Just a couple of thoughts about today.
First, I love the USC series. It's unfortunate that the games are so far away, with the first coming 6 seasons down the road. Good for Holmoe and Bronco though. It also shows you just how little respect Utah gets from the Pac 12. Utah is not allowed to play non-conference games after week 4 (or at least that is what they claim in terms of the rivalry having to take place in September: take your pick, either they get no love from the Pac or they are lying). BYU has played Oregon State in October and now will play USC twice in November.
Second, I like this coaching staff. The guys seem like they are having fun and they are all pretty knowledgeable guys with solid coaching backgrounds (Mark Atuaia excluded). They are comfortable with each other, they like each other, and they understand each other's roles. Now that just has to last through some adversity. 2nd quarter of the Texas game, if the offense is getting worked over, how will they work together then? Or if the D gives up some big plays against Utah or Utah State, will they stick together?
Third, the schedule is great in 2013. Next year, it's back to the same old, so enjoy this one. 2015 and 2016 have potential for sure. But this season, BYU will play anywhere between 4-6 ranked opponents. With the difficult schedule I went back to look at something: since Max Hall graduated, BYU is 0-6 against ranked opponents. That is something that needs to improve, especially this year with so many potential ranked teams on the schedule. That also shows you just how good this schedule is: in 3 years they played 6 ranked teams and they may play 6 this season alone (though I'm guessing it's more likely to be 4 or 5)
Fourth, the rivalry with Utah really has changed: a lot of players said that was the game they were most looking forward to. I suppose it's nice to FINALLY see that fire in reference to the Utah game. BYU has long treated it as just another game while Utah has continued to rush the field after wins, play with supreme emotion, etc. After multiple heartbreaking losses in a row, BYU players finally get it. Of course, with games against what should be a top 10 Texas team, at Wisconsin which is coming off back-to-back Rose Bowl appearances, and at Notre Dame which played for the National Championship last season, the Utah game shouldn't necessarily be the game that the players are focused on...
BYU also needs to avenge the loss they had at Utah State a few years back, last year's Boise State 2-point conversion/goal-line stand game, and letting a game at a top 5 Notre Dame team slip away in the 4th quarter. I guess there you go. I see 6 big games that BYU should be extremely motivated for!
I love that zoobies like you genuinely believe that BYU only loses to Utah because Utah cares more about the Holy War and BYU is so big time that it is "just another game" to them. This allows you to keep pretending that BYU is the better team in spite of getting beat by Utah year after year.
ReplyDeleteIn reality, if BYU was better, BYU would win. Utah has been winning over the last couple of decades because Utah is the better program, period.
I wonder what mental gymnastics zoobies will come up with to explain away the loss this year. After all of the talking about Utah your players have done this off-season, there is no way you can keep up the "Utah's bowl game, just another game to BYU" charade. There is no doubt at this point that the Utah game is actually BYU's bowl game; not vice versa.
Maybe this is the year BYU fans finally come to terms with Utah being the big dog in the state. You'll only be a decade behind the rest of the country, but at BYU that's called progress.
In over 90 years of football BYU has only had a single coach with a winning record against Utah and it took the Utes being a raging dumpster fire for him to do it. Even LaVell had a losing record against Utah from '93 until he retired. LaVell was the outlier. Losing to Utah most of the time isn't new for BYU; it's your normal. At some point you are going to have to leave 1984 and join the rest of the world in 2013.