A lot has changed in those three years. WSU’s last search came due to Jay Hill’s overwhelming success, providing him a perfect opportunity to move on and move up. This one comes even before the 2025 season is over, with the Wildcats 2-10 in their last 12 conference games.

That led Weber State to let Mickey Mental go with two games left in his third year as head coach, a decision announced Monday. Longtime associate head coach Brent Myers is the team’s interim head coach.

While the coaching staff and players push on through the final two weeks, things begin moving on the administrative side to find the 12th head coach in the program’s history. Mental is the first coach in program history to not complete a full final season (aside from John L. Smith, who hasn’t been counted among the 11 previous head coaches).

“We have an expectation for our football program, we have a standard, and it wasn’t being met,” WSU athletic director Tim Crompton told the Standard-Examiner. “So it was time to make a change, and this gives us a better timeline so we can start the search.”

Though results have been lackluster — Mental’s teams went 3-8 in home conference games, for example — Crompton said on a personal level, he hopes Mental wins at his next stop.

“I give Mickey all the credit in the world for taking the job and accepting the challenge of coaching the team after Jay left. He was a good example to our young men on what type of person to be,” he said. “So I wish him well, and I know he’ll find success.”

Among other things that are different than in 2022 when Hill left and Mental was hired are big-picture things like NCAA lawsuit settlements, increased transfer portal freedom and direct player payment, and also program specifics: the last hire was made to keep the train moving with as much continuity as possible, with a recommendation on the final choice coming from Hill himself.

This hire needs to put the train back on the tracks.

“At the time, we made the best decision possible for our student athletes when Jay left. Now, we’ll do the same thing, understanding that circumstances are different,” Crompton said. “Coaches have, in the last few years, figured out what it’s like to live in a revenue-sharing, portal world at the FCS level. Because that was new. So I think coaches will be better at that now.”

What Weber State is looking for, in part, depends on who is interested. Crompton said he’s been fielding lots of interest already.

There are factors at play that, for example, make the salary differences between position coaches at a place like Utah (the way Hill was hired) and the head coach at Weber State larger than it’s ever been — even larger than it was three years ago.

Wherever it leads, Crompton said the university has employed a search firm to assist with the process. Candidates may come from many places, including personal conversations to gauge interest, search firm recommendations, and applicants who put their hats in the ring through the posted job application.

“We will look everywhere, run every applicant down we need to, and put out all the feelers we need to put out to make sure we get somebody who will be a good fit for Weber State,” Crompton said. “And a good fit means that they understand the importance of being able to get kids from our own state. And they need to understand the environment and the culture of our community, and the state of Utah in general.”

The timing is at least somewhat complicated, though it would’ve been whether the decision to hire a new coach was made now or at season’s end. Moving now does get Weber State started on the road earlier, but other teams are still playing, too. And three years ago, football’s early signing period to add incoming freshmen came later in December, just before Christmas. Now, it’s in early December (Dec. 3-5 this year).

The window between games ending and the early signing period is small (with one possibly relevant caveat being that the FBS regular season goes one week later, to Nov. 29, than FCS does, to Nov. 22). It’s unclear if that’s a needle that can be threaded — though there’s always transfer recruiting and the regular period; WSU has typically signed more players in the regular period than other programs.

The portal opens for transfers to enter their names from Jan. 2-16, and football’s regular signing period begins Feb. 4. (While there are rules that allow players to enter the portal after a coaching change, that does not apply to players in programs where the new coach is hired prior to Jan. 2.)

“We want to get somebody hired as soon as possible. But there will be coaches out there who will be playing still, and we also have recruiting visits to think about and the early signing period coming up,” Crompton said. “So that will all be tricky, and the next coach will need to have a plan for all that. But as soon as possible; the national search starts immediately and we’ll go through the process as expediently as possible while still making sure we hire the best fit for our institution.”

Crompton has overseen the hiring of several head coaches in recent years. In one-year samples, it seems Kyle Christensen (soccer) and Kristin Delahoussaye (softball) were home run hires. Jenteal Jackson (women’s basketball) is on solid footing in improving her program, while Eric Duft (men’s basketball) is under the spotlight to make 2024-25 look like an aberration, not a trend.

It might have been his lack of connections to the state of Utah, or leadership style or abilities, or that nobody fully understands just how much changes to payments and portals will affect Weber State’s position in the football landscape — or maybe it’s the realization that trying to do the Jay Hill Experience, just without Jay Hill, was a vain exercise. For a variety of reasons, Mental’s tenure didn’t work, and it’s down to the next man to see if the success built during Hill’s tenure can be a new normal in a program that historically hasn’t consistently risen to such heights.

“College athletics is constantly evolving. It’s changed in the last four or five years more than it has in the last 50, maybe,” Crompton said. “We’re always looking for something new and innovative, but also with the core principles it takes to be a leader of young people here at Weber State.”