During conversations with the freshmen recently about their tumultuous first collegiate seasons with the Utes, most of them quickly expressed support for embattled coach Ray Giacoletti when asked about his seemingly tenuous job security.

But not everybody.

Forward Daniel Deane seemed awfully hesitant to say he believes Giacoletti will return next season - he answered my question about it with a curiously long pause before finally saying, "yeah, I mean, he's coach" - perhaps suggesting a strained relationship between the two.

Then again, Deane is pretty shy and reserved when it comes to interviews, so it's fair to think he simply might have been taken aback by the question and unsure quite how to answer.

But still, it seemed odd, especially considering how Deane then answered a question about whether he wanted Giacoletti back. "I'm not at liberty to discuss my coach," he said. "He's coach."

What that meant, I have no idea.

In any case, most of the freshmen expressed opinions closer to that of forward Stephen Weigh, who strongly endorsed Giacoletti - though he might have unwittingly provided an argument against the coach, considering the Utes are 9-16 with four regular-season games remaining.

"I really hope he does come back," Weigh said. "We're the product of his hard work. He's actually the one who got us here ... so we're really grateful for that."