When I arrived on campus in 2001 as a freshman, I was so excited to be a part of BYU football's bowl game tradition.  In fact, I basically expected the fact that BYU would go to a bowl game every year I was there.  I didn't know that it could be any other way.  What I didn't know as an 18 year old, was how changing the bowl game approach, would change my BYU experience, and my life forever.

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TCU: Tsar of the Mountain West

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This is the introduction of Podcasts to Vanquish the Foe!  I hope this ends up being a good thing for the site.  After you listen to the Podcast, please come back to comment not only about the topic, but also to let us know if this is something worth continuing in the future and how we might be able to improve it. 

Simply click on the link below and...

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Due to travel, frustration, denial and acceptance, I have waited to write about this game.  Now I am further motivated to write about it because of all the conjecture I have been hearing since the blocked field goal.  Is Coach Anae the man for the job?  Is Bronco the difference on our defense?

Don't just read the article, let me know what you think as well.

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Although neither team is playing for the conference championship or the opportunity to play in a BCS bowl game, this game has many great side plots that have the state of Utah chomping at the bit. This game is Rocky IV.  It is the battle of Freedom vs Communism.  Flash vs. Tradition. 

After struggling in a front-loaded season, the Cougars are showing signs of progression late in the year, and secured another bowl trip with their win over New Mexico.  The Utes ate up a bunch of cupcakes to start the year, but have been brought back to reality in the last three weeks after falling hard to the TCU Horned Frogs and Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and escaping with a victory over the San Diego St. Aztecs. They have to win to prove they are as good as they think they are.  BYU has to win to prove that things have turned around for good in Provo.

But this is it.  This weekend ends the rivalry as we know it.

Anyone who thinks that this game will be as intense going forward is fooling themselves.  With BYU and Utah being in the same conference, one of the greatest side plots to the game was that the winner, more often than not, gained at least a share of the conference title (whether in the WAC or MWC).  So the fact that the Utes finally gave in to Big Brother and fled the fight to run to a BCS conference has already taken most of the glamor out of the game. 

Then there is the fact that this marks that last time, at least in the foreseeable future, that the game will be played at the end of the year.  When the game is at the end there is always a lot more on the line.  Look at it this year.  If BYU wins they go to Vegas, if they lose they go to New Mexico.  If Utah wins they salvage a season with high hopes and end up in Vegas.  If they lose they go from being ranked #5 in the nation to #3 in the MWC and probably land in the Poinsettia Bowl.  At the end of the year, you see all the implications of this game and what a win or a loss will do.  But playing it in week 4?  It's just another game.  It's no different than playing against USC, Florida, Miami (you know...the other schools I hate).  A win or a loss is just a win or a loss against a team you don't like.  You don't get to see the immediate impact on the teams respective seasons. 

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This is any early edition of the Know the Foe, as I will be traveling up to Utah on Thursday for the game this weekend.  The thing about this weekend's game is that you really shouldn't even need an introduction to the New Mexico Lobos.  I mean who is there to introduce?  At least the Colorado St. Rams had Sisson to watch, even if the team is terrible (and man what a game Sisson had against the Cougars).  But for the Lobos, it's been more of the same since losing Rocky Long.  

It's really hard to believe that 4 seasons ago this was a 9 win team.  They haven't won 9 games in all the following seasons combined.  In fact they won't reach the combined 9 wins until next season at the earliest (they have won 6 games since 2007).  

So what do Cougar fans have to look forward to this week?

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I couldn't resist sketching out what was I feeling on Saturday

This was another interesting week in the Mountain West and things have been shaken up a little, but no too much, so this week's Power Rankings will be a short and concise report.

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This weekend's matchup against the Colorado St. Rams has a lot of great story lines which may make this game closer than the revitalized Cougar Fan may think.  Going into Fort Collins, has historically been tough for BYU.  Both teams are starting true freshman quarterbacks.  BYU's offense may be without key players.  Both defenses are playing very physical, and are getting better each week.  BYU needs a win to improve case for bowl eligibility.

So how do the two teams really stack up?  And what will the shake out be from tomorrow's game?

No doubt the BYU offense is riding high after last week's drubbing of UNLV.  The offense could do no wrong.  They were a staggering 11-17 on 3rd down and amassed a grand total of 516 yards throughout the game.  They need to carry that momentum into this week's game, and live up to the old adage, "Confident, not cocky!"  They can't read their own press clippings, and need to come out hungry, just as they did against the UNLV Rebels. 

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Just as one controversy is settled another pops up in the Mountain West Conference Power Rankings.  This week saw some great MWC games as teams continue to strive for their individual goals.  For some it is a National Championship game, for others, a winning season, and for some it is simply to win one game (way to go New Mexico).  Nevertheless, I like what I saw this week.  BYU finally does what it needs to do to a lesser team, Utah gets crushed, and San Diego St. continues to win games.  So in the end how did it all shake out?

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While I am not naive enough to actually think that anyone from the BYU football team read my post from yesterday about who needs to have a big game, I had to wonder as I watched the game unfold.  We'll get into the nitty gritty here in a minute, but I'd have to say that everyone I though needed to have a big game delivered and surpassed my expectations.

We also need to address how a TCU victory rounded out a perfect day...

No. 1 - Jake Heaps

Jake came up big and had a great day. People will say that this was a weak defense and a bad team and that is true, but keep this in mind; BYU's offense put up more points, and quicker, than the TCU Horned Frogs, Utah Utes, Nevada Wolf Pack and Wisconsin Badgers. So I'd say Jake Heaps had an exceptional day!

I wanted Jake Heaps to complete over 65% of his passes, throw more TDs than INTs and have a passer rating over 110. Jake's actual stats? Heaps was 19/31 (61%) for 294 yds (season high) and threw 2 TDs. His passer rating? A season best 162.25.

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OK look, we are now 8 games into the season, so whether you are a true freshman, redshirt sophomore, senior with no previous experience, or whatever else you may be, it is time to step up.  8 games into the season, you can't be calling yourself a rookie any more and I am not going to use the excuse that "we are young and inexperienced" anymore.  By this time of year, you need to play like you've been there before.  So looking at the game for tomorrow, who needs to prove their worth as a Cougar?

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If the Rebel aren't careful in practice this week, their mascot (see above) just may have to suit up for the game.  The UNLV Rebels currently have more than a dozen starters out with injury.  An already weak team had been absolutely decimated.  Against the #4 ranked TCU Horned Frogs, UNLV played with 7 true freshmen on defense.  That's all the bad news.  The silver lining is that the young group of Coach Mauck recruits seem to be able to hold their own at times, which could mean that after years of drought Rebel fans may have a glimmer of hope on the horizen.

So what about this week's game in Provo?  Is there something exciting to be seen in Lavell Edwards Stadium?

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With only four weeks left of regular season play only one question remains in the Mountain West Conference, "Who is #1?"  The BYU Cougars took themselves out of the conversation early on.  The Air Force Falcons replaced the Cougars in the "Big 3" before losing on the road to the San Diego St. Aztecs, who would also be in the conversation, except for a road loss to the Cougars in Provo.  That leaves us with only two teams atop the Mountain; The Utah Utes and the TCU Horned Frogs.

The easy way to solve the question is to watch the game in Salt Lake with the College Game Day crowd, but where's the fun in looking back, when you can predict the future?  That is what I will attempt to do here tonight.  But even after Saturday's match up of the unbeatens, the San Diego St. Aztecs remain a wild card that neither Utah or TCU have faced.

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For BYU Cougar fans, today is a slow day with the Cougars being idle.  So what games around the conference are going to be the best to watch today?

At 2pm EST you can watch the San Diego St. Aztecs take on the Wyoming Cowboys.  This should not be much of a game, but a win for the Aztecs will secure their first bowl game bid since 1993. That also means securing their first non-losing season, in as much time.  As a San Diegan, I am looking forward to seeing just a little SDSU success.

But the real game of interest today is...

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With a bye this week the BYU coaches will be able to get out for that all so important mid-season recruiting trip.  While coaches are not allowed to formally contact players in person on these trips, I can remember many "chance" encounters with college coaches during my junior and senior year of high school. 

After practices wrap up today the coaches will be heading out onto recruiting trail so I thought I would offer up some of my views on recruiting in general and specifically at BYU.

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As the BYU Cougars took on the Wyoming Cowboys today in Provo, the weather was ugly.  The fans didn't fill the stadium for the first time in a while (probably due to weather). And while the game was a victory for the Cougars, it did not come in the most beautiful fashion.  There were however, many positives that I was able to take away from the game today.  Even amidst the penalties, dropped passes and late scores I have never been this encouraged about the future of BYU football.

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I just have to write something about this.  This week in the NFL there were unprecedented fines handed out for "illegal hits" to offensive players.  The fines were absolutely outrageous and in some cases unwarranted.  The three fines handed out totaled $175,000 dollars.  Of the three I only saw one that should have been deemed illegal. But if the current criteria were handed down to the NCAA players, I would have to ask myself, "How much scholarship money would Andrew Rich have to give up for some of his vicious hits?"  I don't think Andrew Rich makes dirty hits, just like I don't think the fines against Dunta Robinson and James Harrison were fair.  But the reality is that the NFL is trying to change the way the game is taught and played, and that will impact college and high school in the very near future.

What I don't like about these changes to the rules in place in place in the NFL is that they are becoming more and more one sided.  Kind of like a LB getting flagged for a face mask, but a RB can (or at least it never gets called) stiff arm a defender right in the face mask without incident.

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BATTLE OF THE BEATENS!  This game pairs two equally matched teams...wait.  Did I really just write that about a BYU v Wyoming game?  Really?  This is the first time in the Bronco Era that a Wyoming v BYU game is even relevant.  The last time you could argue that this game mattered was a 55-7 loss by the Wyoming Cowoys back in 2006.  That game was only relevant because on defense we had to listen to all the media and Wyoming players brag that they had the #1 defense in the country and in the conference.  A Nate Meikle kickoff return to the 1 on the first play of the game followed by a Curtis Brown TD on the next play started the end of the talk about the Pokes being relevant.

The time before that was a year earlier when we beat Wyoming to guarantee 6 wins and a bowl game.  But it's not like anyone was nervous about winning that game.  So I guess they have only been relevant to BYU in the fact that they give us a sure win, when we need one.  But this year just feels a little different.

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This one's for you McGrubber.  I have been trying to avoid writing this as I don't want my passions to flood the article, as one San Diego St. Aztec sportswriter did after BYU's victory two weeks ago. 

While I will give you my thoughts to prove that I am not depressed, this article may jump around just a tad and focus more on what this dismissal says about our team, and not just O'Neill.

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Yesterday was another tough day for the BYU Cougars as they took on the #4 TCU Horned Frogs.  The BYU offense was held to just one score for the third straight year and the defense surrendered 30+ points for the third straight year.  The most important stat of all though is of course, the third straight BYU loss to the Horned Frogs.  

As I watched the game unfold I found myself being quite frustrated at missed opportunities and blown assignments.  I noticed that everything I wanted to say about the game was going to be negative, so rather than demean the team that is searching for identity and weekly progress, I decided to forgo a post game analysis and take a look at where we are 7 games into a "rebuilding year."

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The BYU Football has done it again.  However, this week's Thursday's Hero has a much broader affect.  Usually on Thursday's the football team welcomes in a family who has a member who is afflicted with some sort of illness, trial or disease.  This week however the BYU Cougars welcomed in the Wimmer family.  ALL of whom are afflicted with a genetic disorder called Neurofibromatosis type I (NF-1). 

To try and write an article about this family would not do any justice.  So I have included in here the letter Coach Mendenhall received from Mrs. Wimmer before coming to campus yesterday.

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What a great game.  So great in fact that it took me more than 24 hours of celebration and 4 replays of the game before I could believe everything that I saw yesterday.  Other than the traditional blue and white uniforms, there was nothing the same about the team that played yesterday.  The drastic change that took place last Saturday with the firing of assistant coach, Jaime Hill, sparked a wave of tweeks and adjustments all throughout the BYU Cougar football.  Unfortunately for the San Diego St. Aztecs, they were the opponent who had to deal with them all. 

On at least two occasions this week in San Diego head coach, Brady Hoke was quoted as saying "BYU is a wounded bear, and I don't like wounded bears."  Although I would have preferred him use the term wounded cougar for obvious reasons, I liked the analogy, and that is how the Cougars played.

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It was a nail biter but a great win today.  I plan on going more in depth tomorrow on my post game analysis (after I watch the game about 4 more times) but for now I needed to get a few things off my chest, to end a great day.  Reading the chatroom garbage that was connected to the blog this week along with all the radio shows here in San Diego spoon feeding SDSU a win in this one had me really riled up for another Cougar victory over the Aztecs in conference.  It may not have been a battle between juggernauts, but it was yet another win over SDSU...a team who decided to remove BYU from their schedule from here on out even though every other year our fans account for probably half their football ticket revenue, in just one game.

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Great start so far!

Jamie Hill was fired, the BYU Cougars are 1-4 for the first time since 1973, our offense is averaging just over 2 TDs a game while our defense is giving up 4 TDs a game, so what about this week's matchup has me sitting on the edge of my seat and feeling an excitement and encouragement that I have been lacking since our 35-14 loss to the Air Force Falcons?

Bronco is back in the saddle!

This week will pit student vs. teacher as Bronco Mendehall works to turnaround a defense in 1 weeks time, while Rocky Long finally has his San Diego St. Aztecs defense firing on all cylinders.  I could not be more excited for a football game!

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In my time with the BYU Cougars I was able to be around coach Jaime Hill for 2 seasons.  In those two seasons coach Hill taught me a lot about football and prepared me very well for my coverage assignments each week, even though he was not my position coach.  I admired the man for his wealth of knowledge and his ability to transfer that knowledge to his players.  

While it was surprising to me so see coach Bronco Mendenhall take such a drastic step, especially mid year, it may not be as much about blaming coach Hill as we think.  It may be that he was just not cut out for the job as a defensive coordinator.  

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