After spending a few days back in Utah, with Utah newspapers, I am becoming more and more skeptical about BYU tonight. BYU has a tendency, in the off-season and pre-season to let a little pie-in-the-sky attitude out. They talk of BCS games or national championships. Clearly that is out of the question. But the quotes I'm reading from San Diego this week have that same arrogant stench. That isn't to say that BYU isn't the better team and should be able to win. However, as we often see in bowl games, the better team doesn't always win. The more focused and motivated team usually does. When both teams are focused and motivated, then the better team wins.
But I don't see the same levels of focus and motivation. SDSU is prepared to play BYU. BYU is prepared to play a bowl game. Ultimately, with a season like this, one could expect BYU players, though fans usually hold them in the utmost regard, to fend for themselves. James Lark, Kyle Van Noy, Cody Hoffman (with KVN and Hoffman looking forward at potential NFL careers and wanting to make big plays), and a lot of seniors could play selfish. Arrogance, lack of proper preparation, and selfishness could lead to a lot of big plays for SDSU. Or...BYU could be prepared, come together as a unit, and what looks like arrogance could be confidence in that preparation and unity.
I suspect the defense will be unified. They seem to understand that sticking together gives them their best chance. Ogletree or KVN or Sorensen flying out of position trying to make a big play is going to result in a big play, but probably not the one that the Cougar D wants. They may give up a big play or two. Maybe even three. But I don't see SDSU pouring on points entirely at the fault of the defense.
The offense, however, is a different story! If I played O for BYU this season, I'd be ticked. The Ultimate Competitor turned out to be the ultimate non-team player, costing BYU game after game by playing ineffectively through injury. That would make me question whether I should be a team-first player: the reward is clearly in working hard (or at least displaying it to Bronco's satisfaction), not in playing well or playing for the team. So I wouldn't blame James Lark trying to do too much. Or Cody Hoffman trying to prove he's NFL-ready. Even Jamaal Williams could try to put on a show and take the credit all to himself. Better still, coaches are probably trying to save jobs by putting on an exceptional performance. It may cause them to take risks or ask/expect too much. Or, who knows, maybe the unit will be hardened by their season and have taken this month to really gel behind James Lark. Maybe the OL was just not healthy and it is healed up now, at most positions.
Based on what I'm reading, I'm more pessimistic. I could see the game going one of two ways: BYU wins close, maybe even by as much as 10-13 points, but either way the game would be decided by two plays or drives, or SDSU wins by a landslide and it's never really close. I don't see BYU blowing SDSU out, nor do I see SDSU pulling out a squeaker. Being that this blog is about BYU, I'll go ahead and give BYU the 24-13 win. I'm not ruling out a 31-10 in-your-face-BYU performance by the Aztecs. We'll know awfully quick into the game which one it's going to be!
Merry Christmas, Mo!
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