Whittingham, Sitake Participate In Putting Contest During Celtics/Jazz Game
Feb 26, 2020, 10:18 PM | Updated: 10:27 pm
Utah football coach Kyle Whittingham, left, watches BYU coach Kalani Sitake walk during the annual National Kidney Foundation fundraiser and golf invitational at Hidden Valley Country Club in Sandy, Utah, on June 19, 2017. (Courtesy of Deseret News)
(Courtesy of Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Local football head coaches Kyle Whittingham of Utah and Kalani Sitake of BYU participated in a charity putting contest during a game between the Boston Celtics and Utah Jazz.
The Jazz hosted the Celtics at Vivint Smart Home Arena on Wednesday, February 26.
Sitake and Whittingham competed in a putting competition to raise money for 5 For The Fight and cancer research during the Jazz’s first meeting of the season with the Celtics.
Putting Contest
The two football coaches both wore purple mountain No. 45 Donovan Mitchell jerseys and sat courtside during the game between Boston and Utah.
Look at these two BFFs enjoying a game together pic.twitter.com/i3NH37xWlQ
— Zak Hicken (@zakhicken) February 27, 2020
During a timeout, the friends turned rivals and squared off for the charity putting contest. Whittingham defeated Sitake in the challenge.
Kyle Whittingham won the putting challenge over Kalani Sitake. ⛳️
Whitt – 1
Kalani – 0#GoUtes #GoCougs #UtahUtes #BYU #TakeNote https://t.co/NDTW01uwEx pic.twitter.com/kgtXaWQt8D— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 27, 2020
Rivals and Friends
The two college coaches are rivals on the football field but are great friends off the gridiron. Sitake coached under Whittingham at Utah from 2005-2014. After spending three seasons as the Utes’ defensive coordinator, Sitake took over the DC position with Oregon State before taking the head coach opening with BYU in 2016.
Since then, Sitake and Whittingham have only rivaled each other on the field but off it during charity golf tournaments.
Kyle Whittingham and Kalani Sitake golfing together for a good cause. #Utes #BYU pic.twitter.com/6zO6c7CCu5
— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) June 20, 2017
Sitake finished his fourth season as BYU”s head coach in December 2019. During his time leading the Cougars’ football team, Sitake has a record of 27-25. He recently agreed to a new extension with BYU.
Whittingham recently completed his 15th season leading the Utes’ football program. During his time as Utah’s head coach, Whittingham owns a 131-64 record. Whittingham has a 4-0 record over Sitake in head-to-head matchups as head coaches.
The two friends have attended Jazz games together in the past.
BYU coach Kalani Sitake and Utah coach Kyle Whittingham in the building. pic.twitter.com/3PTAJr4eRu
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) February 14, 2017
Sitake and Whittingham face off in each team’s 2020 season opener when the Cougars visit the Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Thursday, September 3.
Boston vs. Utah is broadcast on ESPN, AT&T SportsNet, and 97.5 FM.
