Utah State Fun Facts:
The great state of Utah is known as the "Beehive State". The capital of Utah is Salt Lake City, UT. The state bird is the California Seagull. The Utah state flower is the Sego lily. Utah has been described as "the most beautiful place on earth". A state with such amazing natural beauty also loves the beauty of the game of basketball. They dynamic duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone combined to form the NBA's most renowned guard-forward combination. The pair, which led the Jazz to a winning record and to the playoffs in each of the 18 seasons they've played together, earned co-MVP honors at the 1993 All-Star Game in Salt Lake City. Utah is the home state to such great athletes as Merlin Olsen, Natalie Williams, Jim McMahon, Mac Speedie, Gene Fullmer, Bruce Hardy, Lewis Field & LaVell Edwards. Merlin Olden was an All-America defensive tackle at Utah State went on to sterling 15-year career with Rams and was the 1974 NFL player of the year. The greatest player to ever live in or play for a team in this state is John Stockton, Steve Young and Karl Malone. Professional sports teams include the Utah Jazz and the Utah Starzz. Major college programs include the Brigham Young Cougars, Utah Utes and the Weber State Wildcats. Utah’s biggest rivalries include Utah vs. BYU, BYU vs. Utah State and Jazz vs. Lakers. The states major cities include Salt Lake City, UT, West Valley City, UT, Provo, UT, Sandy, UT, Orem, UT, Ogden, UT, Provo, UT, Taylorsville, UT and St. George, UT. The Utah economy can be divided into two primary categories: Agriculture -- Cattle, dairy products, hay and turkeys. Industry -- Machinery, aerospace, mining, warehousing, food processing, electric equipment and tourism. *Source: Sports Illustrated.