Rivalry

[NashvilleUteFan]

There seems to be a sentiment from a good portion of both fan bases that the rivalry has turned too nasty and that it has taken all the fun out of the game.

There is also the sentiment among many Utah fans that we’d rather not play TDS ever again. I couldn’t disagree more with either of those takes.

Rivalries are a huge part of what makes college football great, and conference realignment has screwed up a lot of historic rivalries and I actually saw the reigniting of our rivalry as the only positive of joining the big 12. I love the intensity of it, the nastiness, the banter back and forth (minus the inappropriate personal attacks on character), the bragging rights, and everything that comes with it. They so poo poo, the max hall tirade, fans rushing the field during the game, ADs publicly condemning refs, dramatic endings, close finishes. Give me all of it. I know I’m in the minority but that’s how I feel about it. I hated when we stopped playing them every year. And although I hope to get out of the big 12 as quickly as possible for a lot of the same reasons many of you have expressed on this board, for me it’s not to get away from TDS.

In fact, if we do leave the big 12 in the next round of realignment I hope we can preserve the rivalry and go back to playing every year no matter what. Downvote away!

[NashvilleUteFan]

I will add that I am not from Utah and didn’t grow up here which may be part of the reason why I have a different perspective. I also was only 7 years old in 2004 when the tide started to turn in our favor in the rivalry, so I didn’t have to suffer through all those years of constant losing.

[Tony (admin)]

We had developed a very good rivalry with USC. That was really fun, especially since they out-recruit us by a long shot. I was happy with that, and even Oregon. We have had a good back and forth with them as well.

[NashvilleUteFan]

I 100% agree with you Tony. I am bummed we don’t get to play either of those teams every year anymore, especially USC. But there’s something about TDS’s fan base that makes our rivalry different. My interactions with them have been for the most part horrible and I kinda like it, that’s how it should be.

[2008 National Champ]

The rivalries with Oregon and Washington were born out of hard, fair play on the field and our fanbase interacting with theirs as equals and not with an axe to grind. I can’t count the number of times someone from those fanbases told me that they were surprised I didn’t act like BYU fan. I know they meant it as complimentary but it was also disheartening that the bar was set so low.

If you tell me playing the parochial school every year will produce great games like Saturday on a consistent basis, you can almost convince me to sign up. That is until I remember everything that went on before and after that game. The parochial school rivalry has been unhealthy for decades – both sides are equally responsible – and didn’t get any better with the time off. I’m at the point in my life where I no longer seek out conflict because I’m unhappy with my place in the universe and don’t really want to seek out those types who still are.

[RoboUte]

BYU thinks the rivalry is too nasty because they won and the people who are p**sed are on the other side. You won’t see a fraction of that when it doesn’t go their way. The “too nasty” business an attempt at grabbing moral high ground when you don’t personally have anything to bitch about.

I also don’t think it’s become too nasty. The nastier and more competitive it gets the more BYU, its, staff, fans, and players relax their … various standards to win football games. I love to watch their fall from grace in the name of sports, and they’re already well along the way. Someday when we’re way down the line I’ll smile when they’re everything they used to hate, because then Utah will have won more than just the head to head. Who has time for a higher calling when touchdowns are on the line anyway.

[Jim Vanderhoof]

The biggest problem with the rivalry is it spills over in to our everyday life. Other rivalrys don’t have to wake up with their rivalry flags next door.

[Rick Walker]

Part of what really does make this rivalry so toxic is the religious undertones. byu is 95+ percent lds in their fanbase and because they are literally directly associated with the church all the other people who grow up in Utah and aren’t lds are automatically Utah fans. This in turns makes some of those people really who really hate the church for whatever personal reason hate byu more than they maybe deserve, and the feelings are easily reciprocated both ways.

One of the best things about not playing byu is that it’s easy to be happy for my friends that are byu friends instead of worrying about how it affects Utah’s season

[SteelUte]

Under Bronco it was easy to root for them to have their bus drive into a ditch and miss every game. I hated them, I hated their holier than thou “we’re God’s team doing God’s mission here on this green turf mentality”. Unfortunately many of their fans still have that mentality. I like Coach Sitake, I like Coach Hill, I like Coach A Rod. I have nothing against most of their players, because I don’t know most of their players. I honestly prefer not being in their conference and just playing every few years. It keeps things friendlier. I really feel that this rivalry is fed by local media. They eat it up, it makes their job so easy. If I could vote, I’d honestly say play them every four years.

[NashvilleUteFan]

That’s a good point about the coaching staff. The Bronco regime was insufferable. I guess there’s a sick part of me that likes the vitriol. The religious stuff can get out of hand and it’s a weird dynamic that other big rivalries doesn’t have at all. That I could do without.

[The Miami Ute]

I prefer never to play BYU ever again. I’m widely traveled and god-damned if this rivalry doesn’t remind me of the Catholic/Protestant divide in Northern Ireland. BYU has its flags and murals and so do we…it’s just too personal and, unlike other rivalries I’ve been part of, you can’t get away from it. I mean, the cul-de-sac I live in is split between BYU and Utah grads…so yeah, if we never play BYU ever again I won’t be sad…

[Roy Rangum]

I like the rivalry with BYU too and want to keep it.

Why? Because it’s not just another game to either team or fanbase. It’s a game that no matter what else is going on, we care about it, and they care about it too.

This year has sucked, but if we had won the BYU game, I could have ended the season feeling warm and cozy that at least we took care of BYU. (And how great would it have been to beat BYU during one of our crappiest years while this has been one of their best years?)

While losing on Saturday was probably the most angry and unhappy I have ever been after a game, I felt those feelings because the game mattered to me, and I desperately wanted Utah to win.

I would like to continue playing games that matter, no matter the outcome. So bring on BYU every year. We won’t win them all, but heaven help me, I will love and relish every win we get over those guys.

[Author]

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