Feel free to discuss the game in progress.

[Update] Well it is over. BYU got their butts handed to them in Fort Worth by the TCU Horned Frogs. The final score was TCU 32 BYU 7. TCU was simply better tonight in all facets of the game. This game is the culmination of the disconcerting trend for the Cougs that started with Utah State and continued with New Mexico. BYU didn’t look nearly as strong as their ranking would have indicated in those games and they showed that tonight.

At least BYU will not have as much pressure on them going forward. It will be interesting to see how the team responds over the next several weeks.

Discuss.

Yeah sure, BYU did beat the Utah State Aggies 34-14. Sure, it wasn’t ever really close. Still, based on expectations it seemed like a moral victory for the Ags rather than another blowout for the Cougs.

Reminds me of last night’s VP debate. Sure, Biden won handily but Palin stayed scrappy and got a moral victory of sorts out of it.

It is probably a very good thing for BYU. It will humble them. The BYU offense was fairly weak (by BYU standards). The kicking game was weak (two missed field goals??). And the defense gave up two late touchdowns. BYU needs work still. But getting humbled in a win is always better than being humbled by a loss so the Cougs roll on. I expect a better game next week.

Thoughts on the game?

The game today was sort of a letdown after BYU annihilated UCLA 59-0.

BYU only beat Wyoming 44-0.

Ok, kidding aside — BYU is going to be in the top ten this time tomorrow and with good reason. To me the most memorable image in the game was Max Hall throwing yet another touchdown pass to Austin Collie and simply turning to walk toward the sideline with an almost “ho-hum” demeanor about him. Seriously, it is getting that way. Throwing touchdown passes is just what Max Hall does. And he seemingly does it at will.

Now having said that, the offense was a bit off kilter this game. In the first quarter Max was not very accurate but he and his team mates really got things rolling in the second quarter. The third quarter started off great but then the offense was forced to punt twice. I’m sure Max and his pals would have liked to get back on track but Coach Mendenhall pretty much had to yank them with route being on and all.

The defense gave up plenty of yards but they seem to have the “bend but don’t break” thing really working for them. Every time the Cowboys got close to scoring the Cougs forced a turnover. In fact the defense scored two touchdowns of their own this week. As a result the first team defense (and the backups starting in the third quarter) notched their second shutout in a row. That is impressive. The combined score of the last two games is BYU 103, opposition 0.

It’s a good time to be a BYU football fan.

… and 59-0 as a final.

BYU steamrolled UCLA today. It was total domination in nearly every aspect of the game. I’d say all the annoying carping about the way the last game ended ought to fade away after today.

It wasn’t a perfect game but it was nearly perfect. It’s a fun time to be a Cougar fan.

Phew! A non-conference road win… It’s about time.

BYU pulled out a win today over the Washington Huskies by blocking an extra point attempt that would have tied the game as time wound down. Good times, good times…

Just as I was about to kick a hole in my TV in frustration over the atrociously biased Pac 10 refs (who had just swallowed their whistles on a blatant hold — a hold that likely prevented a drive-ending sack no less), just at that moment the refs blew the whistle on UW quarterback Jake Locker when he hurled the ball into the air after scoring a last second touchdown. The penalty meant that with the score at 27-28 the Huskies had to kick the extra point from an extra 15 yards out. In shades of the 2007 Las Vegas Bowl the Cougs promptly blocked the kick and won the game. Good times.

Here are a few things I learned from watching this game: (more…)

When Nevada backed out of their scheduled season opening game with BYU several months ago BYU was left in a bad spot. They needed to schedule a home game for August 30 with a good opponent. The problem is that most schools are not super anxious to come to Provo to face the Cougs — largely because most schools realize it is hard to beat BYU in Provo these days. So BYU reportedly took the best game it could get. That meant that Division 1AA (FCS) powerhouse Northern Iowa.

In the end BYU took care of the NIU Panthers 41-17. But the game was no thing of beauty for the Cougs on Saturday. BYU actually did have an excellent first half. It was the dominating performance one would expect from a top 20 division 1A (FBS) school over a good school from a lower division with the Cougs leading 27-3 going into the break. But the third quarter was a disaster for BYU. After losing 4 fumbles the Cougars gave up 14 points and scored none in the 3rd and the score heading in to the 4th quarter was 27-17. BYU righted the ship quickly enough and got those 14 points back but the game did show that BYU is has a way to go in its “Quest For Perfection” (the team motto in 2008).

Here are some random thoughts and observations about the game:

(more…)

Football season is upon us.

Woohoo!

As I have in years past I will be posting on the BYU football team this season and recapping the games. But before I kick off my own posts on the Cougs I figured I would give you some links to the best day to day BYU football resources I have found: (more…)

I haven’t posted on the BYU men’s basketball team this season. I have to admit that I have been afraid to get my hopes up. But at 25-6 and ranked in the top 25 in the country I guess it is safe to say that BYU is pretty good this year. The team started off hot, beating then #6 Louisville in an early season game and giving #1 North Carolina a real scare the next night. The Cougs found themselves in the top 20 and a loss to #10 Michigan State didn’t worry too many people. But then things started getting a little ugly. First there was the loss at unremarkable Boise State, then the big loss at having-a-down-year Wake Forest, and then there was a blow out loss at UNLV by something like 40 points. It wasn’t looking pretty. But somewhere along the line BYU found a team leader in rail-thin junior swing-man Lee Cummard. Cummard decided to step up and be The Man on this team his ascendancy catapulted the flagging team on to a major winning streak. Cummard finished the regular season as the co player of the year in the Mountain West Conference (along with JR Giddens from New Mexico) and the Cougs won their second straight outright MWC conference title.

(more…)

Jay Posner over at the San Diego Union Tribune broke the news today:

The network devoted to the Mountain West Conference has not been available on any satellite service since its inception in September 2006. But Jeff Schemmel, San Diego State director of athletics, said today DirecTV will offer The Mtn. beginning Aug. 1.

Rock. On. (more…)

Did you see the Las Vegas Bowl tonight? Holy Smokes! We were done. You could have put a fork in the Cougs with 3 seconds left and an easy field goal lined up for the UCLA win. We were as done as we were against Utah I think. But like the Utah game an absolutely astonishing turn of events led to another BYU win. (A blocked kick this time around.) Congratulations Cougs! You overcame getting manhandled by the UCLA defensive front and a bad coaching decision at the end of the first half to get an improbable win.

So with basically the whole offense coming back next year do you think the Cougs will be in the top 20 in the preseason polls next year? A BCS bowl game run will definitely be in the air next season…