The University of Utah joined the Pac-12 in 2011. After making the leap from the Mountain West, it took the football program eight years to win the Pac-12 South and play in the Pac-12 championship game. It took nine years to reside in the top 10 and get to the doorstep of the College Football Playoff.
The Utes won 11 games in 2019 with a roster full of upperclassmen at key positions. They steamrolled the Pac-12 South after losing their conference opener to USC at the LA Coliseum. They rose to No. 5 in the College Football Playoff rankings, with everything still to play for, then fell to Oregon in the Pac-12 championship game.