​BYU’s Kalani Sitake, left, and Utah’s Morgan Scalley participate in 2026 Big 12 football media days in Frisco, Texas, which ran Tuesday, July 7, and Wednesday, July 8, 2026.
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Brandon Judd, Deseret News
When BYU’s Kalani Sitake and Utah’s Morgan Scalley made their way to Frisco, Texas, nearly two weeks ago for Big 12 football media days, they represented opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of head coaching experience.Sitake is now the longest-tenured Big 12 head coach after Kyle Whittingham left Utah and landed at Michigan, Mike Gundy was let go at Oklahoma State, Matt Campbell went from Iowa State to Penn State and Chris Klieman retired at Kansas State.Scalley, meanwhile, is one of four first-year head coaches in the conference.“So I’m the old guy now? That’s cool,” Sitake told reporters in Frisco when discussing his longest-tenured status. Recently, reporters at two national media outlets — USA Today’s Jordan Mendoza and On3’s Brett McMurphy — released their rankings of Big 12 head coaches going into the 2026 season.
BYU Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake and his players celebrate after the Cougars defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando on Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025.
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Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
What these analysts said about BYU’s Kalani SitakeSitake, who is headed into his 11th season as BYU’s coach, has led the Cougars to a 23-4 record over the past two years. That included going 12-2 last season, reaching the Big 12 championship game and finishing the year ranked No. 11 in the Associated Press poll.While Sitake’s teams have come up agonizingly short of reaching the College Football Playoff the past two seasons, the work he has done is reflected in both Mendoza’s and McMurphy’s lists.Both have him ranked as the Big 12’s No. 1 head coach going into 2026.“Even without a playoff appearance, Sitake has built himself into the standard of coaching. He’s had winning seasons in eight of his 10 campaigns at his alma mater, the most of any other coach in the league, and he’s 57-20 since 2020,” Mendoza wrote. “That comes with back-to-back 11-win seasons, with the Cougars finding their footing in the Big 12 and on the fringe of making the playoff, with a great cha