PROVO — If there are any BYU faithful with doubts about Utah State being a worthy rival, that idea is out of touch.
For a very long time, Utah State athletics and its fan base have been fired up about playing BYU. That hasn’t been an equal give and take. It should be, regardless of the series balance.
As an independent, BYU needs Utah State on its schedule. Tom Holmoe has burned up phone and fax lines creating schedules. He’s ridden ESPN connections hard and the cable TV partner has delivered.
So has Utah State.
Administrators and coaches at Utah State have been loyal supporters of scheduling BYU over the years, and when BYU left the Mountain West Conference, Utah State put its reputation on the line to support a tie-in with the WAC before the WCC became BYU's option for basketball and minor sports.
Many diehard Aggies believe BYU and Utah were not as supportive as they could have been in making a case for USU to be part of the old WAC and MWC when those leagues were assembled. There’s been some bitterness and it’s probably justified.
BYU and USU spent 37 years playing one another in the Rocky Mountain Conference (1922 to 1937) and Mountain States and Skyline conferences (1938-1961) before USU was left out in the formation of the WAC and early formation of the Mountain West.
As time passed, the landscape of college football has changed drastically and BYU found it really needs USU. And the Aggies have been there to deliver. USU has been flexible, dependable and loyal as a scheduling partner to BYU.
When USU hosts BYU Friday night, it will mark the 87th meeting between the two schools. For BYU, it is the second longest series in school history with the longest being with Utah at 92 games.
Utah State coach Matt Wells told reporters earlier this week of the importance of this BYU series. For BYU folks, it should be met with that same passion.
"It's a fun week here at Utah State for our players, for our coaches, for our fans and alumni. It is a big rivalry to us. It gets our guys excited,” said Wells. “The stadium will be electric Friday night. I know the students are all fired up. The student crowd I know will be sold out, and I expect the general crowd to be at capacity as well. Hopefully, it's a really loud home-field advantage for the Aggies. It's a venue and a stadium and atmosphere that our guys are really excited to play in in front of a national television audience. It'll be fun."
BYU arrives in Logan 1-3, humbled, and in search of an identity on both offense and defense.
Both the Cougars and Aggies were walloped by nationally-ranked Wisconsin. But in September, you get the feeling USU has figured out more things than the Cougars and it helps to have a proven senior quarterback in Kent Myers.
A rivalry? Absolutely.
And BYU should approach it that way every day and in every way. This matchup, remember, is the one in which Taysom Hill suffered season-ending injuries three times.
So, intense?
Yes.
Regardless of the fact BYU is 48-35-3 against USU all time, 8-2 in the last 10 games, beat the Aggies in Provo 28-10 a year ago, and won 51-28 on its last trip to Logan, this will be a real battle.
Utah State, with its stadium renovations and upgrades in facilities, along with its passionate fans, deserves BYU’s respect.
BYU will need a different kind of football team than we’ve seen most of September in order to leave Logan as winners.
And now, on to this week's picks:
Southern Cal 45, Washington State 31: Trojan defense forces turnovers
Washington 38, Oregon State 21: Huskies gain league momentum.
Georgia 34, Tennessee 21: Bulldogs flexing SEC muscle after MSU takedown.
San Diego State 38, Northern Illinois 17: Rocky Long has Aztecs dreaming.
Navy 37, Tulsa 31: Midshipmen option attack too pesky.
Stanford 42, Arizona State 35: Stanford defense slows down Devils.
New Mexico 33, Air Force 31: Lobos ground the Falcons.
Fresno State 27, Nevada 17: Struggling ‘Dogs bite Wolfpack.
Miami 42, Duke 37: Miami speed prevails.
Illinois 21, Nebraska 20: Huskers’ Midwest stumble.
Utah State 24, BYU 21: Identity trumps quest for identity.
Last week 9-4, Overall 31-14 (.673)