So Wednesday, the opening of the three-day early signing window, was a little bit more about why than the usual question of who.

While interviews with candidates are underway, WSU assistant coaches — still under contract to work until told otherwise — lined up 16 signees for the 2026 class.

Interim head coach Brent Myers said the philosophy went back to a big recruiting weekend long planned for the home finale against Northern Arizona on Nov. 22, and that he and the other coaches were straightforward with players throughout.

“Once the coaching change occurred, that was one of the things I visited with (athletic director) Tim (Crompton) about,” Myers said. “He said to visit the kids who are going to keep their commitments, and make sure we brought in all the kids we had offered from the state of Utah.”

Myers said there was no beating around the bush about Weber State’s current situation. In his words:

“I encouraged all our assistants … that we were going to be transparent and honest with the kids, and the parents who came on the recruiting visit,” he said. “Our whole deal was that change is happening and tell them exactly the truth: we don’t know who the next head coach is going to be.

“We gave the kids the choice to come on that visit, and to sign early if they wanted. Those kids have been here, seen our academics, seen our program as it stands — no matter who is the head coach, there’s always change. But our goal was to be as transparent as possible with those kids and let them choose what they wanted to do.

“Quite a few of those kids were already committed to us and they chose to stay committed, which is a little bit of a gamble on their part. But we talked with them and said, ‘Hey, if you’re not comfortable with that, that’s OK. Things are going to change; we as assistant coaches might be here, we might not.’ That’s the reality.”

So in the moment, Myers said, the staff feels good about the work they’re doing despite whatever changes are sure to come.

“We feel really good about the kids we signed, even though we had some who visited us who decided to go with other opportunities. We got quite a few kids that we feel really strongly about,” Myers said. “I think our staff did a fantastic job through the transition that’s occurring. It turned out a bit better than I thought it was going to turn out.”

As for the job of head coach itself, Myers said he’s again a candidate and interviewed Tuesday. He feels it went well and is the right man for the job but simply loves the game and wants to keep coaching in Ogden. The longtime offensive line coach reached his 500th career game this season, which was his 12th at Weber State — now the longest stop in his decades-long career.

In his usual style, Myers was an open book. In his words, again:

“If I get the opportunity to stay, I will probably stay. I can’t imagine myself not. But I have also gone through the scenarios of — if I get the opportunity to be the head coach, great. If I get the opportunity to be retained, great,” he said. “My wife is an adjunct professor in the physical education department and she is very active in the community. It’s been a wonderful place for us. So if I end up staying, and God willing that happens, I am more than excited about what we can do here at Weber State.

“You saw what we can do (with the NAU game). I just feel like, for me, there’s still a lot of good football to be played at this instutition, and I have enjoyed it more than you can imagine.

“I’ve come to the realization that I might be done. I might not be here. But I’ve also gone through scenarios that I might be here, and I’d like to stay. … I’m a Weber State guy, there’s no question about it. But I also understand the business. There’s two kinds of coaches in this world: those who have been fired and those who are fixing to be fired. I’ve been on staffs that have been fired before, and it’s not easy. But if you’d have told me in 2014 that I’d still be here in 2025, I’d have said no chance. I’d moved around a lot. I’m so thankful I’ve been here. It’s been awesome.”

WSU’S EARLY 2026 SIGNEES

UTAH PREPS

Will Chandler — OL, Corner Canyon

Jayce Evans — WR, Brighton

Lucas Larronda — OL, Copper Hills

Caleb Patton — OL, Pine View

Denzel Peoples — CB, Bingham

Dyson Richards — TE, American Fork

OTHERS

Jordan Bostick — WR, Centennial, Nevada

Wyatt Ferguson — DT, De La Salle, California

Erin Foster — CB, Mountain House, California

Nick Fovozzo — OL, Oak Hills, California

Malachai Jackson — CB, Mt. Miguel, California

Terion Mathis — DE, Victor Valley, California

Will Monrore — DE, Columbine, Colorado

Hector Saavedra — DT, Cajon, California

Bryce Williams — OL, Harvard Westlake, California

Kenneth Youngblood — LB, Lancaster, Texas