it's messin up your head.

I'm not going to debate you point for point but rather respond to the basic gest of your post.

Rick Is Anti-LDS - Huh?

Let's look at the new comers:

1. Marc Jackson - Local LDS kid. Oh, I forgot. He came home from his mission early so he has been exiled and can't be considered LDS. Yup, Utah only gets the jack-mormons.

2. Chris Jackson. The kid from NM. I think he is LDS but I'm not sure about this.

3. Stephan Zimmerman - He's LDS isn't he?

Veterans:

1. Britton JohnSEN - LDS
2. Trace Caton - LDS
3. Cam Koford - LDS

So there you have it 50% of Utah's roster is LDS. Man that Rick sure hates Mormons doen's he. Sheesh.

Rick has stated on numerous occasions that he want's to recruit better athletes (read african american kids). He has made that a priority and gone out and picked up Run DMC, Bogut (Aussie) and Justin Hawkins.

This doesn't mean Rick is anti-LDS, he just recognizes the need to have good athletes and in this day usually means african americans. Utah has had a long tradition of a good balance of local LDS kids and out of state kids, both white and african american. I like that approach and would like to see it continued.

Rick will always make it a priority to go after the local LDS talent that is capable of competing at a high level in D-1 ball. However, you can't win just recruiting local LDS kids. There are just not enough kids that can play at a competitive D-1 level. Witness BYU's program.

On the topic of relations with the local media:

This is my take and I am not local so I could have it very wrong.

The majority of the people in the state have ties either directly to BYU or indirectly through the Church. Hence, I contend that the local media, including SLC, is essentially biased in favor of a pro-BYU stance. For whatever reason, Rick has never received any love from the SLC media hacks and is smart enough to figure out that is a losing battle, so he has ignored the local media in favor of the national media, which has further endeared his contempt in the local media. His snub of the local media, largely because it is biased, is viewed as arrogance by the local hacks. Utah is in a very unique situation with the local media. It's the only major metropolitan University I'm aware of that has to play second fiddle in its local media to its arch-rival.

In summary.....I don't accept your argument that Rick is anti-LDS. LDS kids will always be a staple in Rick's program.

Your other argument that Utah's fortunes in basketball or football are fading are laughable. What evidence do you have to support that? With the young kids we have in the basketball program and the recruiting class we have coming in, we will be your worst nightmare in Baskets for years to come.

As for football...the future couldn't be brighter. I'm stoked about UM coming in. If we had stayed with McBride any longer...then our FB program was in danger of going into a decline.

The future of Ute athletics has never been brighter.