Tell me about Utah. Does anyone know anything about that state, their team, their school or remember why we invited them into our conference?

Discuss...

We invited Colorado and Utah into the conference so that we could have some patsies for the rest of us to have great records that would compete with the SEC and move us up in the BCS. Unfortunately, we (CAL) underestimated our own ineptitude. However, I suspect that we will improve over the next 2 years. I am not so sure about either of them.

Top 50 research university (#47 in ARWU)

* First artificial heart implanted at UU in 1981
* Cold Fusion discovered at UU in 1989
* Notable alumni include Brian Barsky, currently a professor at Cal

BMroom;841985862 said:

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Top 50 research university (#47 in ARWU)

* First artificial heart implanted at UU
* Cold Fusion discovered at UU in 1989
* Notable alumni include Brian Barsky, currently a professor at Cal

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Hmmm. Utah grad?

liverflukes;841985864 said:

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Hmmm. Utah grad?

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I doubt any UU grad would mention Cold Fusion or know about Barsky.

BMroom;841985865 said:

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I doubt any UU grad would mention Cold Fusion or know about Barsky.

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Nice put down. I'm placing you back in the Bear or Tree camp...

liverflukes;841985869 said:

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Nice put down. I'm placing you back in the Bear or Tree camp...

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Long time lurker. Cal '92. I actually created this account to send you info about Redwood country. Did you get that message?

BMroom;841985874 said:

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Long time lurker. Cal '92. I actually created this account to send you info about Redwood country. Did you get that message?

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Ah...my apologies. Yes, yes I did. Thank you BMroom. Nice pictures and thanks for the suggestions. Carry on and please, feel free to lampoon all other posters and schools here now...

BMroom;841985862 said:

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Top 50 research university (#47 in ARWU)

* Cold Fusion discovered at UU in 1989
* Notable alumni include Brian Barsky, currently a professor at Cal

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haha what's more bunk, the cold fusion studies at UU or barsky's financial knowledge of the CMS project?

liverflukes;841985878 said:

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Ah...my apologies. Yes, yes I did. Thank you BMroom. Nice pictures and thanks for the suggestions. Carry on and please, feel free to lampoon all other posters and schools here now...

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Thank you. I hope you enjoyed your trip. :gobears:

oldblue83;841985856 said:

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We invited Colorado and Utah into the conference so that we could have some patsies for the rest of us to have great records that would compete with the SEC and move us up in the BCS. Unfortunately, we (CAL) underestimated our own ineptitude. However, I suspect that we will improve over the next 2 years. I am not so sure about either of them.

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They are fodder for USC, not the P12 North.

ColoradoBear1;841985880 said:

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haha what's more bunk, the cold fusion studies at UU or barsky's financial knowledge of the CMS project?

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I believe Cold Fusion had much more initial interest than any of Barsky's work, and was done in good faith.

liverflukes;841985849 said:

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Tell me about Utah. Does anyone know anything about that state, their team, their school or remember why we invited them into our conference?

Discuss...

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I know a little bit about the state (actually mostly just SLC). I recommend a visit. Go in winter to see us play BB and then do some skiing.

The greater SLC area is a nice little-big town of maybe a couple million? It's about 50% mormon, as compared to the rest of the state which seems more like 90% mormon. So the culture and the politics are heavily influenced by the LDS church, which for an outside observer can be interesting in an anthropological sort of way. The interesting thing is that if you start talking to the non-mormons, it won't take very long before the resentment of the mormons starts coming out. This invariably happens within about 10 min. if you're sitting at a brewpub (where the speaker can be assured there are no observant mormons). It is a conservative state, one of the reddest, but the university and non-mormons seem to trend more liberal. The people are small-town nice, not big-city mean, which is refreshing.

The streets are pretty darn clean. The downtown feels safe at night.

The LDS temple is smack dab in the middle of downtown and is open to the public at least at certain times. Go visit on like a Saturday night in the winter, or find out when the tabernacle choir is practicing and go then. Spend about 20-30 min. there. It is very interesting even to the non-mormon.

Outdoor sports are big. Mountain biking, hiking, skiing, snowboarding, etc. I've even heard the Provo river is good for fly fishing.

The winter weather can be cold but it ain't bad. It's like going on a ski trip. A chilly winter night might be 15-20 and the daytime might be 45. Bring a ski parka or a warm coat and some gloves and you'll be fine. Elev. is about 5,000.

Stay in a downtown SLC hotel, walk down the street to see the Jazz, and get to The U in about 5 min. by car (Utahns call the University of Utah "The U" and BYU "The Y"). Both Rice Eccles and the Huntsman Center are on campus. Some of the best skiing in the world (Park City, Deer Valley, Snowbird, Alta, etc.) is within an easy 45 min. drive.

If you go into a grocery store, you'll see several familiar brands of beer. Say Coors, Bud and Miller. But it won't be the usual formula. It's watered down from about 5% ABV to about 3.2%. It pretty much tastes the same. If you want anything stronger than 3.2, such as wine or liquor, you have to go to a State Liquor Store, which are dotted around the city. It's like going to any government office - open M-F, 9-5, that's it. You have to show ID just to get into the store. Restaurants sell wine (I think) and there are some pretty good brew pubs. Back in the day, they didn't have bars with hard alcohol. There were private drinking clubs you could join for a fee but no bars you could just walk into and get a cocktail.

Some restaurants I used to like (bear in mind this is from memories of a decade ago):
Red Iguana (the best mole I have ever had)
Crown Burger (burgers and all manner of fast food)
Squatters (yuppie brew pub)
Red Rock (another brew pub, same owner as Squatters, I think)
several others the names of which escape me . . .
You don't really leave the Bay area and go to SLC on an epicurean adventure . . . think of it as going on a ski trip and enjoy the food for what it is. Clean mountain air usually makes things taste better anyway.

I highly, highly recommend a book called Under the Banner of Heaven by the guy who wrote The Perfect Storm and the book about mt. everest . . .can't remember his name either! I'm not trying to offend anyone here but Under the Banner of Heaven paints a highly unflattering picture of mormonism. Kind of like Da Vinci Code to the Catholic Church, except Banner is nonfiction. Read it before you go. But use your critical thinking skills and understand there are at least two sides to everything. Maybe someone else here can recommend a book that is more flattering to mormonism for balance . . .

,

Utah, obey the posted speed limits. Took a road trip through Southern Utah, Bryce, Canyonlands, Arches, got pulled over twice in 2 days for going +3 and +5 mph. Only got warnings. They take their traffic laws serious.

BMroom;841985862 said:

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Top 50 research university (#47 in ARWU)

* First artificial heart implanted at UU in 1981
* Cold Fusion discovered at UU in 1989
* Notable alumni include Brian Barsky, currently a professor at Cal

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Hahahahaha:

From wikipedia:

Quote:

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"Barsky holds a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, an M.S. in computer graphics and computer science from Cornell University in Ithaca, and a D.C.S. in engineering and a B.Sc. in mathematics and computer science from McGill University in Montreal"

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Seems like BAMSPhD doesn't keep busy enough teaching his engineering optics class where freshman walk around campus taking pictures.

Utah has always been known as a technically sound football team. Utah always plays good defense and comes ready to play. They could always play with anybody-just look at the shellacking (31-17) Utah gave 'Bama in the '09 Sugar Bowl. But they are coming to the Pac with a Mountain West roster. They won't have the virtual bye weeks in Colorado St, New Mexico, and Wyoming. They have to play a major conference schedule and this is where the depth has really hurt them.

One note on the quarterback. Norm Chow was the OC last year. When looking at the roster he noticed that the Utes really did not have a backup qb in case Jordan Wynn went down. So he recruited Jon Hays to come to Utah. Hays was not offered one scholarship out of high school and went to Butte JC-the same school that AR went to. After finishing there, he was all set to go to Nebraska-Omaha, a division ll school to finish out. Chow saw him and offered him a scholly, all parties involved thinking Hays would be a clipboard holder. After Wynn went down, Hays was thrown into the fire. It really wasn't fair to the kid. The guy is not a Division 1 qb and he only had spring and fall camp to prepare. He was just asked to not screw up in the game. Utah signed two four-star quarterbacks last year. One is hurt while the other (Travis Wilson) will be starting this weekend. Wilson is a dual threat qb. He can certainly run and what I have seen from him it looks like he will be pretty good in the coming years. But for now he is a true freshman making his second career start.

But questions remain as to how the quarterback situation came to be like this. For quite a while I personally had Coach Wittingham in the top 3 coaches in the Pac. But a screw up at the quarterback position like what has been going on for the last year has people rightfully asking questions. Coincidentally, the same situation is going on 45 minutes south in Provo. BYU, long considered Quarterback U has some serious, serious issues at qb. With maybe their best defense ever, playmakers all over the field, and an upperclassman, multiple year starter quarterback, BYU is not getting the job done. They too have nobody ready to step in and play the position.

beelzebear;841985978 said:

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Utah, obey the posted speed limits. Took a road trip through Southern Utah, Bryce, Canyonlands, Arches, got pulled over twice in 2 days for going +3 and +5 mph. Only got warnings. They take their traffic laws serious.

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Thats true about southern Utah. Those cops are bored as hell. It was a state trooper from southern Utah that tazed a father in front of his wife and children on the side of the road a few years back. He had been pulled over in his mini-van for speeding and was reluctant to place his hands on the hood, etc.

State has binders full of Mormons.

John Krakauer.

Mr. Triangle;841985982 said:

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Utah has always been known as a technically sound football team. Utah always plays good defense and comes ready to play. They could always play with anybody-just look at the shellacking (31-17) Utah gave 'Bama in the '09 Sugar Bowl. But they are coming to the Pac with a Mountain West roster. They won't have the virtual bye weeks in Colorado St, New Mexico, and Wyoming. They have to play a major conference schedule and this is where the depth has really hurt them.

One note on the quarterback. Norm Chow was the OC last year. When looking at the roster he noticed that the Utes really did not have a backup qb in case Jordan Wynn went down. So he recruited Jon Hays to come to Utah. Hays was not offered one scholarship out of high school and went to Butte JC-the same school that AR went to. After finishing there, he was all set to go to Nebraska-Omaha, a division ll school to finish out. Chow saw him and offered him a scholly, all parties involved thinking Hays would be a clipboard holder. After Wynn went down, Hays was thrown into the fire. It really wasn't fair to the kid. The guy is not a Division 1 qb and he only had spring and fall camp to prepare. He was just asked to not screw up in the game. Utah signed two four-star quarterbacks last year. One is hurt while the other (Travis Wilson) will be starting this weekend. Wilson is a dual threat qb. He can certainly run and what I have seen from him it looks like he will be pretty good in the coming years. But for now he is a true freshman making his second career start.

But questions remain as to how the quarterback situation came to be like this. For quite a while I personally had Coach Wittingham in the top 3 coaches in the Pac. But a screw up at the quarterback position like what has been going on for the last year has people rightfully asking questions. Coincidentally, the same situation is going on 45 minutes south in Provo. BYU, long considered Quarterback U has some serious, serious issues at qb. With maybe their best defense ever, playmakers all over the field, and an upperclassman, multiple year starter quarterback, BYU is not getting the job done. They too have nobody ready to step in and play the position.

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With respect to the qbs at BYU, I saw a BYU game earlier this year and the announcers were speaking very highly of freshman Taysom Hill. They indicated that he was a great athlete and that everyone in the program viewed Hill as the next great qb at BYU. Hill looked like a good athlete in that game, and he threw a td. I just checked his stats, and he has a lot of rushing yards and decent passing numbers. Has something changed with the status of Hill?

ColoradoBear1;841985883 said:

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They are fodder for USC, not the P12 North.

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Unfortunately, so are we.

GoldenBearofCalifornia;841986149 said:

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With respect to the qbs at BYU, I saw a BYU game earlier this year and the announcers were speaking very highly of freshman Taysom Hill. They indicated that he was a great athlete and that everyone in the program viewed Hill as the next great qb at BYU. Hill looked like a good athlete in that game, and he threw a td. I just checked his stats, and he has a lot of rushing yards and decent passing numbers. Has something changed with the status of Hill?

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Taysom Hill is a quarterback who originally enrolled at Stanford. He went on his mission and decided to transfer to BYU. The NCAA has a rule that returning missionaries do not have to sit out a year if transferring to another school so Hill is freshman. You are right in that he has looked very good in the games he has played in. To me, it looks like he could be the next great BYU quarterback. However, late in the Hawaii game there was some confusion as to kneel down or run an actual play. Hill got hit and hurt his knee on the next to last play of the game. He is out for the year.

Mr. Triangle;841986156 said:

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Taysom Hill is a quarterback who originally enrolled at Stanford. He went on his mission and decided to transfer to BYU. The NCAA has a rule that returning missionaries do not have to sit out a year if transferring to another school so Hill is freshman. You are right in that he has looked very good in the games he has played in. To me, it looks like he could be the next great BYU quarterback. However, late in the Hawaii game there was some confusion as to kneel down or run an actual play. Hill got hit and hurt his knee on the next to last play of the game. He is out for the year.

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Thanks for the info. I was aware of his history, but I had not heard about his injury.

Mr. Triangle;841985982 said:

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But for now he is a true freshman making his second career start.

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aww crap...

Followup to MisterNoodle's post:

While the LDS Tabernacle and Assembly Hall are typically open to the public the Temple never is other than when they give tours of new temples. Once a temple is "dedicated" it is only open to LDS members deemed worth by their layman ward leader. I do encourage people to check out the Tabernacle and Assembly Hall. They are interesting examples of mid 1800s architecture.

Restaurants do sell wine. Most have a liquor license that allows for the sale of wine, beer and liquor but only with the purchase of food. If you're over probably 30 you don't have to show ID to buy liquor at the liquor stores and you don't have to show ID to go in.

The legislature finally realized how ridiculous the "private club" laws were they finally abolished that portion of the liquor laws. A bar is now a bar just like the rest of the country. The exception is fraternal organizations such as VFW, Elks, Eagles, etc.

Red Iguana is excellent and has been featured on Diners, Driveins and Dives. Others visited by Triple-D that are easily accessible from downtown include Pat's BBQ just a few minutes south of downtown, and Moochie's Meatballs & More just SE of downtown. If you have a vehicle Ruth's Diner is a quick drive up 4th South until it turns into Foothill Blvd. Turn left at Sunnyside Drive and head up Emigration Canyon about 2-3 miles. Also downtown I definitely recommend Bambara in the Hotel Monaco.

And to echo beelzebear, do watch your speed if you're driving on I-80 between Wendover and SLC. There's nothing out there and it's really easy to get your speed up without realizing it. Also due to accidents and injuries in the light rail construction zone along the North Temple corridor Salt Lake police often run heavy enforcement in that area.