Utah vs. Wyoming FREE LIVE STREAM (9/13/25): Watch college football, Week 3 online | Time, TV channel

The No. 20 Utah Utes, led by quarterback Devon Dampier, face the Wyoming Cowboys on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025 at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie, Wyoming.

The No. 20 Utah Utes, led by quarterback Devon Dampier, face the Wyoming Cowboys on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025 at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie, Wyoming.

How to watch: Fans can watch the game for FREE via a trial of DirecTV or fuboTV.

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Here’s what you need to know:

What: College Football

Who: Utah vs. Wyoming

When: Sept. 13, 2025 (9/13/25)

Time: 8 p.m. ET

Where: War Memorial Stadium

TV: CBSSN

Live stream: DirecTV (free trial), fuboTV (free trial)

Here’s a college football story via the AP:

No. 20 Utah (2-0) at Wyoming (2-0), Sept. 13 at 8 p.m. EDT.

How to watch: CBS Sports Network

Key stats

Wyoming Offense

Overall: 402.5 yards per game (68th in FBS)

Passing: 225 yards per game (74th)

Rushing: 177.5 yards per game (56th)

Scoring: 20.5 points per game (107th)

Wyoming Defense

Overall: 199 yards per game (6th in FBS)

Passing: 125 yards per game (17th)

Rushing: 74 yards per game (17th)

Scoring: 3.5 points per game (2nd)

Utah Offense

Overall: 505 yards per game (22nd in FBS)

Passing: 225.5 yards per game (73rd)

Rushing: 279.5 yards per game (8th)

Scoring: 53 points per game (8th)

Utah Defense

Overall: 221.5 yards per game (19th in FBS)

Passing: 147 yards per game (32nd)

Rushing: 74.5 yards per game (19th)

Scoring: 9.5 points per game (21st)

Utah ranks 13th in defensive third down percentage, allowing opponents to convert on 20.8% of third downs.

Utah is 15th in the FBS with a +3 turnover margin.

Wyoming is 124th in the FBS averaging 77.5 penalty yards per game, compared to Utah’s 37th-ranked 40 per-game average.

Wyoming is 2nd in FBS in red zone defense, allowing opponents to score on 33.3% of red zone trips.

Utah ranks 18th in the FBS with an average time of possession of 34:22.

Team leaders

Wyoming

Passing: Kaden Anderson, 427 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, 61.0 completion percentage

Rushing: Sam Scott, 190 yards on 37 carries, 1 TD

Receiving: Chris Durr Jr., 244 yards on 12 catches, 2 TDs

Utah

Passing: Devon Dampier, 398 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs, 79.2 completion percentage

Rushing: Dampier, 112 yards on 20 carries, 1 TD

Receiving: Ryan Davis, 80 yards on 9 catches, 1 TD

Last game

Wyoming won 31-7 over Northern Iowa on Saturday, Sept. 6. Anderson threw for 167 yards on 17-of-23 attempts (73.9%) with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Terron Kellman carried the ball seven times for 87 yards, adding one reception for -1 yards. John Michael Gyllenborg recorded 65 yards on five catches with one touchdown.

Utah won 63-9 over Cal Poly on Saturday, Sept. 6. Dampier led Utah with 192 yards on 17-of-23 passing (73.9%) for three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also carried the ball four times for 25 yards. Nate Johnson carried the ball 11 times for 59 yards. Davis put up 58 yards on six catches with one touchdown.

Next game

Wyoming plays at Colorado on Sept. 20. Utah hosts Texas Tech on Sept. 20.

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Source: Utah News

Charlie Kirk, conservative activist, suburban native and Trump ally, dead after being shot at event in Utah

Kirk was a close ally of President Donald Trump and the founder of Turning Point USA, a conservative nonprofit organization that focuses on high schools and colleges. He spoke at the Republican …

Charlie Kirk, a native of suburban Chicago and an influential young conservative closely allied with President Donald Trump, died Wednesday after he was shot at an event in Utah.

Trump confirmed Kirk’s death on Truth Social hours after he was shot.

“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” Trump wrote. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

Kirk, who was born in Arlington Heights and attended Wheeling High School, was 31.

Videos posted to social media from Utah Valley University, the college where the event was held, show Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone while sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans, “The American Comeback” and “Prove Me Wrong.”

A single shot rings out, and Kirk can be seen reaching up with his right hand as a large volume of blood gushes from the left side of his neck. Stunned spectators are heard gasping and screaming before people start to run away.

The crowd reacts after Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, is shot at the Utah Valley University Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025, in Orem, Utah.

The crowd reacts after Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, is shot at the Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah Wednesday.

Tess Crowley/AP

A person suspected in Kirk’s shooting was brought in for questioning and subsequently released, said FBI Director Kash Patel.

“Our thoughts are with Charlie, his loved ones, and everyone affected,” Patel said in a post on X.

Trump also ordered flags at the White House, public buildings and grounds, and military posts to be flown at half-staff until Sunday.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker also responded to the shooting on X, calling the attack “horrifying.”

“Political violence has no place in this country and should never become the norm,” Pritzker wrote.

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, a Republican, described the fatal shooting as a, “heinous act of political violence,” in a statement.

“Charlie was a husband and father to two young children before anything else. He did not deserve to die because of his ideological views. Elected officials, the media, and we as Americans must hold ourselves to a higher standard and work to ease the political tensions that have embroiled our nation. My prayers remain with Charlie’s family and loved ones in light of this tragedy,” LaHood said in the statement.

Former President George W. Bush released a statement through his presidential center’s X account, saying Kirk was killed while expressing his political views.

“Violence and vitriol must be purged from the public square. Members of other political parties are not our enemies; they are our fellow citizens,” the statement read.

Classes at the university were canceled and the campus was closed until further notice, the school announced. Students who were on campus were told to shelter in place until police can escort them off campus.

Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a conservative group with chapters at many high schools and colleges across the country.

Turning Point USA posted a statement on X confirming Kirk’s death and asking for prayers for Kirk’s family.

“May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior, who suffered and died for Charlie,” the statement read.

Kirk was married to Erika Frantzve Kirk, a former Miss Arizona pageant queen. The couple has two children.

Last year, he spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. At the convention, he said Trump would reverse the “fake, pathetic, mutilated version of the American dream” that he said existed under former President Joe Biden.

Charlie Kirk speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Charlie Kirk speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last year.

Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times

A spike in political violence

The shooting comes amid a spike in political violence in the United States across all parts of the ideological spectrum. The attacks include the assassination of a Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband at their house in June, the firebombing of a Colorado parade to demand Hamas release hostages, and a fire set at the house of Pennsylvania’s governor, who is Jewish, in April. The most notorious of these events was the attempted assassination of Trump during a campaign rally last year.

Pritzker acknowledged recent high-profile acts of political violence and blamed Trump for stirring up violence, using his decision to pardon people who were charged or convicted for their role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol as an example.

“We’ve seen other political violence occur in other states, and I would just say, it’s got to stop,” Pritzker said while addressing reporters. “And I think there are people who are fomenting it in this country. I think the president’s rhetoric often foments it.”

Former Utah congressman Jason Chaffetz, a Republican who was at the event, said in an interview on Fox News Channel that he heard one shot and saw Kirk go back.

“It seemed like it was a close shot,” Chaffetz said, who seemed shaken as he spoke.

Contributing: AP, Tina Sfondeles

Source: Utah News

Utah vs. Wyoming live stream, how to watch online, CBS Sports Network channel finder, odds

Date: Saturday, Sept. 13 | Time: 8 p.m. Location: War Memorial Stadium — Laramie, Wyoming TV: CBS Sports Network [ Channel finder ] Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App (Free) Spread: …

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The 2025 college football season rolls into Week 3 with three live games on CBS Sports Network, highlighted by a MAC clash and a pair of Power Four teams stepping into tricky road environments. The slate begins with Buffalo looking to stretch its conference win streak to five games dating back to last season as it visits Kent State.

Action picks up in the afternoon as SMU travels to Missouri State, which just earned its first win as an FBS program in Week 2. The Mustangs are aiming to bounce back after suffering their first regular-season defeat since Sept. 6, 2024.

The nightcap sends No. 20 Utah to Laramie for a dangerous test against Wyoming at War Memorial Stadium, where the Cowboys are 3-1 against AP Top 25 opponents in the past decade. The former Mountain West rivals used to meet annually but have not faced each other since 2010, the year before Utah departed for the Pac-12 and later the Big 12 in 2024.

CBS Sports Network will have coverage of every game, with viewing info, betting lines and storylines to follow once Week 3 begins.

All times Eastern | Odds via SportsLine consensus

No. 20 Utah vs. Wyoming

Date: Saturday, Sept. 13 | Time: 8 p.m.
Location: War Memorial Stadium — Laramie, Wyoming
TV: CBS Sports Network [Channel finder
Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App (Free)
Spread: Utah -23.5 | Will the Utes cover? Check out SportsLine’s Week 3 projections here

Utah (2-0) closes out its nonconference slate with a trip to Wyoming (2-0) on Saturday night in the two programs’ first meeting since 2010. The Utes averaged 53.0 points through two dominant wins behind transfer quarterback Devon Dampier’s 79% completion rate, while their defense also produced a pick-six, and is surrendering just 9.5 points per game. Wyoming counters with a stingy defense as well, allowing just seven total points and 3.2 yards per play early in the season.

Source: Utah News

Utah attorney general urges community to ‘come together’ in aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s assassination

Utah Attorney General Derek Brown spoke to Fox News Digital about his collaboration with local and federal authorities as he urged the community to come together after Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

Utah Attorney General Derek Brown spoke to Fox News Digital about his collaboration with local and federal authorities as he urged the community to come together after Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

Source: Utah News

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s message to ‘disagree better’ faces its biggest test

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s campaign to turn down the nation’s political temperature has long stood out as a rarity in a Republican Party led by President Donald Trump.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox’s campaign to turn down the nation’s political temperature has long stood out as a rarity in a Republican Party led by President Donald Trump.

But Cox’s commanding role as the nation grapples with the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk gives his calls to end the cycle of violent division a new prominence.

It also laid bare a sharp divide within the GOP over the way forward, even as prominent Democrats and some Republicans praised Cox’s performance before a national audience Friday.

Cox said Americans faced a decision: “Is this the end of a dark chapter of our history, or the beginning?”

Among those who count Cox as a close friend is Wes Moore, Maryland’s Democratic governor. Moore said he thought Cox had shown “the importance of being authentic.”

“Spencer Cox is Spencer Cox,” Moore told CNN on Friday. “And he doesn’t change depending on who the audience is, and he doesn’t change depending on who he’s standing in front of. And that’s one of the things I love about him most.”

“He’s just a deeply good human being,” he added, “and I’m thankful that in this moment of real tension in our country, that Spencer is helping to lead us through.”

Cox implored the country to dedicate themselves to end a cycle of violent division, echoing his longstanding calls for civility in the nation’s political discourse and urging people to “disagree better.”

“I desperately call on every American – Republican, Democrat, liberal, progressive, conservative, MAGA, all of us – to please, please, please follow what Charlie taught me,” Cox said Friday, sharing a lesson he recounted from Kirk: “Always forgive your enemies – nothing annoys them so much.”

While the governor has built a strong conservative record, he has faced at times sharp criticism from Trump-aligned Republicans. The disconnect raises the question of whether there is truly an audience inside the GOP for the type of message Cox has sought to deliver.

In 2022, as Cox was about to veto a ban on transgender youth athletes playing in girls’ sports, Kirk tweeted: “Utah Governor Spencer Cox should be expelled from the Republican party.” Cox wrote in his message to legislative leaders that he had tried “to err on the side of kindness, mercy and compassion.” Still, the legislature overrode his veto.

Steve Bannon, the Kirk and Trump ally, alluded to that veto on his “War Room” podcast Friday and called Cox “a governor who’s also known, I think, to be particularly obnoxious.”

“We don’t need a governor to step up and give us basically a political pep talk and a rally and ‘let’s just all come together,’” Bannon said.

Underscoring the divisions among conservatives, Utah Sen. John Curtis, a Republican, sounded similar notes to his state’s governor Friday on CNN.

“Somehow, as a society, we need to figure out how to turn down the dial,” Curtis said. “Every one of us, every morning, should wake up, look in the mirror, and see what we are doing in our own personal relationships.”

Govs. Wes Moore, D-Md., right, and Spencer Cox, R-Utah, participate in a discussion hosted by The Economic Club of Washington, D.C., on "The State of Bipartisanship in Washington," on Wednesday, February 21, 2024.

An outlier often at odds with Trump

Cox on Friday did not directly address Trump’s earlier suggestion of blaming the “radical left” for Kirk’s murder. Yet his words stood in stark contrast to the president’s.

Despite leading one of the nation’s reddest states, Cox has not followed most of the party in aligning himself closely with Trump.

Cox supported Marco Rubio in 2016 before switching his endorsement to Ted Cruz in the final stretch of the Republican presidential primary. At the time, he said he could not support Trump, saying: “He does not represent neither goodness nor kindness.”

A member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Cox frequently spoke out against Trump’s behavior and rhetoric. He built a political brand that extended beyond party labels.

In the final stretch of his 2020 campaign for governor, Cox cut an ad with his Democratic opponent in which the two vowed to respect the outcome of the presidential election, and said they wanted Utah to serve as an example for the nation.

“Although we sit on different sides of the aisle, we are both committed to American civility and a peaceful transition of power,” Cox said in the ad.

He didn’t endorse Trump last year until after the assassination attempt on the then-former president’s life in Butler, Pennsylvania.

“Because of that miracle,” Cox said, “you have the opportunity to do something that no other person on earth can do right now: unify and save our country.”

Cox has spent years urging Americans to embrace a more civil approach to politics and disagreement.

As chairman of the National Governors Association, he launched the “Disagree Better” initiative aimed at encouraging civility. He’s filmed videos with Democratic governors to encourage Americans to disagree with each other without vitriol. One alongside Colorado Gov. Jared Polis featured Cox saying the two were “here to help save your family dinners.” Another, with Moore, featured the two discussing their love for basketball and joking about their own baldness.

“Politics is important, but it shouldn’t define us or destroy our relationships,” Cox says in the video.

Cox and Moore were together last week for a National Press Club lunch, where they discussed the inevitability of crises that governors face. Moore’s came last March, when the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed. Cox’s came days after that conversation.

Moore said he reached out to Cox as soon as he heard about Kirk’s assassination, and the two have spoken every day since.

“I prayed for him,” Moore said. “And then I just told him, I said, ‘Listen, the only thing I ask is, just make sure you’re taking care of yourself, because your people are going to need you right now.’”

Utah Governor Spencer Cox, with Utah Department of Public Safety Beau Mason, Sheriff Mike Smith, and FBI Director Kash Patel, speaks during a press conference announcing details on the suspect in the shooting of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot during an event at Utah Valley University, in Orem, Utah, U.S. September 12, 2025.

‘Log off, turn off, touch grass’

Cox on Friday also renewed his call for all Americans, particularly the nation’s youth, to disengage from social media and forge a connection with whom they agree and disagree.

“You are inheriting a country where politics feels like rage. It feels like rage is the only option,” Cox said. “Your generation has an opportunity to build a culture that is very different than what we are suffering through right now, not by pretending differences don’t matter but by embracing our differences and having those hard conversations.”

Cox described social media as “a cancer,” and urged those watching to “log off, turn off, touch grass, hug a family member, go out and do good in your community.”

That comment won the Utah governor plaudits from one of the Senate’s more liberal and online Democratic voices. Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz posted on X: “I know this guy is a Republican and all but I swear you could win all the electoral votes with this message in 28.”

Curtis, the Republican senator, said Cox’s urging of Americans to sign off social media was “one of the wisest things I think he said today.”

Cox also drew praise from conservative media outlets for his highlighting of Utah’s reaction to Kirk’s death. “There was no rioting. There was no looting. There were no cars set on fire. There was no violence. There were vigils and prayers and people coming together to share the humanity,” he said.

Moore, often mentioned as a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender himself, said if Cox — who won a hard-fought 2020 gubernatorial primary — wants to run for the White House, he shouldn’t be underestimated.

“Anyone who thinks that his message could not resonate in the Republican Party, I think you’re underestimating the hunger the country has for unified leadership — for a person who brings us together rather than tearing us apart,” Moore said. “And I think you’re also underestimating Spencer Cox.”

Source: Utah News

Utah students lift voices in prayer at vigil for Charlie Kirk’s Christian legacy: ‘Felt called by God’

Hundreds of mourners gathered at Utah State University to honor conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University earlier this week.

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Hundreds of Utah State University students still reeling from the assassination of Charlie Kirk came together at a tearful vigil hosted by the campus’ Turning Point USA chapter on Friday night.

“We just want to have our community come together in this really dark time,” Kaitlyn Griffiths, president of the school’s chapter, told Fox News Digital at the emotional and faithful tribute to the late conservative activist. “Especially something that happened so close to home for us. And we want to be able to gather and celebrate this man’s life.” 

The somber vigil comes two days after Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder of the conservative student program Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University, the first stop on TPUSA’s The American Comeback Tour.

CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION: TIMELINE OF UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING DETAILS ATTACK, MANHUNT FOR SUSPECT

A vigil for Charlie Kirk at Utah State University

Hundreds of Utah State University students gather for an emotional tribute following the assassination of Charlie Kirk in Logan, Utah on Friday, September 12, 2025.  (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)

A heavy police presence was seen throughout the university as hundreds of mourners filled the campus to pay tribute to Kirk, with the vigil including prayers from the student body and a moving film featuring key moments in his career. 

“I’m a Christian,” Griffiths said. “I believe that Jesus Christ died for us, and Charlie Kirk believed in the same things. The thing that he always said he wanted to be remembered [for] was his courage and his faith, so we’re trying to focus our event tonight on celebrating his faith, and the man that he was, and how strongly and harshly he worked for the things that he cared for.” 

USU student Travis Ferraro echoed the same sentiments surrounding his Christian faith while attending the candlelight vigil, hosted on the campus’ quad. 

CHARLIE KIRK ANSWERED ‘HOW DO YOU WANT TO BE REMEMBERED’ LESS THAN 3 MONTHS BEFORE KILLING

A vigil for Charlie Kirk at Utah State University

Students gather for an emotional tribute to Charlie Kirk at Utah State University in Logan, Utah on Friday, September 12, 2025. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)

“I felt called by God to pray over everybody, and pray for their families and for everyone surrounding him,” Ferraro told Fox News Digital. “And also just to give a devotional, just about how to treat each other with kindness.” 

On Friday, authorities announced the arrest of 22-year-old Tyler Robinson in connection with Kirk’s murder. Robinson was taken into custody after a family member notified a friend that he admitted to the killing, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said in a news conference. 

However, Kirk remained at the forefront of mourners’ minds as students came together to celebrate his life and legacy while the sun set on USU’s campus.

VIGILS HELD ACROSS US AFTER ASSASSINATION OF CHARLIE KIRK: ‘WE MUST HEAL’

A vigil for Charlie Kirk at Utah State University

Libby Rasmussen, a student at Utah State University, attends a candlelight vigil for Charlie Kirk on the school’s campus in Logan, Utah on Friday, September 12, 2025. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)

“I am here because Charlie Kirk made a really big impact on my life,” Libby Rasmussen said. “I started watching him probably about 3 or 4 years ago when I was a senior in high school, and he’s just really shaped who I am, what I believe in [and] my values. I don’t think there’s anyone else on this earth like him.” 

Rasmussen went on to describe how Kirk impacted both her political and religious views. 

“Just him going around and preaching that the Bible is the way, and that you just have to believe in God and be faithful,” Rasmussen told Fox News Digital. “His faith was [unwavering], and that is what I really just want to carry along throughout the rest of my life as well.” 

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A vigil for Charlie Kirk at Utah State University

Hundreds of Utah State University students gather for an emotional tribute following the assassination of Charlie Kirk in Logan, Utah on Friday, September 12, 2025. Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)

Kirk is survived by his wife, Erika Lane Frantzve, and two young children. 

I definitely believe in God,” Manny Chapa said. “I believe in Christ, and [Kirk] just stands behind that. And one of the last things he was able to preach, before his passing, was God. He was able to preach God while he was up on that stage. And it’s just beautiful to see a man like that.”

Fox News Digital’s Kyle Schmidbauer contributed to this report. 

Source: Utah News

Charlie Kirk shooting suspect is in custody; family turned him in, Utah governor says

Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. Authorities said the shooting was a targeted attack.

The chairman of the board of supervisors in Johnson County, Iowa, said the county will defy an order from state Gov. Kim Reynolds to fly flags at half-staff in memory of Kirk.

The chairman, Jon Green, said in a post on Facebook last night that Kirk did not encourage inclusivity.

“I condemn Kirk’s killing, regardless of who pulled the trigger or why,” Green stated. “But I will not grant Johnson County honors to a man who made it his life’s mission to denigrate so many of the constituents I have sworn an oath to protect, and who did so much to harm not only the marginalized, but also to degrade the fabric of our body politic.”

Green said he made the decision under his own authority.

“Any blowback belongs to me alone, and I accept that,” he said in an interview with NBC News today.

Green said he made the decision to fly county flags at half staff in mourning for Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman in June, after she was killed in a politically motivated assassination, criticizing the governor because she “said nothing” of the incident.

“I stand by that determination and I stand by the decision I made today,” he said, adding “the governor knows where to find me.”

In a statement Wednesday, Reynold’s office ordered flags to be flown at half-staff “as a mark of respect in memory of Charlie Kirk.” It’s not clear if the order, which extends from Wednesday through Sunday, applies to Johnson County and other counties.

In the statement, the governor’s office said the Capitol and Capitol Complex will fly flags at half-staff, as well as “all public buildings, grounds, and facilities throughout the state.” However, the statement also indicates county governments can decide on their own.

“Individuals, businesses, schools, municipalities, counties, and other government subdivisions are encouraged to fly the flag at half-staff for the same length of time as a sign of respect,” the governor’s office said.

Today, Reynolds suggested Green’s decision was not befitting the moment.

“It’s disgraceful that a locally-elected official has chosen to put politics above human decency during a time like this,” she said on X.

Reynolds’ office did not respond to a request for comment.

Johnson County is the home of the University of Iowa and has a population of approximately 153,360, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Source: Utah News

Utah’s governor, in impassioned remarks, urges Americans to find ‘off-ramp’ from political violence

WASHINGTON (AP) — Utah Gov. Spencer Cox made an impassioned plea on Friday for Americans and young people to use the horror of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s public assassination as an …

By MICHELLE L. PRICE, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Utah Gov. Spencer Cox made an impassioned plea on Friday for Americans and young people to use the horror of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s public assassination as an inflection point to turn the country away from political violence and division.

“This is our moment: Do we escalate or do we find an off-ramp?” Cox said at a news conference in Utah as he announced authorities had a suspect in Kirk’s killing in custody. “It’s a choice.”

Throughout his political career, Cox, a two-term Republican governor, has issued pleas for bipartisan cooperation and at times drawn national attention for his empathetic remarks.

His speech on Friday was his most emotional and high-profile example yet, as he urged an appeal to common ground and humanity to forge a better society. It was a marked departure from the bellicose rhetoric often employed in recent years by U.S. politicians, especially President Donald Trump, who is known for provocative language and has blamed Kirk’s killing on “radical left” rhetoric.

On Wednesday, after Kirk’s killing, Cox made a similar plea.

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Utah Gov. Spencer Cox pauses as he speaks at a news conference, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (AP Photo/Lindsay Wasson)

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On Friday, acknowledging he was running on only 90 minutes of sleep after days of the manhunt for Kirk’s killer and heated rhetoric unfurling online, he went further.

His voice appearing to break at times, Cox said that the response to violence and hate can be more violence and hate. “And that’s the problem with political violence,” he said. “It metastasizes because we can always point the finger at the other side. And at some point we have to find an off-ramp or it’s going to get much much worse.”

“History will dictate if this is a turning point for our country. But every single one of us gets to choose right now if this is a turning point for us,” Cox said.

The 50-year-old governor, who has four children who are teenagers and young adults, directed some of his remarks to young people.

Source: Utah News

In Break From Trump, Utah’s GOP Governor Urges Calm After Charlie Kirk’s Killing

“At some point, we have to find an off-ramp, or else it’s going to get much worse,” warned Gov. Spencer Cox as Trump blamed the “radical left” for Kirk’s death.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) on Friday sought to lower the temperature following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, issuing a heartfelt plea for calm and unity, a message that stood in sharp contrast to that of President Donald Trump.

“We need more moral clarity right now,” Cox said at a press conference. “I hear all the time that ‘words are violence.’ Words are not violence. Violence is violence. There is one person responsible for what happened here, and that person is in custody, will be charged soon, and will be held accountable.”

Politics: Wall Street Journal Bursts A Donald Trump World Bubble: ‘Sorry’

“We can return violence with violence, we can return hate with hate,” he added. “That’s the problem with political violence. It metastasizes. We can always point the finger at the other side. At some point, we have to find an off-ramp, or else it’s going to get much worse.”

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Cox’s comments came as a breath of fresh air amid 31-year-old Kirk’s gruesome shooting earlier this week at a college campus in Utah. They also contrasted starkly with remarks made by the president of the United States, who shrugged off a question about “fixing the country” when asked earlier Friday about radicals on the right.

“I’ll tell you something that’s gonna get me in trouble, but I couldn’t care less,” Trump said in an interview on Fox News. “The radicals on the right oftentimes are radical because they don’t want to see crime. The radicals on the left are the problem.”

In this combination photo, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) speaks at the National Governors Association, July 11, 2024, in Salt Lake City, left, and President Donald Trump speaks during a town hall, Aug. 29, 2024, in La Crosse, Wisconsin. (AP Photo)

In this combination photo, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) speaks at the National Governors Association, July 11, 2024, in Salt Lake City, left, and President Donald Trump speaks during a town hall, Aug. 29, 2024, in La Crosse, Wisconsin. (AP Photo) via Associated Press

While Trump did condemn political violence in the wake of the shooting, he did not recognize or acknowledge the recent threats and violent attacks against Democrats, including two Minnesota state legislators and their spouses who were shot in their homes earlier this year, and the arson at Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s home, crimes Cox made note of.

On Thursday, before a suspect in the Utah shooting was apprehended and a motive had been established, Trump said, “we just have to beat the hell” out of “radical left lunatics.” Nevertheless, he went on to urge his supporters to follow a nonviolent path. “[Kirk] was an advocate of nonviolence,” Trump said. “That’s the way I’d like to see people respond.”

Politics: Reporter Reveals Nancy Mace’s Stunning Hypocrisy On Charlie Kirk’s Death With Just 1 Question

Cox, a moderate Republican, has previously urged Trump to spend more time trying to build common ground with his political opponents, to little effect. The president often launches wild attacks against Democrats on social media and shares conspiracy theories that have no basis in truth.

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In his remarks at Friday’s press conference, the governor urged the public to stay off social media, which he called a “cancer,” and lamented the fact that violent acts like Kirk’s gruesome shooting can be seen in video clips that have proliferated widely online.

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“We are not wired as human beings, biologically, historically, we have not evolved in a way that we are capable of processing [that] violent imagery,” Cox said. “This is not good for us. It is not good to consume. Social media is a cancer. And I would urge people to log off, turn off, and touch grass.”

“History will dictate if this is a turning point for our country, but every single one of us gets to choose right now,” he added. “If this is a turning point for us, we get to make decisions. We have our agency.”

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Source: Utah News