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Fans chose BYU at Utah to be highlighted in Week 13

Nov. 26, 2010

Note: Mountain West Conference fans get to vote throughout the 2010 college football season for their "Game of the Week." Each Sunday, the MWC will create a poll on Facebook and on TheMWC.com asking fans to choose which game should be highlighted as the "MWC Game of the Week." Results will be combined from both polls, and MWC Correspondent Mick McGrane will preview the game every Thursday, along with select talent from the Conference's television partners, The Mtn., CBS College Sports Network and VERSUS. The rest of the week's football slate will be previewed at "Inside the MWC," the official blog of the Mountain West Conference. Click HERE to read more.

Week 13 winner: The game receiving the highest percentage of votes for Week 13 was BYU at Utah. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. MT on Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. The Mtn. and CBS College Sports Network will televise the game in high-definition.

The lowdown: While Utah leads the overall series 50-31-4, BYU has won three of the last four, including last season's 26-23 overtime victory in Provo. The Cougars have won those three contests by an average margin of four points. Prior to that stretch, the Utes won four-straight meetings from 2002-2005. Utah's last win over BYU was a 48-24 victory at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Nov. 22, 2008. The Cougars' last win in Salt Lake City came in a 33-31 decision on Nov. 25, 2006.

Riding a four-game win streak, BYU (6-5, 5-2) is bowl-eligible following a 40-7 win over New Mexico last weekend in Provo. Cougar RB Joshua Quezada rushed for a career-high 107 yards and a TD on 15 carries against the Lobos. With 258 total rushing yards against UNM, BYU has rushed for over 200 yards in four-straight contests. The Cougars have outscored their last three opponents 93-0 in the first half (vs. UNLV, 38-0; at Colorado State, 35-0; vs. New Mexico, 20-0). In total, BYU has held each of its last three opponents to 10 points or less, marking the first time the program has accomplished that feat since 1984.
 
Utah (9-2, 6-1) is coming off a 38-34 come-from-behind win at San Diego State. With the victory, the Utes have won nine games for the fourth consecutive season. Utah held the Aztecs to 59 rushing yards, including a minus -1 yard in the second half. Overall, the Utes have held six opponents under 100 rushing yards this season. Utah QB Jordan Wynn completed 21-of-33 passes for a career-high 362 yards and 2 TDs against SDSU. Utes PR Shaky Smithson leads the MWC and ranks second in the nation in punt return average (21.1 avg.). In last year's matchup with BYU, Utah RB Eddie Wide carried 21 times for 114 yards and a touchdown.

The insight: James Bates is one of the play-by voices of The Mtn.-MountainWest Sports Network's coverage of Mountain West Conference football. Bates was an All-SEC linebacker at the University of Florida and captain of the Gators' 1996 national championship team. Bates, who also serves as a play-by-play announcer for The Mtn.'s coverage of MWC men's basketball, baseball and softball, will work alongside color analyst Todd Christensen at Saturday's game. Bates spoke with McGrane about the BYU-Utah matchup.

McGrane: A lot of people began questioning Utah's legitimacy after consecutive losses to TCU and Notre Dame. How impressed were you with the resiliency Utah showed in rallying last week at San Diego State?
Bates: To go from being one of the most talked-about teams in the country to losing consecutive games really shocked me, simply because I have so much respect for (coach) Kyle Whittingham and his staff and the way they prepare that team. For them to battle back the way they did, to answer the bell when San Diego State was giving them the game of their lives, was very impressive coming out of the tough run they had been through.

McGrane: How much difference do you see in the BYU team that started 1-4 and the one that's now bowl eligible after winning four in a row and five of its last six?

Bates: This is a team that now once again resembles its head coach. It's been all about Bronco Mendenhall putting his hand back in the pot, so to speak, and once again exerting his influence. As a head coach, you're consumed with so many of the everyday facets of running the program that you can sometimes lose touch. He even admitted (in assuming the defensive coordinator duties in October) that he hasn't had this much fun in years. And that's really showing in his team. When practice is over, I guarantee you that they know they've practiced. But that's the only way he felt he could get them to turn it around. It's been great to watch.

McGrane: You've handled the play-by-play call for this game three times in the past four years. How intense is this rivalry compared to other rivalry games around the country?

Bates: Living where I do in Florida, I'm in the thick of some of the biggest rivalries in the nation in Florida-Georgia and Florida-Florida State. But this rivalry is more intense and more bitter than any of those. The passion of the fans when these teams meet is just incredible. They really don't like each other, but that's what makes it fun.

McGrane: As well as BYU is running the ball, and as efficient as Utah has been stopping the run, is that where the game will be won or lost?

Bates: Without question. With all of the spread offenses you're seeing in college football now, it's not often anymore that you can say that a game is going to be won or lost in the trenches. But there's a true power game with both of these offenses. As much as anything, they both want to establish the run and own the trenches. The team that wins that battle in this game is the team that's going to win, because it's just going to open things up that much more for (Utah quarterback) Jordan Wynn or (BYU quarterback) Jake Heaps.

-Courtesy The MWC.com