It was an odd view for Eric Kjar.
There he was, sitting in the visiting section of Davis High to watch his son Carter play wide receiver for the Corner Canyon Chargers in their season opener.
Kjar sat among a sea of navy-wearing parents — teachers, accountants, engineers and all the other assorted professions that fill the stands on a Friday night. They were there for the same reason as Kjar: to watch their kid play football.
Except, Kjar usually wasn’t in those seats. Not at Corner Canyon games, at least.
For 17 seasons, Kjar had been the guy standing on the sideline on Friday nights. He won at Jordan High and built Corner Canyon into one of the most dominant high school programs in the state.
He won state titles with the Chargers and earned the reputation as one of the greatest high school football coaches in Utah history.
He built a dynasty in Draper. Now, he’s hoping to resurrect one in Ogden.
Kjar has made the jump to the college ranks, taking over a Weber State program that, just a few years ago, was one of the best in the FCS. The Wildcats won four straight Big Sky titles from 2017 to 2020 and made the FCS playoffs six times between 2016 and 2022.
So why move away from prep football?
“I don’t know if it was always in the plans, but the opportunity had to be right,” Kjar said. “This was definitely one that I think was the right opportunity for me.”
(Robert Casey | Weber State) Weber State head coach Eric Kjar jumped to the collegiate ranks after winning seven prep state titles.
The opportunity
On Nov. 20, 2025, Kjar and the Chargers beat Lone Peak to claim their third straight state championship.
It was Kjar’s seventh state title — six at Corner Canyon and one at Jordan — tying him for second-most in Utah history.
Ten days earlier, Weber State fired head coach Mickey Mental after he won just 13 games in nearly three seasons.
As Kjar remembers it, some people who “weren’t necessarily attached to the school” reached out to him. But the more he looked at Weber State, the more he saw.
A talent-rich state. An international airport nearby. A conference that cares deeply about football.
Kjar saw potential. Why not be the guy who unlocks it? He took the job.
“I think there’s a lot of things where you can build something special here if you do it the right way.”
Part of that vision started with who he’d bring with him.
Gavin Fowler — who spent seven years on BYU’s defensive staff and is the son of former BYU quarterback Blaine Fowler — is in as defensive coordinator. Former Utah and NFL lineman Isaac Asiata, who helped coach one of the country’s best offensive lines at Utah last season, takes over the offensive line.
“There are a lot of Utah ties with all our coaches that are here, which is something that was really important to me,” Kjar said. “Being able to hit this area and hit it hard, and being able to recruit the Utah athletes is huge.”
Kjar is well aware of the football talent in Utah. After all, he coached two quarterbacks at Corner Canyon who eventually became first-round NFL draft picks: Zach Wilson and Jaxson Dart.
Weber State won’t often get those types of headliners, but the talent pool is deep in Utah — especially among the Wasatch Front — and Kjar believes that will give his program an upper hand in the Big Sky.
“There’s a big advantage to being able to recruit Utah here at Weber State,” he said.
(Robert Casey | Weber State) Weber State head coach Eric Kjar jumped to the collegiate ranks after winning seven prep state titles.
Reunion at quarterback
In 2021, Devin Brown moved to Utah from Arizona to play for Kjar at Corner Canyon. The result? He threw for 4,881 yards and 57 touchdowns and rushed for 430 yards and eight more touchdowns, leading the Chargers to a title-game appearance.
It worked the first time, so Brown is trying it again.
After three seasons as a backup at Ohio State (which included winning a national title in 2024) followed by one at Cal, Brown decided to return to Utah and reunite with his former high school coach for his final collegiate season.
When Brown entered the transfer portal last winter, he texted the newly hired Kjar: “Hey, you need a new quarterback?”
It was a joke — at least it was at the beginning. But between visits to other schools, Brown found himself in Utah and figured he’d see his old coach.
“Sure enough, I got bought in real quick,” Brown said.
Reliving a few memories of his high school days may have done the trick. Kjar’s “gunslinger” system allowed Brown to flourish in high school, and he’s hoping it’ll have the same impact this season.
“Just letting stuff loose, just ripping it,” Brown said. “Having that gunslinger mentality and not really caring what the defense is doing. Just going out there and whup up on people.”
Kjar sees it as less of a scheme fit and more of a reset.
“I think he just wanted to love football again, and I think he knew he would like it here,” Kjar said of Brown. “I think he kind of lost a little bit of that and wants to enjoy it and have fun again.”
But it’s more than just fun; Kjar still believes that Brown has NFL-caliber talent.
“He can do whatever he wants from a talent standpoint,” Kjar said about Brown. “He’s got a big arm, a lot of arm talent. … He’ll keep getting better and better as he works through the season.”
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Corner Canyon quarterback Devin Brown (15), looks for an open man, in prep football action between Corner Canyon Chargers and the East Leopards, on Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021.
What year one looks like
Weber State was one of the FCS model programs under Jay Hill, now the defensive coordinator at Michigan — conference titles, playoff appearances, even deep playoff runs.
The last three seasons have looked nothing like that.
Last year, the Wildcats finished 4-8 and won just two games at home.
Football-wise, Kjar knows how to build a program. But he acknowledges there are differences at the college level.
“There’s been some differences, definitely. Not so much on the football side of things, but understanding the protocols and administrative stuff that it takes,” Kjar said, adding that college recruiting — an entirely different machine than the prep pipeline he’s used to — is still a work in progress.
But there’s a belief that things can turn back around quickly. At least Brown isn’t hedging on what he wants out of his final collegiate season.
“Winning week one. We got to win that first game,” Brown said, “and then we can get the ball rolling and hopefully win the Big Sky and go win the FCS championship.”
Weber State opens on the road at Northern Colorado on Aug. 28. That happens to be a Friday. Coincidence? Regardless, Kjar will be back in a more familiar spot than he was that night at Davis High.
He’ll be back on the sideline, coaching.