Utah’s Kyle Whittingham and BYU’s Kalani Sitake were two of 20 college football head coaches to make the 2022 Dodd Trophy preseason watch list released Tuesday.
The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award is given annually to “the head coach of a team who enjoys success on the gridiron, while also stressing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity.”
Whittingham led the Utes to their first Pac-12 championship and first Rose Bowl appearance last season, as Utah finished the year 10-4 and ranked No. 12 in the final Associated Press poll.
Sitake led the Cougars to a 10-3 record in 2021, including a 6-1 record against Power Five opponents — and a 5-0 record against the Pac-12 — as BYU finished the year ranked No. 19.
Whittingham was the 2019 Dodd Trophy winner, and is one of five coaches on the preseason watch list who have won it before. The others include Clemson’s Dabo Swinney (2011), Alabama’s Nick Saban (2014), Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz (2015) and Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell (2021).
There will be a midseason watch list released in the fall, then a list of five finalists named for the Dodd Trophy at the end of the regular season.
The 2022 Dodd Trophy award winner will be named during the week of the College Football Playoff semifinals.