Utah coach credits missionary program for team improvement (Money Helps U. Make It a Rivalry Again)
Salt Lake Tribune 19Nov99 S2
By Phil Miller: Salt Lake Tribune

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- The University of Utah's football coach, Ron McBride, told the Salt Lake Tribune that missionaries are an important part of the University's football program. And his roster shows it. The team includes 25 returned missionaries, 7 of whom are starters.

This compares favorably to BYU's team, which includes 44 RMs, 11 of whom start. And BYU athletic director Val Hale says this is part of the reason Utah has improved since the 1970s and 1980s. He says McBride has made a commitment to accomodating missionaries in his program.

McBride agrees that missionaries are important to the program, "Missionaries are very important to us," said McBride. "If an athlete wants to go on a mission, I have to respect that. That doesn't change our interest in him as a football player after he returns. . . . We've had some great missionaries on our team."