Tuesday Tidbits, Week Six

Change of Heart
Back in the offseason, I had a poll on my blog as to how BYU would do.  Out of 22 votes, only 1 person said BYU would have a losing season (i.e. not bowl eligible).  In this week's poll, so far, everybody has said BYU will not go to a bowl game.  The kool-aid drinking has officially stopped.  Basketball season cannot come soon enough.  Although, I would not give up on this team just yet: I'm definitely still watching (of course, it's mostly just to see if they have any pride).  They gained 221 yards and scored 13 points in the second half and held Utah State to 171 and 6, with two starters on D injured/missing the second half (in addition to the 3 already missing from the lineup).  If only they could play like that in the first half, when the opponent was still engaged/in reach...

Territorial Battle
Last week, I highlighted BYU's inability to finish drives.  Against Utah State, BYU crossed into Utah State territory 9 times and managed only 16 points.  While that's an increase from the past 3 games, it's still pretty pathetic.  Again, it is bad play-calling, bad reads/throws by Heaps, and drops by the WRs.  Contrast that with Utah State which had 8 possessions in BYU territory and managed 31 points.

MWC vs. The Rest
Last season, the MWC played 41 non-conference opponents, including bowl games.  The conference won 25, and lost 16.  This season, through 31 games, the MWC has already lost 16.  There are 6 non-conference games left: UNLV at West Virginia, Utah at Iowa State, New Mexico at New Mexico State, Air Force at Army, Utah at Notre Dame, and UNLV at Hawaii.  They are all road games.  They should be underdogs in at least three of them.  They will lose more than 16 this year, before the bowl games.  Last year, the MWC played 5 bowl games and won them all.  This year, I think 4 is all they will get unless Wyoming or BYU turns it around in a hurry.  You can count on TCU and Utah to be competitive in their games, Air Force is going to be competitive but they will be playing a better opponent than they are used to, and SDSU is an unknown because it has been so long since they played in a bowl game.

Bronco's Last 3 DC Years
Bronco is once again the BYU Defensive Coordinator.  He tried this dual duty the first 4 years he was the Head Coach.  The first year, he didn't do such a great job, on his way to a 6-6 record and giving up nearly 30 points/game.  However, the next three years he did pretty good.  In 2006, his defense gave up 14.7 points/game and won the conference championship.  The Cougars led the nation in margin of victory.  In 2007, he gave up 18.5 points/game, and won a conference championship.  In 2008, he gave up 21.9 points/game.  It is apparent he was getting worse at it before pawning off the duties on Jaime Hill.  However, compare any of those three years to this year's team thus far: the 2010 Cougars are giving up 19.8 points in the FIRST HALF alone.  It is tough to win games when you are giving up 20 by halftime.  If that number can drop to 10-14 this Saturday, maybe the offense can actually stick with the running game in the second half.  If they can afford to be balanced for four quarters, they might actually have a chance to win.  They had rushed pretty well in the first half the past two games, but they were down 3 scores most of the second half, and Heaps was forced to sling it all over the field.  It also puts pressure on the WRs to catch everything and magnifies each of their 10 drops...

Congratulations to BYU Opponents
3 of BYU's past opponents are ranked this week: Nevada, Florida State, and Air Force.  While they had to win other games too, they can thank BYU for being a doormat for them.  If BYU had managed to compete with any of them, they would not be ranked.
Utah State can also thank BYU for making bowl eligibility a distinct possibility this season.  If they had lost to BYU, the odds of them making 6-6 were unlikely, with Hawaii, Nevada, and Boise State still on the schedule.
Coming up just short at BYU also seems to have helped Jake Locker overcome his inability to win games late as Washington marched on the USC Defense in the 4th quarter to win in LA for the first time in recent memory...
If BYU cannot have success themselves, at least they are helping others get there: that's the spirit of service.  They still have a top 5 strength of schedule, which should hold for the next two weeks with SDSU and TCU.