Breaking news; Head coach last offer as BYU fans React To 5-Star DL Jahkeem Stewart’s potential commitment to BYU cougar football..
Breaking news; Head coach last offer as BYU fans React To 5-Star DL Jahkeem Stewart’s potential commitment to BYU cougar football…
The 49-year-old former Weber State head coach currently leads the No. 27-rated defense with the Cougars, who are ranked No. 19 nationally with a 9-2 record and 6-2 mark in Big 12 play ahead of the regular-season finale Saturday against Houston (8:15 p.m. MST, ESPN).
The Cougars need a few breaks, but a win over the visiting Cougars could potentially vault BYU into the Big 12 championship game Dec. 7 in Arlington, Texas — if either Arizona State or Iowa State lose to Arizona or Kansas State, respectively.
But with breakout seasons come other worries, including off-the-field coaching carousel rumors.
Hill has recently been linked by a handful of media outlets to a potential opening at Utah State, where interim head coach Nate Dreiling has led the Aggies to a 4-7 record ahead of Saturday’s finale against Colorado State.
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And when Hill, a former Utah cornerback who spent nearly a decade on Kyle Whittingham’s staff on the Hill before moving to Ogden and eventually returning to his native Utah County as associate head coach of the Cougars, was asked about his potential involvement with Utah State, he didn’t exactly eliminate the speculation
There’s always so many rumors about that kind of stuff,” Hill said after practice Tuesday. “Right now, I’m focused on BYU and what we’ve got to get done here. At this time of year, there’s always those rumors.”
Hill admitted the timing of coaching searches, when many of them play at during the regular season and as teams are preparing for bowl games or potential College Football Playoff appearances, “isn’t necessarily ideal.”
“But there’s always going to be rumors surrounding that stuff, and it’s always going to be happy at the end of the year,” he added. “That’s just part of the timing of those things.”
Hill added that he “absolutely” has loved his job in Provo, where he took over a struggling defense to become one of the top units in the Big 12 as the Cougars entered their new conference. He has a strong relationship with head coach Kalani Sitake, who worked with Hill under Whittingham before Hill went on to be a wildly successful FCS head coach of 68 wins, six playoff appearances and foru Big Sky championships, while Sitake followed Gary Andersen to Oregon State as defensive coordinator before returning to his own alma mater.
The duo “speak the same language,” Sitake has often said of the two defensive-minded coaches, and Hill isn’t afraid to ask for help and collaboration from the rest of the
