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SALT LAKE CITY — Do you prefer “Rivalry Week"?
I don’t mean, do you like the BYU-Utah matchup more than other games during the year, but do you like describing the state’s favorite game as “Rivalry Week” instead of “The Holy War”?
Six years ago, in an effort to promote more civility between rival fan bases, we received a companywide email that encouraged us to lose the term “The Holy War”.
It pops up all the time in both local and national media. I noticed that Yahoo couldn’t jump on it fast enough, both in their headline “Holy War between BYU and Utah tops Pac-12 marquee," and story body, “The Holy War is one of the nastiest rivalries in the country.”
Losing the term from my lexicon was difficult for me. I think it’s funny.
First of all, I grew up in Utah and always loved the rivalry and its traditions. In fact, three of my five favorite life moments involve the rivalry game — and as Alex Kirry likes to point out, I have four children. It’s hard for me when tradition gets sent packing. I don’t like conference changes, hiatuses, or losing terms of endearment. I know some people get offended when games get likened to wars or players to soldiers, but my feeling is that nobody is actually getting the two confused. We know what a soldier does and what a football player does not. It’s a figure of speech meant to entertain. Let’s not read too deeply into this.
If you hate the name of the game, here’s some other Wiki-research matchups that will drive you bonkers:
Oregon vs. Oregon St. is the “Civil War” where neither the Union nor Confederate Armies are involved.
Middle Tennessee vs. Western Kentucky is “100 Miles of Hate” where way more than 100 miles are involved.
Alabama vs. Auburn is the “Iron Bowl” where there’s no actual smelting involved.
Utah vs. Utah State is the “Battle of the Brothers” where the brothers are actually on the same team, and love each other (ex. Ali’ifuas, Whimpeys, Vigils and Lotuleleis).
And if nothing else, “The Holy War” is a heck of a lot easier to say. Just see the video above as broadcast professionals gobble marbles. By the way, they are not actually gobbling marbles; it’s a figure of speech.
