SALT LAKE CITY — It's a key word for the BYU football program, practically on par with putting points on the scoreboard and winning games.

Exposure.

BYU administrators and coach Bronco Mendenhall speak of it constantly, almost always beating it into the ground before the faithful, as if the flock needed any more convincing. It's enough to make an impartial observer wonder if the purpose of BYU football is to make the games available to every nether region of the world.

Given inconvenient time differences and sometimes non-competitive opponents, it's legitimate to wonder how many people actually watch the games. It's 5 o'clock somewhere, but not always at game time on a Saturday.

But only the biggest critic could argue BYU was wrong to jump the Mountain West to be an independent in football. It was a no-brainer, even if the final home game each season will be played late on frigid November nights, forcing every senior to immediately put his Senior Blanket to good use.

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Finally, the BYU-Utah rivalry is worth loving

How many schools not in the same conference have a rivalry that matches BYU vs. Utah? Certainly nobody in the West comes close.

In an interesting twist, the desire for greater exposure could ultimately doom one of the country's best rivalries.

Due in part to the desire for more exposure, the University of Utah announced in July that it will take a two-year hiatus with BYU. Instead, the Utes will play a home-and-home series with Michigan.

After this Saturday and next season, the two fierce rivals won't play in 2014-15. Beyond the game scheduled for 2016, the rivalry's future could be in serious jeopardy.

In the name of exposure, Utah may not want to sign another contract with the Cougars. Apparently, even though the Utah athletic director has labeled BYU as a premier opponent, Chris Hill doesn't think the Cougars provide enough exposure.

Little ol' BYU is too parochial for the big-time Pac-12 team. Speaking to the Salt Lake Tribune last Friday, Hill said Utah has to keep pace with the big boys.

Said Hill: "A recruit might see Oregon playing Tennessee, then see us playing Michigan and go, ‘Oh, OK. Utah is there.'"

It's worth noting that Hill made his comments before the Utes lost to Utah State in Logan, a location he has said Utah probably won't visit again.

Looking at the future of the rivalry, the debate has become this: Is it better for Utah to play BYU or schedule a national brand like Michigan?

What do you think?

From my perspective, the Utes are in a better spot than BYU. They already have what the Cougars so desperately crave.

While BYU continues to travel around the country to push its brand, the Utes will get more than enough attention through their association with the Pac-12. It's all right there for them, either by walking from the football offices across the street or taking a 90-minute airplane ride.

Most any two years, Utah will play a home-and-home series with Oregon and USC, two teams that have squatter's rights in the top five of every national poll. And most likely, as we saw last Saturday during impressive wins by Oregon State, UCLA and both Arizona schools, one or more other Pac-12 teams will make their way into the Top 25 every year.

GAME WEEK:

BYU at Utah, Cougars edition

BYU will hit the road for the first time in 2012 to take on the Utah Utes on Saturday, Sep. 15 in the Deseret First Duel rivalry game.

The point is, Utah doesn't need to a three-hour plane trip in search of greater exposure. It's all right there, every year.

What are the tangible benefits of playing Michigan? It's doubtful that five-star recruits from the Eastern time zone would flock to Salt Lake City just because the Wolverines are on the schedule for two years.

It's just as easy to argue that potential players from Utah's recruiting base - the Mountain and Pacific times - would get a bigger charge out of playing BYU every season. With BYU on the schedule, Utah joins an extremely rare group of college teams that have multiple fierce rivals.

And there's also the issue of actually beating one of these national programs that Utah can now schedule because of conference affiliation. Losing to Michigan twice impresses no one. When is the last time Utah lost consecutive games to BYU?

As it stands, Hill is using the Pac-12's nine-game schedule as a reason to do eliminate or limit games with BYU and Utah State. The nine-game slate, which guarantees playing nationally ranked opponents every season, is exactly why BYU should be on the schedule annually.

There's no need to risk getting smoked by some team on the other side of the country. The better opportunity to beat BYU pays the same dividends and creates more chances of success in the conference.

As newcomers to the conference of champions, Utah officials seem intent on pleasing every whim of Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott. Speaking before Utah's season-opener, Scott raved about his membership willing to play tough schedules.

"Our schools tend to like those kind of games," Scott said. "Our conference has a tradition of playing tough competition."

And except for USC's annual game with Notre Dame, no other Pac-12 team has an attention-grabbing non-conference rival like Utah has with BYU. The Holy War always demands a piece of the national spotlight.

Their neighbors provide all that Utah needs. If Scott had any grasp of tradition, he'd push for the game to continue.

In truth, Utah's exposure already is at an all-time level. If more exposure is the goal, BYU ought to be the program dropping the in-state schools.

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