I have a hard time believing that Whittingham gets too negative, but I wouldn't put it past some other Utah coaches (nor would I put it past some BYU coaches). I saw Whit refuse to say he hated BYU on an ESPN segment when he was being interviewed by Urban Meyer. And, in fact, he essentially said he still had a lot of love and respect for his alma mater. I get that's a public forum and he could say something completely different to a recruit.

But what really is "negative recruiting" anyway? What can and can't you say about another school? Seems like some dishonesty might play into it.

I've heard recruits mention (Wayne Kirby most recently) that Utah coaches will sometimes point out to recruits interested in BYU that "one slip up, and you can be out for good." I mean, that can be true depending on the slip up, but for the most part students (athlete and not) get quite a few chances.

Is that negative recruiting?