Well after much deliberation and pondering and many requests (2), I have decided to continue with my sports blog. I hope nobody went through withdrawals from Utes homerism and Cougar hatred. Just a fair warning, I am not holding anything back this year. I have been a bit conservative in my speech lately and it is time for that to change. So without further adieu, lets get rolling.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
With the football season well underway, I thought it would be good to focus on the changing landscape of college football. This off-season brought a lot of excitement around the valley. Much more for those in the Salt Lake Valley as opposed to those in Utah County. Nevertheless, there was a lot of change that took place. The University of Utah received validation for everything that they had accomplished and the remarkable program that they have developed. The invitation to join the Pac-10 is a sign that the university has reached a status of an elite program. You can talk about research institution and the other sports all you want but this decision came down to football. Everything hinges on football. For the past 6 seasons, the Utes have made their mark on the college football nation. Busting the BCS for the first time, finishing with the highest AP ranking for any "non-BCS" school in the BCS era, and then busting the BCS again. The most pivotal accomplishment of the program has been one man, Kyle Whittingham. The key success of the program this decade has been the ability to continue its winning ways after the departure of Urban Meyer. Everyone knew that with any success, Meyer would jump ship at the first opportunity. The most impressive thing is how Whittingham has taken that success and continued to keep the program relevant. It took some bumps in the road, i.e. 27-0 beat down at UNLV, but the Utes keep winning. 34 of the last 38 games have been victories. The University of Utah is one of the best college football programs in all the west. I would argue that it is the best. Some may say Boise State is better. Well lets just look at this one aspect. Boise State has two BCS bowl wins by a combined total of 8 points. Utah also has two BCS bowl wins, against tougher opponents, by a combined total of 42 points. Boise is a tough team to beat, they always seem to be able to win games on the last drive or late in the 4th quarter. This is not how Utah does it, they just kick their opponents ass up an down the field for all four quarters and leave no doubt! To conclude I think it is important to see the move to the Pac-10 as a culmination to the unbelievable program that is the University of Utah.
Independence Day:
My views on the move to independence by Brigham Young University are split. On one side you can say that they really wanted to get out of the Mountain West Conference, on the other, you could say that they really wanted to try and keep up with the Jones's, I mean the Utes. My overall take on their decision is simply this. They are jealous. It is clear that BYU has a decent football program. Just as clear as it is that they are no where near one of the top programs in the West. Many may say that the reason they did not get a BCS Conference invite it is due to the no play on Sunday stance. This is a bunch of garbage. Any conference that wants a program bad enough would change its guidelines to allow that program to join their ranks. The reason that the Big 12 and Pac-10 passed on BYU is that they simply weren't worth it. As popular as they may be, they simply have not lived up to their self-perceived standards. Ten win seasons are great, but if that is your ceiling is it really that great? BYU is no better off now for a number of reasons. First, all their home games will be on ESPN. BFD! They are at home, 60,000 won't care what station it is on because they will be at the game. Second, even with the addition of a 6 game series with Notre Dame, it still doesn't make up for the schedule of New Mexico State, Tulsa, Central Florida, Utah State, and all other dogs that they will be playing. As much as I hate the Mountain West Conference, it was BYU's best chance at reaching a BCS Bowl game. Notice I said "chance". They have had their chances in the MWC and have fallen short, way short. But with the possibility of the MWC receiving an automatic bid with BYU in the mix, it would give them the opportunity by winning the conference.
To summarize, Utah makes a historic move and BYU is left in the wake wondering what it can do to stay relevant. I relate it the analogy of a couple of friends. One gets asked to the prom by one of the hottest girls in school and his buddy, in a jealous enraged fog, decides he too needs a date to the prom and asks the ugly girl with spots all over her face. Go Utes!
PREDICTIONS: This year I will be predicting a few games around the country, the 3 local teams, and also, new to this year, I will be predicting all Pac-10 games.
- Utah 35 - New Mexico 13 (Not a contest)
- Florida State 28 - BYU 13 (BYU stays close in 1st half, not so much in the 2nd)
- Utah State 34 - Fresno State 28 (Anderson has his team playing really well)
- Tennessee 30 - Florida 28 (Upset, Florida has struggled early)
- Texas 35 - Texas Tech 24 (Rivalry game stays close)
- Notre Dame 24 - Michigan State 17 (Bounce back game for ND)
- Illinois 42 - Northern Illinois 10 (Special request from Jeff Garney)
- Nevada 24 - California 21 (Upset)
- USC 20 - Minnesota 17 (Minn is good, but not quite good enough)
- Nebraska 37 - Washington 20 (Another disappointing game for Sarkesian)
- Wisconsin 26 - Arizona State 14 (Too much Gray on the ground game for the Devils)
- SMU 17 - Washington State 14 (WSU is the MWC's version of Wyoming)
- Louisville 23 - Oregon State 20 (Another early loss for OSU)
- Oregon 55 - Portland State 10 (Blowout)
- Iowa 34 - Arizona 20 (Iowa is a great team, great and should compete for Big 10 title)
- Houston 24 - UCLA 23 (0-3 start for the Bruins is looming)
- Stanford 17 - Wake Forest 13 (Good opponent, quality win for the Cardinal)
