By Miguel Mike Medina
Photo Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Ryan Smith owns the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth. His portfolio keeps rising thanks to his impeccable business decisions.
Smith, 48, had an unforgettable weekend thanks to the Notre Dame-BYU matchup. Smith admires Notre Dame, but he’s grateful to see the Cougars and Utah Utes with 6-0 undefeated records.
“What a moment to have two undefeated teams coming in,” Smith said. “My father was a professor at BYU. They dropped us off, young kids, and we had to figure out how to get in the game. This is a full circle moment for me.
The city of Utah means a lot to Smith. During his interview on the Pat McAfee Show, Smith acknowledged that he would like to see Notre Dame and BYU play frequently on the schedule every season. Both schools share a passion for the sport and are filled with bright students.
“The fanbase is very similar,” Smith said. “It’s pretty special.”
Utah sports is essential. Utah may not be the most high-profile state or city for sports, but anyone who plays for a Utah team gives their absolute best. The city of Utah is also very youthful. We are seeing many business leaders that are emerging in the city.
“One of the things that people don’t understand about Utah is that we’re the youngest demographic in the country,” Smith said. “There are 250,000 college kids within 90 miles of Provo. It’s kind of what we do. Suppose people want to stay here; they’re innovative, they’re entrepreneurial. These kids are creative, and it’s just refreshing.”
Smith is also the founder of Qualtricss. He built his wealth in cloud computing. His net worth is $3.3 billion. Smith became more known to the public when he purchased the Jazz for a majority stake at $1.66 billion.
Miguel Mike Medina is the publisher of The MMM Journal. He can be reached at medinamiguelmike@gmail.com and themmmjournal@gmail.com
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