Utah is Coach Mac's favorite place

A final few notes on Weber State football coach Ron McBride’s retirement.
On Tuesday he made a point to say the state of Utah has been good to him.
“Everybody in this state has treated me better than I deserved over the last 26 years at Utah…and here (Weber State) seven years, from people at the airport to wherever I went in the state, people always cared about what I was doing and cared about what I felt. And I’ve coached a lot of places, but never have I felt better than when I’m in the state of Utah …This university (Weber) has treated me unbelievably. They’ve given me every opportunity to succeed.”

Some coaches say the words, but others mean them.

With Mac, it has always been clear how he felt.

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McBride compared Weber State’s feelings about Montana and Montana State to Utah vs. BYU.

He recalled a win over the Grizzlies by saying, “The Montana game that year, we just kicked them around like they were dogs. That was good because they think they’re so good.”

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Asked whether, with his broken leg, he would sit in the press box with the reporters for Saturday’s game, McBride said, “Oh, man, I tell you, (Brad) Rock has stoned me a few times with his little comic strip he has, what’s it called “Rockisms?”

A school publicist said, “Rock On.”

“Yeah, the Rock On,” McBride continued. “He’ll say something that makes me look really bad, like, ‘Oh yeah, Coach Mac, look how stupid he is,’ but I love you anyway, Brad. I love you anyway.”

I didn’t remember trying to make him look stupid in Rock On, so afterward I went up to him and said, “I hope I didn’t really make you look bad.”

True to form, he shrugged and said, “Naw, you didn’t. I’m just kidding you.”

On the job and off, I’m going to miss seeing Mac.