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Today I was seriously jonesing for something BYU, and there just wasn’t much to be had. If the men’s volleyball team had played better then maybe they would be defending their homecourt right now, but no.

Jonathat Tavernari is still testing the NBA waters, but if he leaves he is stupid in my opinion.

Matt Ah You is now a former BYU linebacker, though I can’t imagine why you would leave before your senior year. I’m sure he had a reason, and I wish him my best.

CNNSI.com had BYU listed under the barely missed it section of the post-spring top 25. Obviously this ranking doesn’t mean a whole lot, but the fact that TCU and Utah were both in the top 25 it goes to show that the MWC really made an indelible mark on the country last year.

I can’t imagine how Utah could be so high after losing Brian Johnson, Paul Kruger, and others but whatever, it is what happens on the field that matters, not the polls.

Tickets for the Oklahoma game should be released shortly which is exciting. Part of me hopes people are expecting a blowout so tickets will be cheaper. On the other hand, I want as many people as possible to see BYU be competitive. I guess we will see.

BYU’s softball team is now waiting to see where they will end up to take their shot at the women’s college world series. They should make a good run of it, if they get a good draw.

So while I am anxious for the football season to come, there is still quite a bit of BYU stuff going on.

BYU’s early season success was due in large part to a few basic basketball principles. They played great help defense, they made the extra pass giving up a good shot for a better one, and along those same lines they played with a team first mentality.

Starting with a Dec. 20 loss at Arizona St., they started to drift away from those basic principles. Their defense appeared to get lazy. Their passing was inaccurate, and in short supply, and the cohesion of the team as a whole was lacking.

It was frustrating to see them come so close to knocking off two ranked opponents only to fall short at the end of both games.

It is hard to understand why teams change their style when it is successful, but it is not usually a concious decision.

No one decides they want to play poorly, they simply drift into bad habits that cost them games at the end. You also cannot discount the ability of opposing teams to impose their style on their opponents. Quality teams play their style no matter what, and whatever team holds true to their gameplan is usually the victor.

Luckily for BYU fans, this team has rediscovered their style and it is working to quite beautifully. In today’s dominant victory over TCU, BYU got back to basics.

Their defense was solid, repeatedly forcing TCU to kick it back out and take challenged shots. Chris Miles has really come into his own this season on both ends of the court, but especially on the defensive end. He was consistently strong on the low block and wasn’t giving up anything easy.

On offense they suddenly remembered how to pass the ball again. They were working it inside and out, and all around the perimeter. They were taking quality shots and giving it up when someone else had a better one. I was also impressed with the guard’s penetration, especially from the backups. The benefit of having such a quick, surehanded guard is immeasurable.

It was also nice to see a little fight back in the team. They seem to be playing with a little more of a killer instinct again. It is coming out at just the right time too. Now is the time for BYU to assert themselves on a national level so that when UNLV steals the most biased tournament in the country, they will still make it to the big dance.

This game was billed as one of the most competitive bowl games of the season and it certainly lived up to that description. It was a close game right to the very end, and was extremely enjoyable to watch.

What blew me away yet again, was how fast TCU’s defense is. It is amazing how quickly they can recover when they make a mistake, and how quick they get across that line. There were a couple of plays that would have gone for touchdowns if their defense wasn’t so fast. I was at the game when they played BYU and it was surreal in person.

Their offense was obviously not clicking all the way, but they got it done when it mattered and won the game.

While I am not a TCU fan, it is always good for the conference when one of our teams beats a quality opponent and Boise St was certainly that. This just reaffirms to me how great it would be for the conference if Boise St. were to join the Mountain West.

I would detail all of the reasons why, but I have already done that in this blog. All I will say at this point is that if the Moutain West consistently had 5 (BYU, TCU, Air Force, Boise St., Utah) 4 of which could easily be in the top ten in any given year then they would have to be given serious consideration as an addition to the BCS.

I know the Mountain West won’t join the BCS for at least a few more years, but seasons like this, and the addition of a quality team like Boise St., would force the BCS to at least consider adding the Mountain West.

While BYU’s season left something to be desired, it has been a great year for the conference, and though I know it would help the conference in the long run, as I true BYU fan, I have to hope that Utah loses to Alabama. Here’s hoping for another great year in the Mountain West next year.

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!

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.