Kyle Whittingham Deems Cam Rising May Be 'Best Returning Quarterback' In College Football

On Sunday, Utah's star quarterback Cam Rising revealed that he plans on returning for the 2024 season, marking his seventh year of college football.

His status was in question, as he missed this entire season due to a knee injury, and being that this was his sixth season, it wasn't a guarantee that he'd return to college or return to Utah. There were already rumors heating up that certain programs were interested in his services, and there was a chance that he just decided to call it a college career and declare for the NFL Draft.

To the joy of Utes fans, he announced he'd be back at Utah as they embark on what will be their first Big 12 season, and there's likely no one more excited than head coach Kyle Whittingham. The Utes' leading man commented on Rising's return and is still clearly as confident as ever in what he brings to the table, as he revealed to KSL that he thinks Rising will be one of if not the best quarterback in college football next season.

"Cam has to be one of the best, if not the best, returning quarterbacks in the country," said Whittingham. "Won two (Pac-12) championships for us, ultimate leader, the supreme leader, he is the Alpha Dog, and I can't tell you how excited and elated we are, but it's going to be a great start and a big part of our outlook on next year's season."

The decision is one that Whittingham also thinks could pay dividends in terms of getting other players to return as well.

"Huge," Whittingham said. "Going forward for our program, that's a huge component to our team. That'll help in recruiting, it'll help maybe a few guys that are on the fence — 'Do I come out? Do I stay?' — Maybe a few of those guys decide to return because of that.

Utah fans are now awaiting a decision from star tight end Brant Kuithe, who similar to Rising is also expected to qualify for a medical redshirt and seventh year of eligibility.