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For years, the rivalry game between BYU and the University of Utah as been considered good, but not at an elite level. Other schools like Texas have been featured with their rivalry game over Oklahoma on the national stage. USC’s game against UCLA, Ohio State battling Michigan, even Army vs. Navy have been heralded as top level rivalries.
I think it’s time BYU vs. Utah got national props.
Why? One reason and one reason only: size.
I don’t mean size of the student body, or overall population along the Wasatch Front. I’m talking about the closer proximity of the area surrounding Salt Lake City and Provo.
You can’t go anywhere without running into either a Cougar or Ute fan. You’ll see large BYU flags on the same street as equally large Utah flags. Sometimes they’re right next door. Sometimes, they’re inside the same house.
Besides, this year, I saw something I never thought I would see. In the beginning of the year, I saw Ute fans cheering for the Cougars, and vice versa. It seems like fans on both sides wanted these two teams to go undefeated into rivalry week to have a winner-take-all, “Battle of the Titans” if you will.
Is this rivalry as big as it is in other states? Apples and oranges. However, you can’t say the emotion in Utah for this game is any more subdued than anywhere else in the country.
