Tuned Out: ESPN Did Everything In Its Power To Downplay The Utah Utes Softball Team
The Worldwide Leader once again tuned out another Utah squad that was kicking butt and taking names at an NCAA Tournament, but the story had a happy ending.
The worldwide leader was at it again this past weekend.
When Jessica Mendoza, the Pac-12 legend, started gushing about how dominant the Utah Utes softball team was during the NCAA Regional last Sunday after they defeated Ole Miss, and how dangerous they will be in the upcoming Super Regional that will get underway late Friday in Salt Lake City after this weekend story goes to print, the host cut Jessica off mid-sentence—the same thing that was done back when Utah was laying siege to other opposition.
I know from whence I speak; I’ve got all the receipts:
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Gymnastics. Women’s basketball. [No, I do not want to talk about that Kim Mulkey-Vegas cocktail waitress-looking creature in this story.]
Hell, you'd want to think by now that the Utes have earned brownie points for being such a tough out in *checks notes* three NCAA Tournaments in one year.
But in the minds of ESPN brass, the Utes must be but a mere annoyance that is lucky to have advanced as far as it did, and so we’ll put you on some of our other less-watched channels.
It makes one wonder if this move was planned.
After ESPN devoted such a concentration of manpower towards darling UCLA, the No. 2 team in America, and watched in abject horror as the Bruins not only were eliminated but embarrassed on their flagship station, the rest of the teams in the Pac-12 Conference have spent the rest of this now-since-past NCAA Regional in ESPN purgatory, stuck on either ESPN+ or in the case of mighty No. 7 Washington, ESPNU.
Taking Out Some Frustrations
I asked a well-known female reporter about these No. 15 ranked Utes, who were honoring four of their greatest softball players this past Sunday at Dumke Family Stadium that was still two-thirds full, and still they were stuck on ESPN+.
“I’m never surprised women get shafted in sports,” said the reporter. “Doesn’t make it less frustrating!!”
Another thing that absolutely was astounding to me: the Utes were clearly the marquee game that afternoon against Ole Miss, and won a pitchers’ duel by a 4-1 score that was highly entertaining.
For starters, junior Mariah Lopez [No. 8] throws gas. It’s something the younger generation likes to say about pitchers [I heard it first from BYU-signee Maddax Peck, whose fastball hits the low-to-mid 90s]. Lopez has a riseball [also new-gen slang for a rising fastball] that according to Mendoza averages in the mid-70s. On Sunday, Lopez collected her 21st win on the season and has a sparkling 2.21 earned run average, or ERA against batters she’s faced.
Lopez’ teammate Sophie Jacquez has been magical for Utah in the postseason, hitting a stunning .579 with 11 RBI. As a team, the Utes have swiped 96 bases—best in program history. [That’s my term for stolen bases, by the way.] Senior Julia “Ju Ju Jiminez in the No. 42 is a Michigan transfer but is far and away Utah’s spirit animal. With a gleam in her eye toward the junior pitcher Lopez, the senior leader Jiminez knows exactly what to say to not only Lopez—but to Utes teammates. JuJu’s been there; done that.
I think I’ve made my point, but if you want more reasons why the Utes should be on ESPN and not ESPN+—here are seven more.
Per usual, the people who suffer most from this lack of coverage are the players on the University of Utah’s teams, who through no fault of theirs were downgraded to also-ran—until the Super Regional, that is.
If it sounds like a song that has been playing in your heads over and over again, it has. Will it ever stop? I don’t know, to coin a famous Vanilla Ice lyric.
Perhaps if the Utes were to reinvent themselves like Ice did and become Big 10-UCLA [or a rap-rocker] ESPN would pay more mind to what Utah was doing.
What it really asks you though is where the priorities are. Is ESPN committed to showing an audience the very best in sports programming, or is it content to do what people in bigger markets want and broadcast only Big 10 and SEC-heavy matchups?
It doesn’t make a bit of sense when some of the best softball in the country is being played by a Utah team that summarily has dispatched Ole Miss and a good Southern Illinois squad, and are two wins is one win away from a date at is heading to the College World Series.
This, after a thorough 10-1 Game 2 drubbing of San Diego State Saturday [photo gallery above] at the NCAA Super Regional that included a towering grand slam nuke of a home run from Ju Ju Jiminez herself.
To do so, however, and advance to the College World Series, Mariah Lopez [No. 8 in your photo in white] and the No. 15 Utes had to square off in the painted circle against San Diego State and defeat them this Sunday, in this weekend’s Super Regionals Game 3 for all the marbles at Dumke Family Stadium.
They did that, winning 7-2 in a differnt type of way, showcasing this team’s versatility in the process.
But, that’s beside the point. We should have been hearing more all along about how these riseballs of Mariah Lopez have been so befuddling to hitters, and how leadoff hitter Aliya Belarde is an expert at delivering timely bloops into gaps—like she did against Ole Miss this past Sunday. We deserved to know how Ju Ju was so damned fearless that she played without any type of hat, and still this Sunday snagged a nuke San Diego State directed her way toward third base, ending a credible threat.
We the viewers deserve to learn more about how the Utes are capable of delivering more nukes [home runs for the younger gen] into the grassy berm that hugs Dumke’s outfield wall like a big Welcome Home mat.
And how Utes legends like former SLCC athletics director Norma Carr and others have been frequent visitors to the Dumke that has been a Utah landmark since 1949 [and newly refurbished, if we’re keeping track at home].
These are the stories of yesteryear that Utah fans and alums deserve to hear. ESPN would rather you not see there's been a long tradition in women's softball at the school.
It is a war cry from me that I suspect you’ll be destined to hear for a while longer.
Finally: I’m pleased to report that this story has a happy ending. ESPN finally covered the team all weekend long, from Friday to Sunday. Utah’s own Holly Rowe even showed up on the final day, the CWS-clinching day, at that.
It’s just a shame, however, that the Ju Ju that saved the season wasn’t included in that post-game celebration with Holly.
Follow the latest Utah Utes football coverage at: Utah Football Fans.
Thanks again for reading Brian Vs. Utah and my weekend story. Subscribers are already aware that I’m hard at work on my upcoming book SPORTZZ FRUM HOME. [I’ve included those deets below.] So for the next few weeks you’ll see fewer posts than usual. Here’s some of the latest information pertaining to its release date.
