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Las Vegas • Moments after Navy football coach Ken Niumatalolo announced Wednesday night that he would remain at the United States Naval Academy and was turning down an offer from BYU, Cougars athletic director Tom Holmoe shifted his focus to Oregon State defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake.

The Salt Lake Tribune has learned that BYU did not extend a firm offer to Niumatalolo until Wednesday morning, nearly two days after his visit to Provo and Salt Lake City to meet with BYU administrators and LDS Church officials.

As for Sitake, Oregon State head coach Gary Andersen said mid-Thursday that his assistant had not, as far as he knew, received an offer from BYU. Andersen hired Sitake away from Utah last December.

"In my opinion, there is one guy [for BYU] to hire, so what are you doing?" Andersen said. "… He should be on the sidelines for the [Las Vegas Bowl]."

BYU meets Utah in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. MST.

Andersen said he has encouraged Sitake to take the BYU job, if offered, without getting hung up on the details. Sitake should "worry about a lot of the other things once he gets there," Andersen said. "There's not very many of those jobs that are out there. If he has an opportunity to get this job, he should."

And while Andersen said he would be happy to keep Sitake, his preference is that if BYU is going to offer the job to Sitake, that it do it soon. Possible replacements for Sitake are being snatched up by other teams, said the former Utah State and Wisconsin coach.

"You would hate BYU's process of hiring somebody and taking a while to hire somebody to hinder us being able to move forward," Andersen said.

BYU is looking for a new head coach because Bronco Mendenhall announced two weeks ago that he was leaving for the Virginia job. Mendenhall said on Dec. 4 that after he told Holmoe he was leaving, he recommended three candidates to Holmoe.

Asked Wednesday for names, Mendenhall declined.

"I want the program to continue to move forward. All I said is if he had an interest in what I thought, I would be glad to share that with him. And so I had three that I had been thinking about that might be able to qualify and do this job."

Not the reason

Mendenhall said Wednesday that his reason for departing was not BYU's lack of access to the College Football Playoff as an independent, or lack of Power 5 conference membership.

"Not necessarily," Mendenhall said. "I like change, and I like growth, and I like challenge. And it was just simply time."

Briefly

Mendenhall said that the way the 2016 schedule is set up, if BYU goes undefeated against the likes of UCLA, Michigan State, Utah, Mississippi State, Arizona State and Boise State, "I think people would have to pay attention" to admitting it into the CFP. … BYU is tied for sixth in the country in sacks per game (3.06).

Twitter: @drewjay —

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl

P At Sam Boyd Stadium, Las Vegas

BYU vs. Utah

Saturday, 1:30 p.m. MST

TV • ABC