It’s Amazing How Quickly A Rivalry Can Die…

When I was a kid, Nebraska v Oklahoma was the game to watch.  Osborn v Switzer, generally the winner going on to play for the national title.  It was hard to believe it would ever end.

Then the Big XII came, Oklahoma and Nebraska were placed in separate divisions and that (along with some probation for Oklahoma and Nebraska just stumbling) essentially moved that to the back burner.

Which brings me to Utah-BYU.  With our inaugural year in the Pac-12 almost over and BYU’s year as the most well funded exhibition team in NCAA history nearly at an end, can’t y’all feel this rivalry start to fade.  Because I sure can.  Very little a BYU fan says to me anymore can actually upset me, and honestly what can they say.  But this post isn’t to taunt them because I think they feel the same way.  I mean I can make fun of some things I think are silly but in an odd way I think they’ve found what they’ve always wanted.

Utah has what it wants.  We’re a part of a major conference that allows us to eliminate all the disadvantages in recruiting that we’ve faced since we decided to be good at football.  BYU gets to think about only itself, talk about the names of the teams it gets to play and beat the living crap out of some really bad teams at home.  Moving to the Big East or Big XII doesn’t really help BYU and Utah couldn’t  play as an independent.  Both schools are where they should be.

But what does that mean for the rivalry?  Well, I think it’s going to fade pretty quickly once we stop playing each other in football.  Yeah, the zealots in both camps might keep it alive longer than some others because of all the religious overtones, but both sides are going to turn their head to other things.  Even in basketball, one non-conference game in December matters a lot less than playing 2-3 times for a conference title in Feburary and March.

In fact it will be interesting to see what happens with other rivalries such as Texas-Texas A&M and Kansas-Missouri.

As for Utah-BYU, I think its a good thing that some of the venom will get taken out of this thing.  Especially since it was clear that Utah being very good at football isn’t a fluke and Bronco Mendenhall decided to double down on the religious side, this rivalry has become very ugly bringing out the very worst in both sides.  Maybe the break will give both sides either a chance to grow up or simply grow apart.

Oh, there will still be the occasional joke but hopefully the sting will be gone.