Rivalry Timeline

Click and hold on a year to see details from the game

By ROCKY STEELE

With the big game between the BYU and University of Utah football teams looming large this weekend, both campuses along the I-15 corridor are abuzz with students' talk of their favorite team’s chances for victory.

Along with the speculation surrounding the gridiron grudge match come a thousand different comparisons of the two programs, and their respective brilliancy in the college football universe.

Lest ye be deceived by all the banter about the relative position that each school occupies in football astronomy, here are a few facts to consider while cheering for the red or blue.

In the beginning, BYU was bad. So bad was BYU, Utah actually managed to win a few conference championships (as opposed to the modern era). Because of early Cougar futility, Utah holds a 30-49-4 series lead over BYU. So dominant were the Utes in the early going, that BYU managed just one win in the first 33 games.

Things were pretty smooth for the Utes, until BYU hired a bright young coach named LaVell Edwards in 1972. Since then it has been almost all BYU, with 25 wins for the Cougars and just 11 wins for Utah. And that doesn’t even begin to tell the whole story.

The following facts should help clear up any misunderstandings.

BYU has won 21 conference championships since 1974, (’74, ’76, ’77, ’78, ’79, ’80, ’81, ’83, ’84, ’85, ’89, ’90, ’91, ’92, ’93, ’95, ’96, ’99, ’01, ’06, ’07) as well as two division championships in the old WAC (’96, ’98).

Utah has won four conference championships in that span (’95, ’99, ’03, ’04), and no division championships (one less total championship than the ‘Pokes of Wyoming).

BYU has had a top three finisher in the Heisman race seven times since 1979 (Marc Wilson 1979, 3rd; Jim McMahon 1981, 3rd; Steve Young 1983, 2nd; Robbie Bosco 1984, 3rd; Robbie Bosco 1985, 3rd; Ty Detmer 1990, 1st; Ty Detmer 1991, 3rd).

The University of Utah has had no player finish in the top three of Heisman balloting in history.

BYU has had nine players win major awards since 1981. The list includes four Davey O’Brien awards, two Out-land Trophies, one Doak Walker, one Heisman Trophy, and one Maxwell award.

The University of Utah has never had a player win a major award (Utah State has one more major award than the Utes — Merlin Olsen won the Outland Trophy in 1961).

BYU has 15 top 25 finishes since 1977 — nearly once every two years for the last three decades.

Utah has finished ranked just three times in that time frame, and only four times in history.

BYU even wins when it comes to stadium size; LaVell Edwards Stadium seats 64,045, while Rice-Eccles Stadium holds 45,117; estimated number of total fans; and the annual ice cream sell-off.

Granted, the Utes were great in 2004. They had some real talent that year, but unfortunately for Utah, it moved to Florida at the end of the one-hit wonder campaign.

So rare have been great seasons for Utah that it has had just one 11-win season in history before 2008. It’s true. And yes, the credit goes to Urban Meyer once again. After this year, Utah will have two 11-win seasons in 116 years of football.

With a win either this week or in their bowl game, BYU will total three 11-win seasons since 2006. In the last 29 full seasons BYU has reached the 11-win plateau 10 times.

Utah also struggles mightily with conference opponents. Utah has had at least one conference loss every season (excepting 2004,of course) since President Eisenhower began his second term in 1957.

BYU has scorched through conference play without a loss five times since 1991, and eight times since 1979.



Copyright Brigham Young University 20 Nov 2008