Over the last twenty years, the Utah football program has been a model of stability. With as many undefeated seasons as losing seasons (two of each), twelve bowl wins, and multiple conference titles in two different conferences (the Mountain West and Pac-12), the Utes are enjoying a prolonged golden age under head coach Kyle Whittingham.

This season was supposed to be one of their best, and thus far, it has been. The Utes are ranked 13th and would likely climb into the top ten with a win over Oregon this weekend. But the season is not what Utes fans expected. Utes fans expected (or maybe a better word here is ‘hoped') it would be quarterback Cam Rising leading Utah to potentially a third straight Pac-12 title. But due to the serious injury he sustained in last year's Rose Bowl, Rising hasn't taken a single snap, and he won't. He's been ruled out for the rest of the season.

On the Pat McAfee Show today, Cam Rising was asked if he would could potentially take a redshirt year this season and end up returning to Utah next year when the Utes join the Big 12. Rising's answer didn't provide Utes fans with all that much clarity on what they could expect, but those very same fans made it very clear what they were hoping for.

The crowd has spoken, and they want Cam Rising back for another year. But will they be able to speak that into existence?

Cam Rising will be twenty-five years old at the beginning of the 2024 college football season, so he could choose to move on, potentially either to the NFL, where he would likely be a Day 3 pick, or to another school altogether in the transfer portal.