Welcome to CrashUtah – Where BYU fans Talk Sports

Pessimist- You barely beat a weak CSU team the week after barely beating a weak UNLV team. The voters cannot be accepting of that.
Optimist- A win is a win, and no matter who you are playing, you have to get that W.

Pessimist- You threw a stupid pick in crunch time, and had two fumbles, one when the game was on the line.
Optimist- Yeah but we racked up 551 yards of total offense including five passing td’s, two 100-yard receivers, and a 100 yard rusher.

Pessimist- Your defense gave up 401 yards of total offense, three passing touchdowns, two rushing touchdowns, and your first 100-yard rusher of the year.
Optimist- Yeah but they made the stops when they needed too, including a sack on CSU’s final drive.

Pessimist- BYU is not in a BCS conference, and there is no way they can make it to a BCS bowl after blowing it in Fort Worth a couple of weeks ago. Looks like another trip to Las Vegas, or maybe they would prefer a change of pace and go to San Diego instead.
Optimist- However unlikely it is that BYU makes it to a BCS bowl this year, crazier things have happened in college football. They have to win out, and the heathen university to the north has to win this week, but never say never. Either way, the MWC has shown they belong on the national stage, and at least made people across the country pause and think about including them.

Pessimist- BYU always has a prolific offense, it is the defense that is usually in question, and they aren’t playing well of late. Most teams get better as the year goes on, but your defense seems to be getting worse. If they can barely stop the likes of UNLV and CSU good luck when you make that trip to the north.
Optimist- Our offense is clicking again and making plays. You knew they couldn’t keep the big three down forever and they came out in the game. Our offense can compete with anyone in the nation when they are on. It seems they started to believe in themselves again and put up some nice numbers. Say what you want about our defense, but they have shown they can throw shutouts when they put it all together. They will find their heart again that they had at the beignning of the season.

In this age of arbitrary decision making when it comes to deciding who is a quality program, it is essential that teams face as many quality teams as possible. While it is not impossible to get national attention with a really weak schedule as in the case of Hawaii last year(we all saw how that turned out), it is far more useful to have a tough schedule and prove how good you are. Not only does it prove how good you are, it gives you a chance to challenge yourself, improve your team, and it helps in recruiting to be getting quality national attention.

All of this leads to why the Mountain West needs to get Boise State to join the conference. In short, there is no other team in the non-bcs conferences, that has more consistently garnered national attention than Boise State. While I am amongst those who criticize Boise State for being in such a weak conference, you can’t argue with winning as much as they have, or that memorable Fiesta Bowl game.

That is why this would be a huge benefit to both parties. The Mountain West would add another quality team that is consistently in the rankings, and Boise State would add a tremendous amount of strength to their schedule with the likes of BYU, utah, and TCU. Having four nationally ranked teams, and a couple others that are not too far off, the Mountain West would be in an even better position to knock on the BCS door, both as a buster, and as a potential addition.

Few people that have paid attention to college football this year wouldn’t admit that the Mountain West has not been better than at least two conferences as a whole, and one conference, minus USC. At some point the BCS will have to pay some attention.

Beyond the football world, Boise State is also imrpoving in basketball, as BYU fans can probably agree. It all just makes sense. There is some talk that their academic standards don’t match up. If that is the case the conference could just require them to up their standards if they want to come and play. In reality, most fans couldn’t care less about the academic side, and even a lot of the administration is more concerned with making money than educating people, sadly.

In short, now is the time to act and make the Mountain West that much stronger.

Yes, BYU losing last week was a good thing, and no, it is not a good thing.

First, the obvious reasons it was not a good thing. They took themselves out of the driver’s seat in terms of a conference championship, and all but eliminated any chance of a BCS berth. I would say totally eliminated, but there are still quite a few games left, and you never know what can happen. And finally, losing sucks, and no matter what you say, or how you slice it, I hate losing, and I hate it when my teams lose.

The good things that could come of this loss may be less obvious but possibly more important.

Now that they are no longer undefeated a lot of the pressure is off which could help them play more relaxed and execute better as long as they don’t get too relaxed and just throw away the rest of the season.

I would say the target is off their chest with everyone wanting to beat them even more than usual, but the reality is that many schools, both in and outside the conference, couldn’t care less what BYU’s record is, they want to beat them no matter what. Teams carry a certain amount of hatred for BYU due to their success in the past, and let’s not even talk about that heathen school to the North.

Bronco has a knack for finding what went wrong in losses as he looks back. They say hindsight is 20/20 but I think for Bronco it is more like 20/10 or better. I would never say he prefers to lose, but from a coaching standpoint, it sure gives you a much better idea of what didn’t work and how to prepare for the next game. Any BYU fan of recent years remembers how poorly the last two seasons started with early losses, but then corrections were made and they won out.

Perhaps the biggest positive from this loss was the wake up call that it provided. I for one believe that BYU is every bit as good as everyone thought they were, they just chose to forget it themselves last week. Perhaps this loss will help them to find their work ethic and their emotion. Any athlete can tell you that stringing together a couple of good plays just leads to more and more success. Whether that be runs, passes, or even defensive stops. Lets hope the loss jarred some emotion back into them.

I’m so glad this terribly long week is over and I can stop being so sad about the loss. I have all the faith in the world that they will turn it around this week and make everyone happy. So maybe in the grand scheme of things it actually was good for them to lose, as long as they win out.

In reading all of the articles following the disheartening loss last week my positive outlook has been somewhat dampened. I understand the feeling of a coach that there is often more to learn from a loss than a win, but the comments Bronco has been making this week, as well as some of the players, make me feel like they almost wanted to lose.

Bronco has repeatedly referred to the early losses in the last two seasons and how they allowed the team to see their weaknesses and improve for the rest of the season. You can’t argue with the results the last two years, but is it really necessary to actually lose to learn these things? I would have thought close games with Northern Iowa and a weak Washington team would have provided ample opportunities to learn about your weaknesses. This says a lot to me about the coaches abilities.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a huge Bronco Mendenhall fan, but it seems this team is content with being an average team instead of the great team they had the potential to be. I don’t believe for a second that this team is not as good as everyone thought, and to hear Max Hall say that really doesn’t make sense. You are only as good as you believe you are, so if you come out and say we really aren’t that good, what does that say to your teammates? Anyone who has watched this team play knows the talent level is there. What was lacking this week was the right attitude.

I will be a BYU fan until the day I die, no matter how good they are, or what their record is. It would just be nice to hear a little bit of fire from some of the players. The coach needs to stay even keel, and keep everything in perspective, but the players need to get fired up and emotional in order to do great things. Unfortunately, this team seems content to be average and make, at best, another trip to Las Vegas, but that isn’t even within their control anymore.

The short but bitter reason they lost this game comes down to one simple reason. They played with no heart. I was at the game, and right from the beginning I knew they were in trouble. When they came out and did the Haka there was no emotion after it. It should be something that fires you up, but they did it and then picked up their helmets and walked to the sideline like they just came out of church.

It was also apparent the offense was not clicking right from that first drive. If TCU’s d-backs could catch the ball Hall would have gotten picked five times instead of just two. The one good pass he had was when the game was no longer in doubt and he hit Collie near midfield.

This game was also poorly coached. It appeared that BYU was playing a prevent defense right from the beginning which allowed TCU to get some momentum and just keep on rolling. I know they have a bend and not break philosophy, but if you bend enough you will break, and once they broke last night, the floodgates opened. They almost never blitzed and if you give a quality team like TCU enough time they are going to make plays. It was also apparent that everytime their backup QB came in they were going to have a shotgun formation and run a quarterback draw, but not once did BYU stop it.

Give TCU all the credit in the world, they came out fired up and played a great game. They deserved to win that game. I would like to say that BYU just lost it, but I have to admit that TCU caused a lot of the troubles BYU was having. Their timing was off, they couldn’t run, and our defense got no pressure on the quarterback. The reason BYU lost can be seen from a picture I took right near the end of the game. Forgive the low quality I don’t have a professional camera.

No heart

Despite my sadness over the loss, especially at my daughter’s first college game ever, I have not completely given up hope. I know this team is better than that, and this can still be a memorable season. The BCS is almost totally out the window, but we have seen stranger things happen in college football. Bronco has always said conference championships come first, and there is still hope for that, but only if they find their hearts during this long week of preparation.

As I go reading through various people’s blogs and comments across the internet there is one common problem that I have discovered. Everything is totally black and white to most people. Your team has one bad game and the season is over even if they don’t lose. How the outcome of one game barely halfway through the season could result in the rest of the season being a failure is beyond me.

I am well aware of the state of college football in which one loss, or even not applying a beat down to a lesser opponent can result in your being benched by the powers that be in the selection process, but maybe all of the talk is just what the BCS people want.

Everyday there is a plethora of articles about how screwed up the BCS is and that change is needed. While I definately have to agree with that thought process, maybe the BCS is sticking with the “any publicity is good publicity” idea. If the BCS folded and went to a real national championship that was decided on the field regardless of what conference you are from, and how good voters THINK you are what would all of the sports radio announcers have to talk about all week. Heaven forbid they actually discuss the games that were played or will soon be played.

This season and last season, more than almost any others, show that supposed experts know very little. Watching the Texas-OU game and having to listen to my favorite announcer aimlessly run his mouth about whatever was apparent to the most juvenile fan simply reaffirmed my believe that sportscasters buy their jobs, they don’t earn them.

You may be asking what does any of this have to do with BYU? It is quite simple actually. BYU is undefeated this season. They beat two teams form a supposed “power conference” putting a major beatdown on one of the most storied programs in college football. Yet their fans talk about this one week being make or break, and the media refuses to give them any credit. If you want to criticize BYU for the teams they have beaten why not attack Texas Tech? Their schedule is about to get a whole lot tougher though, and we will see how they hold up.

This week is going to be the gut check week for this BYU team. TCU is no joke holding a top 25 ranking for the second time this season with an awesome defense. On the flip side, BYU has a pretty solid defense itself, and an offense that is due for a breakout game. I am so excited to see them in person for the first time this year. Fort Worth is going to be a fun place to be Thursday night. It’s almost fitting that it will be on a Thursday night so that the whole country will be able to see the outcome independent of the Saturday chaos. Go Cougars!

I am not at all surprised that BYU stayed right where they were at in the rankings. While I feel they could have moved up a spot or two because so many teams above them lost, I am not really surprised. They played a game with very little heart and emotion, which is unacceptable at home. There is just not enough humility on the offense. They walked all over the first few teams they played, but what everyone is overlooking is the defense.

The one close game they had was the worst game for the defense this year. All of the blowouts were a result of tremendous defensive play and multiple turnovers, not because the offense was playing so great. They had really short fields and tons of emotion because the defense was bringing it. Heaven help us if the defense has a totally off game.

The defense is the unit that deserves all of the credit at this point, but I am actually glad they are getting overlooked because maybe they will continue to stay humble and play with intensity. Their play is what is giving me hope that BYU could run the table. As everyone knows, defense wins championships, be they conference, or national.

The best example of this was Coleby Clawson’s play during the last two plays of the game. The outcome was no longer in doubt, but heart is what gets you sacks, and he exhibited how big his heart is by getting those two sacks. This was the second time in two weeks the defense held on at the end to keep the other team out of the endzone. They definately deserve a pat on the back. Maybe they could teach the offense about humility and heart during practice this week.

I realize that there is no preseason in college football, and that more than any other sport every single game counts, but i really enjoy the conference season more. Maybe it is the familiar opponents or the rivalries, but I really think it comes from the deep desire of every team to beat their conference foes and win a conference title.

It is much easier to shrug off a loss to a non-conference opponent because you probably won’t play them for a long time, and in a lot of cases it may have even been expected that you would lose. On the off chance that you do will it will be written off as a fluke.

On the other hand your conference members will see you again next year and be looking for revenge. There is also the inevitable relationships that get formed and broken as coaches move between schools or coach at their alma mater’s rival. There are no moral victories during the conference schedule.

If there was any doubt that New Mexico might consider a close game with such a high ranked team a moral victory consider the words of head coach Rocky Long:

“I read a quote from [a Utah newspaper] that I guess Utah State scored when they were down by 27 or 30 and they were hooting and hollering. Our team won’t do that. Our team is not going to hoot or holler unless it’s the score that wins the game. We’re not our there for moral victories, we’re not out there for statistics, we’re out there to win the game.”

That pretty much sums it up for me. The next few weeks will either be some of the most fun in my BYU fandom, or some of the most dissapointing. I love the conference season!

That is really all BYU did this week, but I can’t complain. The rise to 8 in the AP poll and 7 in the coaches poll was to be expected after the rash of upsets that took place over the weekend. The great fear now is of overconfidence. I’m glad BYU gets Utah State on the flipside of their bye week so that even if they don’t play a perfect game they will still win most likely.

The biggest upside to being ranked this high so early is that all BYU has to do is maintain and they will be in a BCS bowl. It would be really hard to move them down in the rankings as long as they keep winning. Perhaps the brightest spot in these rankings is that BYU has garnered enough respect to move up even when they don’t play. This shows that people are noticing what is going on in Provo. Recognition will only aid in furthering the program.

While the added attention should help with recruiting, the rash of losses amongst big name schools this week goes to show that who you play isn’t nearly as important as how you play. Parity in college football is glaringly evident these days. The difference now and in the future will be the effectiveness of coaching, and I am glad we have Bronco to lead us into the future.

Anytime you shutout another team and put 44 points up on the board you can’t really complain too much. I am sure the first stringers are a little frustrated by only plaing half games, but I think this will pay huge dividends later in the season when the games are closer, especially if there should be some injuries. The coach in me still sees some areas for improvement. The most glaring being the penalties. Nine penalties for 79 yards will be a lot more painful in a close game. I have to admit I did not see the game, so some of those may have come at the end in garbage time, but it caught my eye.

The move up in the rankings seems just about right. The only team I would suggest we could go ahead of right now is Texas Tech, but they are in a BCS conference so they automatically get some advantage. It will be interesting to see how willing the voters will be to move BYU up from here as teams ahead of them inevitably lose. The most likely losers being Texas Tech, Wisconsin, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and even though I live in Austin, Texas. Obviously, there are a million different variables, but the real question is what teams will jump over BYU even if they go undefeated.

Congrats to TCU for cracking the rankings. It is definitely deserved. They are putting up some great numbers with the nations best overall defense, and number six in points allowed. It makes that showdown on Oct. 16 even more interesting should they keep playing well.