The Hive Sports

July 9th-10th, Las Vegas, Nevada 

The Big XII Conference hosted their annual football media days in Allegient Stadium this year. In part, to welcome the debut of Arizona, Arizona State and Utah and the return of Colorado to the Big 12 conference. As well as to make some major announcements. 

Big XII Commissioner Yormak opened the 2-day event by stating:

“In the last 12 months…since our last football media day, we added the four corners and solidified ourselves as one of the top 3 conferences in America.”

“During our football championship (last year), we introduced the first ever halftime show with Nelly. Featuring our school bands…we had a record-tying 9 teams in bowl games and we had the second best win percentage.”

A few key highlights from the 2-day conference are: Commissioner Yormark announced the launch of a first of its kind alumni council to serve Stevenson Sylvester and Charmelle Green from the University of Utah; and Steve Young and Ashley Hatch (soccer) from BYU.

A statement released on their website describes this new council, what it will mean, and how it will affect the sport:

“The Big 12 Alumni Council is comprised of 32 former student-athletes from men’s and women’s programs across each Big 12 institution. The Council was created to leverage the experience and expertise of some of the Big 12’s most notable student-athlete alumni as the Conference enters a new era. These alumni will provide guidance and insights surrounding a variety of topics, including brand building, athlete relations, storytelling, digital content and much more.

In turn, each Council member will receive a variety of resources and amenities, including networking access to the Big 12’s Business Advisory Board for professional networking, league support of council member’s community initiatives, media opportunities on behalf of the league and VIP access to all Big 12 Championships and Conference events.”

Former BYU QB and Pro Football Hall of Fame member Steve Young was not present but stated in an online interview: “I’m thrilled to serve on the first-ever Big 12 Alumni Council!…This is an incredibly exciting time for the Big 12, and I look forward to being a resource for Commissioner Yormark and his team as the Conference continues to thrive.” 

The Big XII is thriving and striving to lead the way in 2024 by continuing to be innovative in order to grow their football programs. As such, another exciting announcement made at the media days event was a first-ever partnership between the Big 12 Conference and Microsoft. The announcement was that Microsoft Tablets will be provided to each college football program to have on the sidelines for coaches and staff. 

The new tablets will be available for usage on both the sideline and in the coaching booth, allowing players and coaches access to video review in-game. Microsoft has served as the Official Technology Partner for the NFL since 2013, where all 32 NFL clubs utilize Microsoft Surface devices. Now, they will bring that Surface technology to college football. 

Earlier this year, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved the use of tablets to view in-game videos. Teams can have up to 18 active tablets for use in the coaching booth, sideline, and locker room. Tablets cannot be connected to other devices to project larger additional images and cannot include analytics, data or data access capability or other communication access. All team personnel will be allowed to view the tablets during the game. 

Along with these exciting new changes to Big XII football, members of the media were also able to chat with players and coaches from each team.

The University of Utah as a first year team is projected to finish atop the conference based on the recent media polling. 

Utah’s Brant Kuithe was asked about his preparedness due to sitting out last season and what impact he believes he can make, he stated, especially how he felt during the Spring game. He responded, “I needed the reps. At the start of Spring ball, i didn’t feel amazing. I was a little heavy. I lost weight. Got the reps in. Every single day I got better.”

We asked Utah’s QB Cam Rising about his thoughts on being ranked #1 preseason and what pressure he must feel. His response was, “I don’t really pay much attention to that. I pay attention to what’s happening in-house and that’s all that really matters. It’s great to get those rankings and stuff but you gotta go out and prove it!”

When asked about his instant on-field connection with Dorian, his replied, “Part of it is he’s such a hard worker! He always wants to go out there and grow and catch the football. Because of that, we’ve developed a lot of chemistry in such a short time and it’s just gonna keep getting better!”

On an in-state note, Rising had fanned the flames of the long-standing rivalry between Utah and BYU when answering a reporter’s question by saying he wants to “whoop their a–!” 

Connor Pay of BYU was in attendance and when asked to comment on Rising’s words, stated similar feelings on their side. Noting that this rivalry and the trash talk is more about an appreciation and respect for each other’s program. That rivalry Wil be put to the test when the Utes host BYU at Rice-Eccles Stadium on November 9th.

BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe was also in attendance. On day two, he spent a long several moments between interviews to chat with Colorado coach Deion Sanders – aka “Coach Prime” for his NFL nickname “Prime Time” – and his son Shilo, a safety with the Buffaloes.

After embracing the two reconnected encircled by media and shared fond memories of the 1994 NFL season. That year, Holmoe was defensive backs coach and was coaching Sanders. The San Francisco 49ers went on to a Super Bowl victory. Tom said, “I love Deion!” And the emotions were reciprocated as Coach Prime introduced his son to Tom as one of the best guys he’s ever known.” 

The Hive Sports is looking forward along with the rest of the state of Utah to see the impact of having both Utah and BYU back in the same conference once again! 

Photos by: Joe oliver