PROVO — The Big 12 dealt BYU a tough blow last week. When it opted to stay at 10 teams and decided to pull expansion off of its list of conferences goals, it left the Cougars on the outside of major college football looking in.

Teams in the Big 12, Pac-12, ACC, SEC and Big Ten will continue to bring in more money through enormous television rights deals, and put them in an accelerating arms race of recruiting battles and football facilities. BYU is left either negotiating smaller television rights deals as an independent with ESPN, or joining a group of five conferences, hoping a conference chase and potential New Year’s Six bowl game appearance will fill its financial needs to stay above water until the next shakeup in conference realignment, likely to take place in the mid-2020s.

Neither scenario is ideal for BYU, but it is the reality.

Luckily for BYU, the equation on how to stay relevant as a non-Power 5 team is tried and true, and should be the goal of the program going forward.

The equation is simple: Be cool.

Being cool works in college football, especially for smaller programs, and has worked for well over a decade in helping to right a system filled with wrongs.

In 2004, the University of Utah became cool.

Urban Meyer helped revolutionize the spread offensive system at Utah, and found ways to get his most talented players, most notably Eric Weddle on the field in any way possible. Weddle lined up on offense, defense, and special teams and became a revolutionary player in the Mountain West Conference.

But Meyer knew simply winning games wasn’t enough, the Utes needed flash. In the Bowl Championship Series busting Fiesta Bowl appearance, Meyer’s offense ran a hook and ladder trick play for a touchdown, already leading by three scores. The Utes finished the season with a No. 5 overall ranking, the top non-BCS school in the country.

In 2007, Boise State used the same formula. Led by the arm of Jared Zabransky, the Broncos finished the season undefeated, with the second-highest scoring offense in college football. Like the Utes, the Broncos had a flair for the dramatic, knocking off Oklahoma in their Fiesta Bowl victory using multiple trick plays.

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Boise State proved it belonged in the BCS and started another lively college football debate.

Utah repeated the process in 2008, as did Boise State in 2009, and TCU in 2010.

It hasn’t stopped.

Last year, Houston used the formula en route to a 13-1 season, and a victory in the Peach Bowl over Florida State.

Utah and TCU used the formula to propel themselves into the Pac-12 and the Big 12, while Boise State has carved out a niche as the top group of five program, including this season, where it is ranked as the No. 13 team in the country in the latest AP top 25 rankings.

Houston turned its notoriety into a high-level recruiting class, including five-star defensive tackle Ed Oliver.

The formula for these teams and their magical seasons is usually made up of three simple elements.

1. A high-level head coach.

2. A prolific quarterback.

3. A schedule with high-profile games.

Utah had Urban Meyer and Alex Smith, Boise State had Chris Petersen and Zabransky, TCU had Gary Patterson and Andy Dalton, and Houston has Tom Herman and Greg Ward Jr.

The 2004 Utes knocked off Texas A&M and Arizona early in the season, the 2006 Broncos beat the Utes, the 2010 Horned Frogs beat Oregon State and Baylor, while the 2015 Cougars won an early matchup over Louisville.

In 2017, BYU appears to have the potential for the winning formula.

Kalani Sitake has turned heads in his inaugural season at BYU as head coach, knocking off Arizona, Mississippi State and Michigan State on his way to a 4-4 start. Sitake is off to a promising start.

Tanner Mangum will likely return as the starting QB at BYU after a prolific freshman season. Some Cougar fans are already anticipating the return of a more traditional passer to run Ty Detmer’s offense.

Finally, BYU schedule begins with high-profile games against LSU, Utah and Wisconsin. A series of games, if the Cougars emerge unscathed, will grab the attention of the decision-makers in college football.

The Cougars were dealt a crushing setback by the Big 12 last week, and now must carve out a new path to stay relevant in college football. Looking back at teams that have faced similar odds, BYU knows the formula is to stay cool, and next season, it may have the perfect formula.

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