In 100 Days

[Anfernee]

Brace yourselves, Provo. Nine is coming. 

[EastCoastUte]

can someone explain to me how BYU fans have so much hype and confidence to win this game? I’m so confused how they think they even have a chance.

[Brettski]

They always have a crazy amount of hubris about anything and everything

[dystopiamembrane]

Any given Saturday

[BD]

They are confident because they always have the attitude that the better team lost. Meaning it is always some anomaly that causes them to lose. In the Vegas Bowl it was bad luck with turnovers. Or 2016 was bad calls by the refs. Or Bradlee’s knee was down. Or whatever. Sooo close they think.

Now, take last year. Up 27-7 in the 2nd half. Then, Kaufusi gets injured and voila! That “allows” Utah to score 28 points alone. I mean if Kaufusi hadn’t gone down they would have won, they think. Combine that with Zach Wilson tearing up Utah in the first half according to them – well if you put two and two together it just adds up to a big BYU victory in August. Because they will be fresh with bodies and won’t have a “Kaufusi went down” event since it is the first game and their best players will be available and that won’t let their lack of depth lose it for them.

Something like that. So goes their thinking.

[BD]

Well, here you go.

https://www.cougarboard.com/board/message.html?id=21732413

[DrJazzy]

Rivalry game. Talent matters but all bets are off for rivalry game. Even OSU has been able to keep it close with Oregon some years and USC lost badly last yr to USC. I love the rivalry game, it’s always fun (except when we lose) and having bragging rights over your rival matters, especially when it comes to recruiting. 

[Stone]

Frankly, I am confused why Utah fans think BYU does not have a chance. Should Utah win? Yes. But on-the-field results from recent history show that the games are almost always very close. Until Utah starts winning by large margins, there will be justified confidence from BYU fans that they could win the game. I often hear Utah fans disparage BYU fans about paper championships…but claiming that BYU has no chance against Utah is essentially the same argument–all on paper. Has Utah consistently won over the last decade? Yes. But to say that BYU has no chance is contrary to reality, i.e., past performance and how close the games have actually been.

[Ma’ake Kava]

Great points. This year, summer conditioning & workouts and fall camp will have an edgy intensity, in both schools. BYU will be motivated and confident, based on 27-7. Utah will be laser-focused, focused on “redemption”, based on 27-7. Make no mistake – it will be rubbed in their face by the coaches and player leadership. You can bet your house on that.

This game consumes more emotional energy than it should. There’s always a hangover effect.

Last year the game was scheduled at the worst possible time. I’m glad this year the game will be over before September.

[UtesRule]

Obviously some on this board were not Ute fans during the 70’s and 80’s. I remember being the very same way as the current Zoob…thinking the Utes were going to win…HOPING they were going to win. When a rivalry is so lop sided, the team on the wrong end of it has NOTHING but hope.

[UtMtBiker]

They are used to believing things that make no logical sense. It’s not a stretch to jump from one silly line of thinking to the next.  

[Duhwayne]

I never talk to BYU fans. Why care about this game more than Weber State? We don’t compete for recruits, and we can lose and still go to the Rose Bowl.

[Anfernee]

For me personally it’s just the satisfaction. I work in UC, most of my family are all big byu fans. And so that’s most of my interactions. So the longer the streak the better. 

[EastCoastUte]

idk about you bro but I always enjoy this game, just because of bragging rights. to BYU, it means the world if they beat us (and their ego will shoot up the roof). but if we beat BYU they’ll go back to their caves for the next 365 days and cry on cougar board about how next year will be the year. lol.

[PhiladelphiaUte]

No they won’t.  They’ll just invent some lame excuse, declare a moral victory, and send their egos through the roof…

…that they’ll beat us NEXT year, because THIS year, we were just “lucky”.

It’s the same every year.

[Central Coast Ute]

It hasn’t been my experience that they crawl back in their caves for 365 days. Maybe one day at the most. Then they all come out with their excuses, “we beat ourselves”, “the refs hate Mormons” etc. Reasonable people would go back into their caves for a little while but we are talking about BYU fans.

[dystopiamembrane]

We do compete with them for recruits.

[Duhwayne]

How many total head to head cases in five years, and how many lost? Who did we consider a loss at the time?

[UteThunder]

@Duhwayne A very quick and rough count shows that over the last 5 years Utah signed about 35 players who were also recruited by BYU while BYU signed about 35 players who were also recruited by Utah. So, about 14 per year between the two schools, excluding the players we both recruited who signed with neither school.

As far as guys who signed with BYU that we would consider a loss at the time:

3 Star guys – Lake, Tafua, Latu, Pilimai, Kaufusi, Pili, Jensen, Tofa, Fauatea, Vaka, McChesney, Wilson, Romney 

4 Star guys – Tanielu, Tooley, Warner, Trinnaman, Ah You, Tuifua

[Central Coast Ute]

Utah didn’t recruit Wilson. A lot guys on recruiting websites show offers but they’re not all serious offers. That’s why he asked the question about how many were serious recruits. Wilson is an example of one that Utah wasn’t recruiting. Utah could have had Wilson if they wanted him, they took Tuttle instead, whichbat the time, was the right choice.

[UteThunder]

Actually, from everything I’ve heard, we did recruit Wilson. The coaches just wanted him to walkon instead of offering him a scholarship. And I questioned the Tuttle offer/commitment at the time. His highlight film didn’t look like anything special, at least not any better than Wilson’s anyway. I had strong doubts that Tuttle would honor his commitment to Utah and although he did sign with us, in the end it turned out that he ultimately wouldn’t honor his commitment to us. Meanwhile, we could have had a comparable QB in Wilson whose dream was to play for Utah.

[Central Coast Ute]

Offering a kid a spot as walk on when other schools are offering scholarships, isn’t exactly recruiting him.

[UteThunder]

How do you figure? They were writing him letters, texting him, calling him, visiting him in his home and at his school as well as hosting him on campus. If that isn’t recruiting, I don’t know what is.

[Central Coast Ute]

If they really wanted him they would have offered a scholarship, not let him take one from BYU.

[UteThunder]

I don’t dispute that. But you claimed we didn’t recruit him which is false.

[Puget Ute]

Lake was not qualified per NCAA, so we couldn’t have taken him anyway.

The 4-star guys are all accurate. We would have loved having them.

[UteThunder]

Couldn’t have signed Lake straight out of high school, but there is no doubt we would have done with him what we are doing with Jones who didn’t qualify this year if Lake had committed to us.

[Puget Ute]

Send him to Snow and hope he signs with us in 2 years? 

[whitlessham]

Totally agree. Until Utah stops recruiting mormons, they will compete against the zoobs

[Anfernee]

Sigh. Time to add whitlessham to the block list. 

[EastCoastUte]

you know pace, when i first got on this board, i felt bad that everyone was stoning you. but now I can kinda see why. I hope you prove me wrong.

[EagleMountainUte]

Now!!?!!?  I don’t even know what he is saying but whatever it is this pushed you over the edge??? 

[whitlessham]

Sigh, just attempting to call out yet another utehub echo chamber talking point.

byu-p and Utah both compete for all the above average mormons not only from the state of Utah but nation wide.  FACT.

Yes, Utah has now expanded it reach (thank God) but when kwhitt finds an above average mormon the offer goes out. Byu-p follows suite or vice versa.

Typically only the true zelliot goes to byu-p but the recruitment pool remains the same.

Sorry if this disruptes the narrative.. 

  

[ironman1315]

Zealot*

[DrJazzy]

Dumb take. Utah’s program was built on talented LDS players and wouldn’t be where it is at without them. Plus not only are they great players on the field but fantastic off the field. We have a ton of Utah LDS fans, we want those fans, they are great and just as passionate about the Utes as a non-LDS fan. We can tout our P12 affiliation, straight forward path to the Rose Bowl, and our wins against our rivals may be enough to snag most kids, but we will never beat the spiritual apeal that BYU has which is fine. But the wins definitely helps, especially for kids sitting on the fence. 

The rivalry game is always fun (except when we lose). CFB is all about rivalries, this is what makes it unique. I want to see the streak hit double digits. Win out, go undefeated, and we have as much of a shot at the CFP as anyone else, regardless of whether or not we schedule BYU. 

[EagleMountainUte]

Ice up son you just lost this debate!! 

[Stone]

Until we stop recruiting [fill in the blank religion/race/nationality]…

Discriminate much Whitlessham?

Who cares what religion someone is, all I care about is their skill as a football player. Does Utah recruit mormons? Of course, excluding a good recruit based on their religion would be stupid, it would also be discriminatory; it would also exclude many of the best local recruits in the state of Utah…which also happens to be where the University of Utah is located.

[DrJazzy]

As it has been stated, we definitely compete for recruits, especially in-state. And there are a lot of talented in-state LDS recruits. Our big edge would be touting the P5, the fact that we compete for a Rose Bowl, and the wins over our rivals. Snagging the Covey’s and the Chase Hanson’s is crucial to our success. Plus, not only are those guys fantastic talents on the field as well as great leaders, but they are awesome off the field as well. 

[Utah5410]

Of course we recruit Mormons always have and always will. What A stupid comment. I think BYU gets us next year. Not in Aug but the following year. But this year we are too loaded our guys too fired up and Wilson is still too young.

[UtesRule]

Why in the world would Utah stop recruiting LDS kids? Let’s take a look at just a couple of high impact LDS Utes of recent times (and no, this is not even close to comprehensive, just naming a few that stand out to me):

Britain Covey
Chase Hansen
Garrett Bowles
Matt Gay

[PlainsUte]

My only concern is the inexperience of the OL playing together, compared to, say, last year.  I think the urgency of the early rivalry game on the road will be a great motivator in camp to be prepared much like the home game vs Michigan a few years ago.   I have confidence in Ludwig to shore-up and prepare the ohfense.  If they can get ready for Michigan they can be ready for the zoobies.