Are we happy?

[byu71]

Maybe you suffer from flashbacks in your old age, but your response has absolutely nothing to do with what I just said. I have no idea why you're bringing Washington, Oklahoma or 1-AA teams into this conversation. I'm talking about our conference opponents.

The 2009 version of the MWC is substantially better than the 1980 WAC or 1983 WAC or 1984 WAC or 1996 WAC. Every year has stinkers, but it used be that virtually no one in the conference was in the top 10, let alone top 20. That has been a regular occurrence the last few years.

If you would like to argue that those old WAC conferences were better than 2009 MWC, feel free to make your case. I look forward to you not completely changing the subject.

Go ahead and argue it. We have been this route before and you didn't convince me then and you won't convince me now. Even if you were right, what does that have to do with the conference schedule being crappy now.

If diahrea is bad now, I guess you would just point out it was worse during the dark ages. Geez, thanks now it does't feel so bad.

[JohnnyLingo]

What about improvement beyond going 10-2 in the MWC, Indy? Is it entirely unreasonable to want the team to move to another conference and do well there?

If we were going 10-2 in the Big 10, I'd be a bit more impressed.

[byu71]

I don't know what the hell the greenie guy means. That one has always confused me.

I think smilie guy with some emotion. Not sure though.

[Indy Coug]

Go ahead and argue it. We have been this route before and you didn't convince me then and you won't convince me now. Even if you were right, what does that have to do with the conference schedule being crappy now.

If diahrea is bad now, I guess you would just point out it was worse during the dark ages. Geez, thanks now it does't feel so bad.

Because there isn't an effing thing we can do about our conference schedule. If our conference schedule is going to keep someone from enjoying BYU football, then they probably need to move on and find another team.

[Indy Coug]

Is it entirely unreasonable to want the team to move to another conference and do well there?

Yes it is entirely unreasonable. You can see what decades of wanting to upgrade our conference affiliation has done for us, right?

No one has offered us membership in their conference. We don't control our own destiny when it comes to conference affiliation. BYU has made it perfectly clear they are more than willing to contemplate conference re-affiliation, yet that has produced exactly zero suitors.

[jay santos]

Because there isn't an effing thing we can do about our conference schedule. If our conference schedule is going to keep someone from enjoying BYU football, then they probably need to move on and find another team.

So are you saying your excitement level the last two weeks has been very high because we're having a good season and the fact we're playing UNLV and SDSU has no impact on your enjoyment?

[JohnnyLingo]

Yes it is entirely unreasonable. You can see what decades of wanting to upgrade our conference affiliation has done for us, right?

No one has offered us membership in their conference. We don't control our own destiny when it comes to conference affiliation. BYU has made it perfectly clear they are more than willing to contemplate conference re-affiliation, yet that has produced exactly zero suitors.

Then within the realm of "moving to a better conference will never, ever happen," sure, I guess I feel better about going 10-2 on a consistent basis.

[Indy Coug]

So are you saying your excitement level the last two weeks has been very high because we're having a good season and the fact we're playing UNLV and SDSU has no impact on your enjoyment?

When I see the defense only allow one sustained TD drive, intercept 3 passes

When I see the offense rack up 300 yards passing and 300 yards rushing and score 59 points

When I see a 97 yard KO return

When I see numerous contributions from numerous players

When I see about 6 or 7 plays on offense of 25 yards or more

When I see BYU answer UNLV's attempts at keeping the game competitive with TD drives

When I see the back ups get in for a whole quarter and make plays

When I see BYU running new offensive plays for TDs that exploit teams' anticipation of what we've done in the past (the fake WR screen, TD pass to Pitta)

When I see no one on Cougarboard or CUF bitching about this mistake or that mistake and act as if a 19 point win is a loss


I find plenty of enjoyment, yes.

[byu71]

Because there isn't an effing thing we can do about our conference schedule. If our conference schedule is going to keep someone from enjoying BYU football, then they probably need to move on and find another team.

Do you have to bring that CB mentality over here. No criticizing, no whining, just rah rah rah or get your butt outa here.

I am happy. Not happy enough to drive to Provo anymore and watch USU. Do I now also have to go find another team? To tell you the truth, watching the crap games at home sitting on my butt like you, I don't care as much who they play in LES either.

[jay santos]

When I see the defense only allow one sustained TD drive, intercept 3 passes

When I see the offense rack up 300 yards passing and 300 yards rushing and score 59 points

When I see a 97 yard KO return

When I see numerous contributions from numerous players

When I see about 6 or 7 plays on offense of 25 yards or more

When I see BYU answer UNLV's attempts at keeping the game competitive with TD drives

When I see the back ups get in for a whole quarter and make plays

When I see BYU running new offensive plays for TDs that exploit teams' anticipation of what we've done in the past (the fake WR screen, TD pass to Pitta)

When I see no one on Cougarboard or CUF bitching about this mistake or that mistake and act as if a 19 point win is a loss


I find plenty of enjoyment, yes.

Did you stay up to watch the whole game? I'm two hours ahead of you and I fell asleep in the 3rd quarter. If you asked me this morning, I would have had a hard time telling you who we even play on Saturday. "I know it's away and it's somebody shitty but not exactly sure."

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

I will open myself up a little here, and feel free to punch away afterwards. This is one of the things that over the last 10 years has put Oregon ahead of BYU in my personal following.

With BYU once you get past the 1-2 interesting OOC games, you have very few things to get excited about. The conference outside of BYU, Utah, TCU and Wyoming just isn't fun to watch. Other than to keep up with my friends from CUF and my brothers, I have NO interest in BYU/New Mexico or Utah/SDSU etc. These games are more often boring than not, and if the team I am cheering for loses it is really pathetic and sad.

I know it sounds like a homer, and honestly it pains me a little to admit this outside of a confidential counseling session. It is hard when the worst opponent on my home town team's schedule would be a marquee opponent on BYU's schedule every year.

[Goatnapper'96]

Like smoky says, it's all about progress. I'd take a program that moved up and down and went undefeated every four years to one that went 10-2 every single year.

But at the same time, a 10-win BYU next season is a team to be excited about. Brand-new quarterback exceeding expectations (Hall circa 2007), for example, would be fun to watch.

I think that if one is 10-2 every year the undefeated seasons will come. The difference between 10-2 and 12-0 is frequently breaks and/or luck. I believe one makes their own luck and that good consistent football will eventually bring an undefeated year. That BYU team in 2006 was a good football team and I genuinely believe if that hadn't been the coaching staff's second season and there was some legitimate confidence in the program, like today, that club would go undefeated.

I agree that exceeding expectations is funner, but the fact that expectations are for 10 wins is a sign of a lot of good things.

I still maintain that the reason many are pulling string, to the extent they are, is Utah's 2 BCS shadow. It isn't so much that BYU isn't good it is just that BYU fans don't have the leverage to match the Utes best.

[JohnnyLingo]

I agree that exceeding expectations is funner, but the fact that expectations are for 10 wins is a sign of a lot of good things.

I still maintain that the reason many are pulling string, to the extent they are, is Utah's 2 BCS shadow. It isn't so much that BYU isn't good it is just that BYU fans don't have the leverage to match the Utes best.

Both excellent points. I admit Utah's success makes me less satisfied with 10-win seasons.

[Donuthole]

It is hard when the worst opponent on my home town team's schedule would be a marquee opponent on BYU's schedule every year.

Utah is only a marquee opponent because they are our rival. They weren't even ranked two weeks ago!

[TheBYUGuy]

If we were going 10-2 in the Big 10, I'd be a bit more impressed.

But after a few years of being 10-2 you'd be bored because they would still never be in a BCS game. Just the same ol' Big 10 schedule and a second tier bowl game.