'm going to miss all you guys this off season!!

New head coach for BYU ... would sure beat the impostor we have now.

Darrell Bevell was recruited by BYU, but the Cougars took Ty Detmer instead. Bevell went on to serve an LDS mission, lead Wisconsin to a Rose Bowl and now coaches in the NFL for the Seattle Seahawks.

Bevell moved to Iowa State as a graduate assistant in 1997 and continued on to the University of Connecticut for two seasons (1998-99) as a wide receivers coach.

From UConn, Bevell jumped to the NFL and the Green Bay Packers, where he spent three years as quarterback coach and worked with Brett Favre and Matt Hasselbeck.

When Childress was hired as Minnesota’s head coach in 2006, he asked Bevell to be his offensive coordinator. Bevell accepted.

Following the 2010 season, Bevell, now 41, was asked by coach Pete Carroll to come to Seattle and oversee the offense. In an article in the Olympian, Carroll is pleased with his new offensive coordinator.

To quote my brother: “It's LOL to think Colorado is considering Bronco-that would be the greatest Christmas Present for BYU Football & fans” I agree. Bronco wouldn't succeed at Colorado where, unlike BYU, he wouldn't be able to hide his faults and weakness behind giving good testimony meetings.

Bronco somehow got the chance to be the Head Coach because his predecessor, after a great first year, was a failure on the field and in enforcing BYU standards with his players. Bronco brought back standards, but after a couple years hit his own glass ceiling of his own limited abilities and BYU has been going nowhere fast for several years...beating up on bad teams, but losing to teams with winning records. In addition, Bronco has lost to Utah 3 years in a row.

Bronco’s terrible coaching decisions, culminated w/this year’s “lost season of promise” fiasco. Bronco compounded his failure by refusing to admit his mistakes (did you hear his KSL interview this wk?), starting with his slavish devotion to a Division 3 QB, Riley Nelson. Bronco cannot adjust game plans during the game, which costs BYU several wins every year. The “Bronco Era” needs to end.

Does he need help moving? I got a pick-up to haul some stuff out of state.

@Duckhunter

"It won't take much effort, it won't take much time, but it will prove my point. I'm not sure, although I have a pretty good idea, why none of the utah fans here will do that."

You still don't get it. Nobody is going to bother to do that because nobody cares, and it doesn't matter. We all know, including you, that Coach Whitt still has the support of the vast majority of Utah's fan base; despite those six posters on the Trib. We also all know, including you, that BYU fans have been far more critical of their coaching staff this season than Ute fans have.

The only question left is: Why are you still fighting this?

As I posted before, I don't think Bronco should be fired, evn though I don't like him much.
However, if he were to leave I have always thought Andersen (if he meets criteria) from USU would be an awesome replacement.
If Andy Reid were truly interested as some have asserted, that would be a major coup. I have just always thought that he would be too high priced of a commodity to go to BYU.

@Troy06
I hope you're right about Reid. By the way, I'm not related to eagle. I don't know him. Why do you ask?
@Duckhunter
Give it up man. It's just not that important (re: bronco's UCLA offer and Utes call for a coaching replacement).

Duckhunter vs the Ute Trolls. Kinda reminds me of the youtube video where grandma school bus monitor is being harassed by a group of mean school kids. People took up a collection for the grandma and she received over 1/2 million bucks so she could retire. I think we should take up a collection for duckhunter and expel the Ute trolls.

@NightOwlAmerica

actually he did site that they were comments from the trib. also it is public domain so you dont need permission.

Part of the DNs job is to keep the coog's in the news. That explains the Bronco to Colorado and the re-hash of the San Diego replay drama. The coogs can't seem to do it with legitimate accomplishments (without a trip in the wayback machine)so the DN has to stir old drama or in the yearly case of Bronco to Colorado/UCLA, make crazy stuff up.
Goggle "jumping the shark" and all your questions will be answered.

Hey Duckhunter did you get permission from the Tribune to lift those comments?
In addition you are also using information without citing sources of the actual posters.
Not appropriate to plagiarize.

Ok utah "fans" here are some comments from utah "fans" on the trib.

"Bring back Anderson he seems to be a players coach who is hungry whether then live on his laurels like Whit.,"

"For this reason I think Whit should be replaced. Gary Anderson would be a fabulous choice if he'll have us."

"It is as simple as this. Whittingham has forgot what Urban taught him and he also seems to have a broken quarterback picker. Both broken traits should be lethal for a head coach in the PAC12 but lucky for Whittingham we are in Utah."

"I just don't think he's a BCS caliber coach. Three teams who fired their coaches last year (Arizona, ASU, and UCLA) have already turned it around"

"The 1st thing we need this off season is a new head coach"

These are just a couple of comments from a couple of pages. There's plenty more. I do like how you guys want to pretend it doesn't exist though LOL!

@motorbike

Your entire post was false. You do not know whether Bronco was offered the UCLA job or not, you have no sources, you have nothing but your own wishful thinking. Also on the Tribune your assertions are flat out false. Sorry that the truth is so hard for you to take in both instances but it appears you are unable to handle it emotionally.

@gdog

I said the comments here on the Dnews from utah fans are far less than on the Trib. Just go to the Trib, get on any article abnout utah football and read. It is as simple as that. It won't take much effort, it won't take much time, but it will prove my point. I'm not sure, although I have a pretty good idea, why none of the utah fans here will do that.

I hope bronco doesn't leave the Y, because then they might hire someone who actually knows how to coach.

So ute fans, tell me again why you all are commenting on this article again? Nice to see you supporting all things Cougar! Some of you really need to get a life and follow your own team. Stop taking your anger out on BYU fans and articles. Just because the u is not going bowling this year, doesn't mean you need to vent on this article.

Here is an idea for all you u fans.....just go out side and yell at the top of your lungs. Get all your anger out of your system and then go back inside and listen to some soft easy music.

Motor Bike..right on Bro. When the Duck gets under pressure he does an "Obama" and flips the point you just made on you...

I have been the most vocal on Whitt. I love what he "has done" but uncertain about what he is "going to do". With his super supportive fan base, now is the time to spend some dough, go national in recruiting, get off of the Utah based player selecting, and act like Mora, Rodriguez and his other PAC 10 peers. We will support a change and invest our emotional support.

To me it is clear that our old talent pool could beat BYU, win the MTN West and prepare for a bowl game against an opponent that knew little about us and win!

The price of poker went up in a new conference. "Whitt needs to change" is my cry! Not Whitt needs to go!

That is my position and I read these comments daily and have not seen anyone call for heads to roll...just change...

DUCKHUNTER

But I wonder why it hurts utah "fans" so much to think that might have happened? If it because Bronco turned them down and you just can't fathom anyone turning down a job in the pac12?

True Ute fans could really care less, I know that's how I feel. WOW I will tell you one thing you are a riot.

duck

Anderson for Whit give me a break Utah state has one good year and everybody wants him, just like me you know he isn't going anywhere same as Bronco. Not only dumb it would be stupid for him to go anywhere and you are right he has done a great job for byu. He gets his six games a year that they can't loose, 4 games they might win and two they won't win (Utah, Boise State). I just wish for once that I could read some comments on a byu article about how you fans feel without bringing Utah into it, man it gets old. We're not all calling for Anderson why would we?

Bronco loves the running game because it eats up the clock, rests, and takes pressure off the defense. As a defensive guy, he's all for taking pressure off his side of the ball. It also leaves your team and the opposition with fewer opportunities to score, which makes the games much closer at the end. For BYU, that also translates into close games with .500 win teams, and getting clobbered by ranked teams. After watching Virgil Carter success, LaVelle was wise enough to take the risk and completely commit to the passing game by focusing on QB's that could throw accurately and receivers that could haul it in. Bronco will always be a run guy to take the pressure off his defense and "have a chance at the end." I'd rather clobber the .500 win teams and have a chance to clobber the ranked teams. You may get embarrassed in a few games when the passing game goes south, but in the long run you'll have logarithmically (a lot) more success overall. BYU Leaders: Please put someone in charge who will return BYU to a complete reverse philosophy than the philosophy that Bronco is married to. Thanks!

Don't want you to leave Bronco, but if you do, please take Doman with you.

Bronco isn't going anywhere. His stock is falling not rising. Stories like this many times are put out by agents or coaches themselves to see if their current school will pay them more or to see if current school values them. Give him a pat on the back and let him walk. We are all replaceable. The last year was a terrible job of coaching.

Ho Ho Ho, 'tis the season for gift... another BYU Bronco article for Ute "fans" to comment on!

I suppose it's better than the clumps of coal their football team gave them.

Ho Ho Ho! LOL

If Bronco gets the job I think he should take it. He has earned it and he deserves it. Colorado really needs a guy like Bronco. I think he could turn them around.

Y Grad/Y Dad:
First, let me say that I was a big fan of Bronco up until this season. I agree with much of the direction he has given to the program, if not fully the application of it. But I'm going to take exception to the assertion that Bronco is a winner, at least not as a head coach. He is an incredible defensive coordinator, but he has displayed too many times that he doesn't seem to grasp what it takes to play strong offensive football, which of course is a necessity to truly win. His record against most of the good teams the last few years speaks for itself in that regard; the team is sadly underperforming.

So, he is turning out to use poor judgment, and appears to be arrogant in his determination to stick with that if his postgame comments to Greg Wrubell after the NMSU game are an indication. That is wearing on even some of his most ardent supporters, including myself. I want him to stay head coach, but only if he can humble himself and figure out what is necessary to have the team play the way they are capable.

This Riley situation has really brought out the deep emotional trauma of a lot of wannabe fans.

So here's why I am still a dyed in the wool kool-aid drinking Bronco supporter:

The man is a winner, he has done so while upholding the values of the institution and church I support and he has maintained a good sense of balance while doing so. Probably comes from surfing.

Many have suggested, and I believe, that he probably buys into the "need a running game to be successful passing at the next level" theory. Being a defensive guru, he may even beleive that anybody can defend against a team that almost soley relies on the pass without a running attack.

So, the theory goes, he favors the running qb. The fact that the running qb has tremendous grit and character, traits admired by the coach, cements the deal. Doman says, "Okay, let me give you a passing/running offense." But we don't have the horses up front to pull it off.

I can forgive the theory, but this IS BYU, it is time to go back to what we have historically done the best - pass the ball.

I don't know why everyone thinking Andy Reid coming to BYU as the offensive coordinator and/or head coach will be a savior. I mean, haven't they seen the Philadelphia Eagles lately?

Football is not about winning games, pleasing fans with great performances, or gaining national recognition. The true purpose of the football program for BYU is to train up young men to live good lives, to be be good examples by influencing other young men at firesides, and for exercise. To fulfill the true purposes of BYU football, Bronco should remain at BYU forever!

I am not surprised by anything Duckhunter says anymore.
Already admitted to living on this website, most likely under 2-3 more names.

Oh Ducky, Ducky ...

You're so defensive today. Trust me, when I say I don't care if Bronco was offered the UCLA job, I mean it. And to pretend that it kills us Ute fans to admit that a Cougar coach is good enough to field attention and offers, is also just a sad misconception. The truth is I actually think Bronco is a pretty good coach, I think I respect his coaching abilities than most of your fellow Cougar fans. But none of this changes the fact that Bronco was absolutely not offered the UCLA job.

As for the Ute fans on the trib site calling for Anderson to replace Whittingham ... I've been reading the articles on that site as well and there are very few people making those comments. Now some of those people have commented several times over but that's not the same thing. The other thing is this ... many of the comments are people speculating what a good coach Anderson would/could be and what areas he might be better than Whittingham ... however, very few of those posters are saying they actually want Whittingham out and Anderson in.

Adios Bronco. Good Luck! Good times ahead for BYU!

Bronco hadn't been a head coach before BYU and it has turned out great. Stay Bronco but go away Doman.

@rafinsure

That was a GREAT take. I may be a Ute fan, but couldn't agree with you more even though I am not a fan of Bronco's personality. Coach Mendehall is vastly under appreciated by BYU fans. His record at BYU is better than his predecessors and yet he is under fire. BYU's honor code emphasis is greater now than it has been. Expectations are higher. Bottom line' Bronco has more challenges in recruiting, micromanaging, and winning than any other BYU coach. And his fans and he have a bad relationship (within a relative percentage). Some of that is brought upon by Bronco (smug factor), but BYU, and what it represents is contrary to this type of bad sentiment coming from both coach and fan.

I do think Bronco is the right fit for BYU, but I also think he might want to move on. He looks burned out at BYU to me, and the fans need the humble pie lesson AGAIN. They wanted Chow and Anae gone. Each time they were wrong. Now they want Doman gone. I get that, but what play calls is Doman going to make for Riley Nelson?

@Duckhunter

Oh no, you did it again. I read your first paragraph and was ready to compliment you. Then the second came along.

You're loyal and balanced when commenting on BYU (sincere compliment), but your irritation with Ute matters has you making imaginary and extreme comments. I haven't read comments from Ute fans calling for Whittinghams's job. I am not saying these attitudes and comments don't exist somewhere, they probably do, but the volume of of BYU fans wanting and asking for Bronco to be gone are everywhere, and on all BYU posts in droves. Telling BYU fans not to be like Utah fans is not fair here.

I said I haven't read comments calling for Whittingham's job. That's true. However, I wrote about a week ago that if Whittingham WANTED (not likely) to go back to the defense, and Chris Hill and the administration agreed with it, and replaced Whit with Coach Anderson, that I would be intrigued. If that's what you are referring to, please spare me.

Backtracking, I think you're correct wanting Bronco as your coach. You write about frustrations with him but stay balanced. Good on you.

Bronco had other opportunities and didn't go. Why would he go now other than his love of Riley Nelson brought this season to a sub-par success. The reality is that Doman needs to leave. I don't think Bronco is in it for the money, or he would have left a long time ago.

If Bronco ever wants to leave for a better job and he gets an offer now he had better take it. He may never get another one.

Given the even tougher schedule for the Y next season, there's no reason to believe things will be much better than this year -- unless there are major changes (at least a new OC), which fans are hoping for.

The ball will soon be in Tom Holmoe's court and it will be interesting to see how he plays it.

Yeah Bronco, take the money and run... please. And take Doman with you.

Prior to this year I would have been opposed to Bronco leaving BYU, but the way he mismanaged the season, the team, the QB this year, I would say, yes, please go somewhere else so BYU can get back to being a real BYU team.

I think Coach Mendenhall has done a pretty good job at BYU but he brings no charisma to the position unfortunately. When BYU visited Notre Dame he made comments that were so flat about the storied place to the point it was almost disrespectful. Perhaps it is time for a change? If Coach Mendenhall sees a good opportunity at CU, I say good wishes to you!. The person I think could be a great coach at BYU is Ty Detmer.

@motorbike

There are at least 3 utah "fans" per page wanting whittinghma replaced over on the trib. I understand none of you wanting to go and actually look for yourselve because it is a lot easier to be ignorant about the truth than flat out dishonest. If you went and looked yourself, and saw it to be true, then you either would have to come back here and lie about it, or pretned you never saw it, or even easier just never look to begin with.

If you want to continue this charade then I will start catalogueing the names and times of the posts and start making posts here with that info. Or yuou could just swallow your false pride and go look at it yourself. Either way it is fact.

Record against teams who finish in the Top 25: 2-12 Winning Percentage: 14.3%

This

@motorbike

I have other sources, people that would know, that have told me the job Bronco was offered and turned down was the UCLA job. Like I said I don't know that for a fact since I don't know Bronco and I was not part of any negotiation, but the sources I have are good ones so I believe them. But even if it isn't the case why are you and the other utah "fans" around here so desperate to try and claim it isn't the case? You said it doesn't matter to you but it obviously does matter to you because you feel the overwhelming need to claim otherwise. Bronco told the press he was offered, and declined, another job last off season. We do know that UCLA approached him, they have admitted it and he said so.

But I wonder why it hurts utah "fans" so much to think that might have happened? If it because Bronco turned them down and you just can't fathom anyone turning down a job in the pac12?

Now another pac12 school is showing interest. I'm sorry that hurts utah "fan" pride.

@waccy

So the utah posters calling for whittingham to be replaced are really BYU fans but the BYU fans calling for Bronco to be replaced are in fact BYU fans. Nice try.

LOL!

Wow Duckhunter, you read every Utah article on both the Trib and DNews. You really are a die hard Ute fan. I'll see you at next year's games. I sit on the East side of the stadium on the 20 yard line (toward the North end zone) half way up. Where are your season tickets located?

PLEASE, Colorado, take Bronco.

I like Bronco. I hope he stays. Let's throw Doman's name in the mix for a head coaching job....anywhere but at the Y as an O.C.

It's funny all the posters on here saying that BYU fans don't like Bronco are ute "fans". Other than a few crazies BYU fans are very happy with Bronco.

Love how Utah has absolutely dominated us coogs but somehow us coog fans try to make them look bad. If Utah is so bad in the PAC, based upon on-field results, byu would fare much worse.

Duckhunter
Highland, UT
@soonerute and other utah fans

The calls for replacing whittingham are certainly less on the Dnews boards than the Tribune boards but if you go to almost any of the articles about utah on the tribune boards it is overwhelming how many utah fans are calling for whittingham to be replaced and the majority of them are asking to have him replaced with anderson.

Now there are far, far more commentors on the tribunes articles than on the dnews articles, far more, and yes that is exactly what is happening there. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that maybe you don't read the Tribune or its commentors but if you pull your heads out of the sand and go over there and read them you will see I am correct and it is a huge percentage of utah fans doing it.

Seeing as though comments on the trib outnumber comments on the dnews by about 10-1 then there are far more utah fans calling for whittinghams replacement than BYU fans calling for Bronco's.

___________________

And just how many of those posters are buddies of yours, BYU fans posing as Utah fans?

Andy Reid??? Highly doubtful he would come here even if there were an opening and he was available.

If Bronco can get more money and more importantly, finds a better fit anywhere else for him and his family, then he should leave BYU.

I doubt he will and his view on the world will rub many the wrong way as it does already with a large chunk of the BYU fan base.

I think he knows that he has limited options without changing his perspective on matters and his coaching style. BYU is a good fit for him. Just not sure he is the best fit for BYU.

Hey idablu
I found one source from CougarBoard.com

"I asked Andy Reid if he would ever coach at BYU"
I had the chance to meet with Coach Reid at charity event in Texas. I asked if he would ever coach at BYU. He said that he would love to coach at BYU. He loves the church, BYU and challenges that it would bring. I had a great talk with him. I would not be suprised to see him as our next head coach whenever that may be.

I'll see what else I can find. Andy didn't want to leave the Eagles when Bronco was offered the job. He would take the HC job now!!

Are you and Eagle brothers?

Hey idablu
I found one source from CougarBoard.com

"I asked Andy Reid if he would ever coach at BYU
I had the chance to meet with Coach Reid at charity event in Texas. I asked if he would ever coach at BYU. He said that he would love to coach at BYU. He loves the church, BYU and challenges that it would bring. I had a great talk with him. I would not be suprised to see him as our next head coach whenever that may be."

I'll see what else I can find. Andy didn't want to leave the Eagles when Bronco was offered the job. He would take the HC job now!!

Are you and Eagle brothers?

@CJ in Richmond, VA. I couldn't agree more with what you said about Bronco. I was at BYU when Edwards first started and you could hear rumbles then about whether or not he could be a good coach. Now we look back on his tenure and shower Lavell with praises which he deserves,as do many of the elite college football coaches. I'm not implying that Bronco is Lavell Edwards, but he certainly has embraced Lavell and former BYU players. Further, he's been able to win at a school that's not the easiest place to attract blue chip talent year in and year out. I hope Bronco stays at BYU!

I want Bronco to stay as well. I'm stated many times that I've lowered my expectations for wins and accomplishment on the field, but Bronco is an outstanding person, as are the other coaches in his program. Riley is a great young man and I wish him well in whatever he chooses to pursue in the future. But BYU football has not produced the wins I wanted to expect, and that is my fault. BYU's game plan hasn't produced what I wanted to expect, but it has produced a wild number of QB draws and resulting injuries. I hope Bronco stays, Doman stays, and BYU footballers continue to learn and grow from their experiences. Go Cougars! I'm a fan forever, just with lesser expectations.

Yes Andy Reid has said that. Off course I'm not a journalist, finding that quote would take me 6 years. You sound like a smart guy, why don't you look it up?

Still Blue:
With regard to Ziggy, the talent has always been there; the understanding of the game has not. The most athletic player in the world will be a disaster on the field if he doesn't know what he's doing. It doesn't surprise me in the least that it has taken this long for him to get significant playing time. That he is doing so well now with yet so little experience is what has the NFL salivating over him. I fully expect him to end up one of the best players in the league after all is said and done.
With regard to Jamaal: Freshmen usually have reliability or understanding issues that make coaches hesitant to play them, regardless of their ability. As well as he has done this year, one only has to look at the low block he attempted on the SJSU linebacker that ultimately cost them a likely victory.
I think it has been extraordinarily poor judgment, and probably some arrogance, on the part of Bronco to not even give James Lark a chance with Riley injured. But I don't fault him for not playing Ziggy or Jamaal earlier.

BYU should hire Robert Anae as head coach after Bronco leaves. Anae would make Kufusi defensive coordinator and BYU would get back to being a passing team again. This run and boot is over!

@Troy06:
"...Andy Reid is on the record for stating BYU HC would be one of his dream jobs."

Really? I hadn't heard that. If you can get us a reference, that would be great.
The last I heard, he was offered the HC job before Bronco and turned it down.
I think Andy Reid would be a great HC, but I'm not quite ready to call for Bronco's head, despite the fact he really irritates me sometimes.

The bottom line is Bronco Mendenhall has never been a great or even good coach in terms of wins and losses. He may be a great guy but BYU will not be successful consistently under his leadership if the previous 3 years are a continuing trend. They will continue to dominate patsies and win a few against ok competition but, statistically, will never compete consistently with the 'big dogs'. What was so special about 2009? They had an experienced quarterback who could throw and experienced O-line. Bronco has shown glimpses of greatness, but it has been a long time (as head coach that is!) He is an elite DC, mediocre HC.

Record against Above .500 Teams: 23-19 Winning Percentage: 54.8%
Since Riley Nelson: 4-9 Winning Percentage: 30.8%
I believe the numbers speak for themselves. Bronco has always struggled against teams with a winning record. But many of these games opponents were one or two games above .500. 16 of these wins (69.6%) came from 2006-2009. Again, Riley Nelson has accounted for 47% of these losses. Really?! Best chance to win? C'mon Coach!

Record Against Ranked Opponents: 4-12 Winning Percentage: 25%
Since Riley:0-4 Winning Percentage: 0%
3 of the 4 came in 2009. The other? 2006. Bronco hasn't beaten a top 25 team in 3 years! If you want to be considered a 'good' head coach you need be beat quality opponents. 45% of Bronco's wins have come against sub .500 teams and 66% of his losses have come from above .500 teams. No too great if you ask me.

Record against teams who finish in the Top 25: 2-12 Winning Percentage: 14.3%

For those who are interested in stats I have a list of stats I find interesting as a stats guy:

Bronco's Overall Record: 73-29, Winning Percentage: 71.6 %
Not a bad statistic to have for a head coach until you look at how he got there.

Since Riley Nelson: 24-12: Winning precentage: 66.7%
Riley has been responsible for 41.3 percent of Bronco's losses. Best chance to win?

Record Against Sub .500 Teams: 33-2 Winning Percentage: 94.2%
Since Riley Nelson: 15-1 Winning Percentage: 93.8%
This is exactly the kind of record you would expect. He has won 15 straight and 34 of the last 35. Only losses are to Utah State (2010) and SDSU (2005). Riley will get the job done against patsies.

Record against Teams At .500: 17-8 Winning Percentage: 68%
Since Riley Nelson:5-4 Winning Percentage: 55.6
Still not a terrible job, but these teams could be argued as mediocre, should win games. A powerhouse program just doesn't lose these games. Oh, by the way, Riley Nelson has accounted for 50% of Bronco's losses here.

Gary Anderson for the Colorado Job? Let's let him win a few years at USU before we name him the next big thing. As of now he is no Bronco or coach Whit. Both Bronco and Whit have done it successfuly for a while now. Anderson is new to success and if he were to go to colorado right now he would be dumped on his butt and fired within a couple of years.

IF he gets the interview, and IF he gets the offer, and IF he takes it, I hope he takes Doman with him!!

Leave it alone Duckhunter. Your as bad as Chris B. I've seen you heckling the Ute fans on their boards.
I like to give Chris a hard time, but not Ute Nation.

Stop It!

I am a fan of Bronco, and used to be %100 behind him, but now I have concerns. Is he really invested to be BYU's coach? I have concerns over playing a QB who is frequently injured, has difficulty throwing, and who has not been able to win a single big game--he has not got the job done. You or me could have been QB against the weak teams and BYU still would have won. BYU has talent behind him that is not utilized like it should. Just concerned about his judgement regarding the offense. On the positive side he is a good representative of the school and the church. I miss the days of Lavell knowing we had a fully invested coach and an offense that had an identity, though he too became stuborn at times with swithching QBs. Overall, I hope Bronco stays forever if he can just lighten up in a few aspects.

As Bronco said, it would not be honorable to leave BYU when he agreed to complate his three year contract. He won't take the job at CO right now. And I don't see Tom Holmoe and Pres Samualson going to fire him or ever. So, be happy to have him and careful what you wish for. Just wish our offense system get working right next year.

Brave Sir Robin, Andy Reid is on the record for stating BYU HC would be one of his dream jobs.

Leave it alone Duckhunter. Your as bad as Chris B. I've seen you heckling the Ute fans on their boards.
I like to give Chris a hard time, but not Ute Nation.

Stop It!

Braxton:
Your logic is flawed, my friend. Coaches sign contracts; players do not. A player can leave for another school at any time. Most do not because of the requirement to sit out a year after transferring. And I know the fact that some players transfer to BYU after their missions bothers many who are against BYU, but it's also convenient that they overlook those who leave BYU or lose the desire to play after their missions. Although I don't follow Utah, I have heard Jake Murphy's name mentioned a time or two, so I am under the impression that he has been a welcome addition there (and probably could have helped at BYU). There was also the much more famous case of Ben Olsen leaving. Although he ultimately didn't do much at UCLA, there is a reason most every school wanted him to begin with, and BYU had to scramble to fill his position when he chose not to return. So, relax. Being upset at kids who want to go to BYU for an environment closer to what they had on their missions is really not worth anybody's energy.

I really really really *really* hope this is more than a rumor and Bronco does indeed take the CU job, for the following reasons:
1. It would be fun to see him unemployed in 2 years after he can't resurrect that dumpster fire of a program. I don't think Vince Lombardi could turn CU around.
2. It would be fun to watch Y fans get all frothy about the idea of getting Andy Reid (which is about a million-to-one shot) and then be all heartbroken when they don't get him.
3. It would be fun to watch Brandon Doman become head coach and take BYU from their current mediocre state further into obscurity. If you thought he could mess up an offense, wait until you see what he can do with a whole team.

lol @ duckhunter

id hate to be that obsessed with my rival.

@soonerute and other utah fans

The calls for replacing whittingham are certainly less on the Dnews boards than the Tribune boards but if you go to almost any of the articles about utah on the tribune boards it is overwhelming how many utah fans are calling for whittingham to be replaced and the majority of them are asking to have him replaced with anderson.

Now there are far, far more commentors on the tribunes articles than on the dnews articles, far more, and yes that is exactly what is happening there. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that maybe you don't read the Tribune or its commentors but if you pull your heads out of the sand and go over there and read them you will see I am correct and it is a huge percentage of utah fans doing it.

Seeing as though comments on the trib outnumber comments on the dnews by about 10-1 then there are far more utah fans calling for whittinghams replacement than BYU fans calling for Bronco's.

@Duckhunter ...

Can I have whatever it is you're having?

You're trying to tell us that there are as many or more Utah fans calling for Anderson to replace Whittingham as there are Cougar fans calling for Bronco's job??? Bro, seriously ... you've been getting better and better lately at writing some very honest and reasonable comments ... this is not one of them and you know it. There are about three Utah fans that would like to see Whittingham replaced by Anderson or anyone else for that matter. Now open up all the recent BYU articles and start counting the BYU fans that mention wanting to see Bronco and Doman go away ... as I said, you know it's not even close so why say it?

Secondly, everyone but you and Dick Harmon knows that Bronco was not offered the UCLA job. Did he have discussions with them? Probably. I could really care less if he had been offered the job, it does nothing for me as a Ute fan either way, but he wasn't. There's really no need to make yourself look silly by standing by that silly assertion.

Good luck with the Fireside schedule at CU!

Duckhunter wildly claims "But BYU fans don't be as low as the utah "fans". They are all calling for gary anderson to replace whittingham"
I have never heard that, never seen that. There might be one lone voice out there saying something stupid like that, but you're smart enough to know that is not how Utah fans feel. On the whole, Utah fans are happy with where they are.

On the other hand, there are several BYU fans complaining about BYU coaching, talking about a season that could have been. I'm surprised BYU fans want Bronco to go. If anything "demote" him to full time defensive coach. That is what he'd prefer anyway.

Bronco would never coach at CU. I've spent a lot of time in Boulder - they would go crazy with a Mormon coach. Do you recall how many visits Obama made to UC during the election? If Bronco were offered the job and accepted it, I would be the first to eat crow.

Butch isn't moving to CU either. A phone call means truly nothing.

Plus the real Broncos are the only football team in town! No one cares about CU.

Just imagine Bronco moving to Boulder, then Doman becomes head coach, and Riley becoming OC! LOL

No way. BM a serious candidate for the CU job? DC maybe, but not the head coach.

Funny, if eventually hired, he'd have to deal with Colorado's new legalized cannabis laws & the Buffs' new recruits/returning lettermen. Won't that be fun for an LDS coach?

Don't see him being offered, but I'm an Andy Reid guy...one can hope BM goes somewhere else at season's end, and Reid is asked by Pres. Monson to coach the Y. Then BM can take Riley with him, make him a grad asst or something.

WHAT UNAPPRECIATIVE BYU FAN BASE? I literally have hundreds of BYU fan friends and none of them are calling for Bronco to go. We are frustrated with the Riley thing but can forgive him for this year. Overall Bronco is everything a BYU fan wants. He is commited to winning, to the Church and its standards, to academic excellence, and to doing things the right way. I would rather have 100 losing seasons with the program doing what it is supposed to do then one national championship with a team full of atheletes who do not live the standards of BYU. Consequently, as Bronco has revitalized the standards of the football teAm the winning has gone up. One year of some close call losses is not enough to erase what an amazing job he has done and will do in the future. Bronco is exactly what a BYU coach should be and I and every BYU fan I know stand behind him. PLEASE STAY BRONCO!

I have always liked Bronco and think, until this year that he's done a good job. But this year changed me because I believe it's become an integrity issue. Riley Nelson is the most visible decision Bronco's made, sticking with him and costing the team 3-4 losses. But Ziggy rarely played until an injury forced Bronco to play him full-time. Did Ziggy just immediately get a lot better? and Jamaal Williams only played due to Aliso's injury. I wonder about other positions or players that we jut don't know about. I believe that this year showed that Bronco is willing to play kids he likes over kids with more talent or ability to help the team win. And there is an effect on the rest of the team and coaches when that happens as they all know who is really the best; and if the coach doesn't want to win that badly, why should they work hard to win? and to me, that is an integrity issue. Bronco has not lived up to his own standards.

Bronco has certainly made some mistakes at BYU, but he's a heck of a defensive coach. What BYU needs is a good offensive mind to complement his defense. A good coordinator who could put together a decent game plan and properly evaluate qb talent would have done wonders. I like Doman, but he doesn't have what it takes. The one thing Colorado might be willing to offer that BYU will not, is enough money to get quality coordinators around him.

This is just another example os SPECULATION and not news. The last story was that the Big East and BYU were still talking, as if that was news. And the article from the Colorado newspaper contradicts itself. The story is just an attempt at stirring the pot in Boulder. Why did we pick it up?

When are reporters going to concentrate on the NEWS again? Ever......??

Duckhunter,

This is an article about Bronco and Colorado and somehow you figure out a way to drag Utah in to the conversation so you can dish out insults. It's obvious that Utah is in your head every day. Don't fight it any more, this Christmas season you should make a little investment in season tickets for Utah's 2013 football season. Merry Christmas.

I have yet to see even one utah fan suggest replacing whitt. not even one.

Does anybody really WANT to coach at that black hole of a football program?

In my opinion, Bronco is an excellent Defensive Coordinator. His expertise is with Defense not Offense or Special Teams. Personally, I wouldn't hire him as a Head Coach unless there was already great Offensive Coordinator for the team.

@Two For

Not if you read the posts on the Dnews and Trib. There are just as many, if not more, Utah fans calling for Whittingham to be replaced with Anderson as there are BYU fans looking to replace Bronco. Your comments about "unappreciative and overly critical fanbase" could just as easily be used in describing utah "fans".

You are basing your opinion of BYU fans on the posts and the percentages for utah "fans" are just the same. A myopic view of the two doesn't change the truth of the two.

@Two For Flinching:

I think you hit the nail on the head. Most people commenting here about Bronco leaving for CU know nothing about Boulder or the football played there. CU would be a terrible job for Bronco, as it is extremely, extremely liberal, and has an extremely weak fan-base, not to mention how many coaches have been in and out of there in the past 10 years.

There's no way he'd take it. He loves teaching young men to be nice too much. This is an admirable thing.

The knee-jerk, low football IQ fan tends to blurt out "fire the coach!" or "bench the QB!" when things start to go south. That's mistake one. Mistake two, which even national columnists seem to make over and over, is to place too much emphasis on one game, or even one season. In other words, for some reason What Just Happened seems to trump a longer term track record in many people's eyes. If Bronco gets a Godfather offer, I wouldn't begrudge him taking it, but I don't want him gone. Same for Whittingham . . they guy knows what he's doing, even if this year's results were lousy. Be careful what you wish for.

@Duckhunter

What do you know? I actually agree with you on your post 100%. A Ute fan and Duckhunter agreeing? What is the world coming to? :) Cougar fans should want Mendenhall to stay. I hope he stays. I think he is a great coach. The Cougar defense this year was one for the record books - thanks to Bronco.

Ute fans need to not lose confidence in Whittingham. With 3 QBs and starting a true freshman QB, you are going to lose some games. It wasn't too long ago when Washington and Stanford were losing every game. Even Oregon State had a worse season last year with an inexperienced QB than Utah this year. Most of Utah's players are MWC recruits. Recruiting will gradually improve.

"I don't want to sign an agreement and not fulfill it"

I don't believe Bronco actually believes this. He welcomes kids every year to transfer to BYU after committing and playing for other teams, 99% of them after fulfilling a mission (example, Riley Nelson and the other two this year, one from Colorado the other Hawaii ). Coaches in other states stay clear of recruiting Mormons for fear they will just transfer to BYU after a mission. Come on Bronco, do as you say not as you do.

Bronco is a great fit for BYU, but would be elsewhere as well.

Glad BYU didn't go to a BCS conference and make fools of themselves like our friends up north did. I do think BYU would have adjusted like TCU did, and eventually work their way up.

Duckie, you're fiction writing classes are beginning to pay off. UCLA offered Bronco the head coaching job and "all" Utah fans are calling for Gary Anderson. Ha!

One never happened and the other never will.

Bronco is and has been a great coach for BYU. I hope the fans realize what he has done with this program, particularly after the Crowton debacle. Plus, from an LDS standpoint, he has represented the Church and BYU with nothing but class and dignity - which is huge for the powers that be.

Whatever Bronco decides, he has my utmost respect and admiration.

Interesting conundrum for Coach Mendenhall. On one hand he could leave BYU's unappreciative and over-critical fan base in the dust while significantly increasing his salary at a school with less recruiting restrictions. On the other hand I don't think his personal lifestyle would fit in well in Boulder as it is an extremely liberal place. Also he would probably have better job security at BYU than he would at CU; despite the Cougar's disappointing season.

@ Duckhunter

VERY few people, if any at all, are seriously in favor of replacing Whittingham with Anderson. And everybody knows that it is not going to happen. Coach Whitt still has the overwhelming support of the fans, administration, and players.

@ernie

You have no idea if they did or didn't. According to some that know they did. I personally don't know for sure but there are those that do and I believe them. I know that hurts you being a utah "fan" and wanting to believe that no pac12 team could ever want a Couger. Of course that is bogus considering that 1/4 of the head coaches in the pac12 are Cougars. But hey if it gets you through Christmas and the lack of a utah bowl game to believe that then I don't want to ruin Christmas for you. LOL!

Presonally, I don't think it would be worth the $$. Sometimes a coach is better off staying where he's comfortable at, and making a little less cash. I.E. Mark Few, Chris Peterson.

Bronco is in a fishbowl in Provo. He goes to church with die hard fans. He cannot escape it for even one day. In a bigger market he could still go places without being recognized. Being the BYU head coach would be tough. A passionate fan base that is always around you.

For Bronco's sake I think if not at the end of this year, maybe coach a year or 2 more at the Y and either give coaching a break or go somewhere else.

He is a good coach. I don't agree with his mismanagement of the QB situation but I think he is a good coach.

For heaven's sakes, why would he leave? Sure he has to deal with young men going and coming from missions, but they should be more grown up, have seen more of the world and the poverty that exists elsewhere. Should have more leadership skills and he doesn't have to worry about them showing up drunk for practices, or games. Now with the change in mission age, he will get them at 20 after they have done a lot of growing up and maturing into young men. I'm sorry, I would take that over all the gold cups they hand out.

He'll stay one more year to complete the disastrous 2013 schedule and his contract, then bye-bye Bronco. BYU will never be what it once was under Edwards but the fans don't get that.

Duck: UCLA never made an offer.

I wouldn't blame Mendenhall for leaving for a variety of reasons. First, he's been criticized by BYU fans and alumni (many times unjustly) even though he's posted a better winning percentage for regular season and bowl game wins than Lavell Edwards. Also, he's done the latter with more recruiting restrictions due to BYU's increased emphasis of honor code compliance over the years. Second, Mendenhall has no emotional attachment to BYU since he's an Oregon State alumnus and I sense that his wife doesn't care for BYU or its culture. She would probably prefer to be back in New Mexico or Corvallis. Finally, he can make more money elsewhere with less recruiting restrictions and be part of a prestigious conference. Whether he stays or goes, we'll need to thank Coach Mendenhall for the winning that's occurred during his tenure and the mess he cleaned up left by Crowton, and realize that he'll be difficult to replace. Go Cougars!

Bronco is the best coach byu is going to get. Look at his record, you aren't going to get another guy who wins more. Next year could be rough though.
byu fans need to embrace him.

The phrase "Go Bronco, Go Bronco" has real merit. I hope he does go and we bring in Gary Anderson or Andy Reed. The future of BYU football will be much brighter.

Bronco won't go anywhere and despite the frenzy the media stirs up, BYU fans LOVE Bronco!!

Y-Ask-Y?

"The decision to go Indy was greed on the part of administrators, who threw the futures of the athletes and the coaches under the bus in order to fill the coffers of the college."

You don't have the foggiest idea what you're talking about.

The move to Independence was done solely to escape the lies and deceit of the owners of the MTN and give BYU fans nation-wide better access to all BYU sports, including football.

"the Buffs will not hire someone who hasn't been a head coach in one of the six major conferences..."

The decision to go Indy was greed on the part of administrators, who threw the futures of the athletes and the coaches under the bus in order to fill the coffers of the college.

Put the players' futures first, giving them every chance to excel at this sport, and everything else falls into place - IN A CONFERENCE!

Independence was a bad, greedy decision.

the article makes no sense!

at the 1st it says : In the same article, Paige wrote, "However, the Buffs will not hire someone who hasn't been a head coach in one of the six major conferences."

then at the end it says : Colorado plans to pay its new coach up to $2.5 million. While BYU does not make public how much it pays its coaches, it is believed that Mendenhall earns approximately $1 million per season.

One of the other candidates for Colorado's coaching job includes Utah States Gary Andersen.

Is it just me? I don't think Gary Anderson has been a head coach in one of the six major conferences...

This would be a great scenario. Bronco goes to CO. Andy Reid comes to BYU. Yahoo!

I don't think Bronco will go, he reportedly turned down UCLA and that is a far more desirable job than colorado. Of course things have changed a bit this year with the entire Riley fiasco so you never know. But I do find the BYU fans calling for Bronco to leave to be ridiculous, the guy has been incredibly successful and despite his bungling this year he is still a great coach, I just don't like his attitude towards the fans.

But BYU fans don't be as low as the utah "fans". They are all calling for gary anderson to replace whittingham even with all whittingham has done for their program. utah had about 5-6 winning seasons in all the decades before whittingham took over and those "fans" are trying to replace him. Don't be like them. Calling Bronco out for his mistakes is one thing, calling for him to lose his job when he has never had a losing season and never missed going to a bowl game is ridiculous.

I respect both Coach Mendenhall and Coach Anderson and the successful programs they've built at BYU and Utah State. Each will have to decide what's in their own best interests, but I wish them success in whatever that choice may be.

Gary Andersen would be a much better choice for Colorado than Bronco, as would Butch Jones (who probably is their first choice). As bad as Colorado has gotten in recent years, this would be a school any coach looking for a challenge would like, especially as it's still in a BCS-level conference.

As for Bronco even considering leaving BYU for another coaching job, he's no dummy. BYU's a tough place to coach, as BYU fans are pretty fickle. Missionary comings-and-goings mess up continuity, making it tough to win importantly, and the honor code squeezes the recruiting palate. So, I wouldn't be surprised to see him one day leave for another coaching job.

I'd like to see Bronco remain here for at least another three on top of the current three years. Not sure that'll happen. It might depend on the success of independence scheduling or getting into a major conference during this realignment fiasco.

I can't say I'd blame Bronco for being interested. Triple your salary. Triple the prestige of the conference(WAC vs. Pac 12). Triple the quality of athletes you can recruit.