PROVO — It's only September, but BYU is already staring at a must-win situation.
With a 0-1 record in the Mountain West Conference, the Cougars (1-3 overall) are feeling a sense of urgency as they host UNLV (1-1 overall, 0-0 in the MWC) today at 1:30.
BYU has been in an 0-1 hole in years past and come out OK. But 0-2? That's a different story.
"There's no doubt we can't afford to lose another conference game," said running back Brian McDonald. "If you lose two conference games, that means you're hoping for somebody else to lose and that usually doesn't work out. So we're just taking it upon ourselves to try to run the table and see what happens."
"We definitely know we have to win this game to be in contention for the conference (title)," said safety Jared Lee.
Yes, if BYU is to send coach LaVell Edwards into retirement with a MWC championship, a victory today is crucial. Consider:
Under Edwards, the Cougars have started conference play 0-2 only twice. The last time that happened was in 1975, when they finished in a fourth-place tie. In 1973, the Cougars began 0-3 and also ended up in a fourth-place tie.
Since 1980, the Cougars have started 0-1 in conference play six times. In those years, they posted a 32-4 mark in conference games after losing the opener. In three of those five seasons, BYU went on to claim at least a share of the league title.
Conference championships aside, today's outcome carries other implications. If Edwards is to coach his final game in a bowl, then the Cougars must, as per NCAA regulations, finish with a winning overall record.
At 1-3, the Cougars have to win six of their final eight games to be bowl-eligible. And BYU still has road games against Syracuse, Colorado State and Utah coming up. A loss today and the Cougars would have to win six of their last seven games just to finish 7-5 overall.
Not that BYU is worried about such matters at this point. Nor are the Cougars preoccupied with the fact they are mired in their worst stretch during the Edwards era, having gone 1-6 in their last seven games, dating back to last season. They have also lost three consecutive conference games and are 2-3 in their last five home games, dating back to 1999.
All that matters to BYU right now is playing 60 strong minutes as a team against UNLV, something it hasn't done yet this season.
Defensively, the Cougars have been prone to give up the big play. "That's one thing we really want to concentrate on, playing four quarters and doing a great job," Lee said. "We know we can play with and shut down any offense in the country. Mentally, we've got to do it."
Perhaps BYU's most telling statistic in 2000 is its 14 turnovers, compared to three takeaways. "We need to cut out those mistakes," McDonald said.
E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com