The Brigham Young Cougars have been at the forefront of both the Big XII and Big East conference expansion talks this fall. It was a major disappointment when BYU was left out of the conference realignment changes in 2010. That disappointment quickly dissipated when BYU announced it would become a college football independent in 2011.
The move was a bold one and would present several challenges, but the movement quickly picked up steam among the Cougar faithful. The outlook was bright, and there was great confidence that independence was the right choice for BYU football.
Then conference realignment resurfaced late in the summer of 2011. The Big XII had spurned BYU the year before, but was now showing what appeared to be genuine interest in the Cougars. After that fizzled, not once but twice, the Big East came along and made serious overtures. It seemed that, one way or another, BYU would finally find its way into a BCS automatic qualifying (AQ) conference. Then, the Big East talks stopped almost as abruptly as they started, at least it felt that way.
Yesterday, BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe appeared on the “BYU Football with Head Coach Bronco Mendenhall” show and spoke about the conference realignment situation. He confirmed that the Big East and BYU reached an impasse over TV rights. He clarified that the level of interest shown by the Big XII wasn’t as high as BYU fans were led to believe.
The double denial, again, by BCS AQ conferences has been hard to take. With not even one complete football season in the books, independence has lost a lot of its luster. That once sunny forecast has changed to one full of dark clouds and rainy days, in the eyes of many.
Is independence destined for doom? Was seeing the move to independence as the right choice the wrong assessment?
My response to these questions will involve examples from the scriptures. Before some of you stop reading, let me say that I understand that blending BYU football and religion is distasteful for some. If you choose to stop reading, I understand. Please don’t let this stop you from returning to the site. BLUE COUGAR FOOTBALL sticks strictly to football over 99% of the time. While over 500 posts have been made on the site over the past two years, I can only remember three times that religion has been blended in.
This situation with BYU and independence is not unlike many situations we have all gone through in life. A big part of life is making decisions. Most are made without much thought about the consequences. Often, there is a clear right and wrong choice to the decisions we face. Sometimes, a big decision comes along, and the right choice is hard to discern. The consequences of the decision can’t clearly be identified.
We contemplate these big decisions, and eventually reach a decision that we feel is right. We even get excited about our choice and the future it holds. Not too long after making the decision, we hit turbulent waters. We are put to the test. Will we stick to what we felt was right, or will we fold in the face of adversity?
Moses and Nephi faced a similar test.
Moses "saw God face to face, and he talked with him, and the glory of God was upon Moses" (Moses 1:2). God said and showed Moses things that made him feel the right thing to do was to worship God. Shortly after Moses finished talking with God, he faced a test.
"And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth. And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: … And it came to pass that when Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me" (Moses 1:9-10, 12).
Nephi wanted to know if the things his father was teaching were true. "Wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father" (1 Nephi 2:16). Not only did the Lord visit Nephi, he spoke to him and made great promises (see 1 Nephi 2:19-24).
Nephi’s test came right after speaking to the Lord. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father. And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem" (1 Nephi 3:1-2).
Moses and Nephi didn’t back track, but moved forward with what they felt was right.
I am not promising BYU fans that sticking with independence guarantees the same results as these two scriptural examples, but the parallels do provide one more angle to view what has become a somewhat murky situation.
Moses and Nephi had incredible experiences that led to their conviction of what was right. BYU football had some incredible things happen once it declared independence.
The Cougars signed an unprecedented television contract with ESPN. A long-term deal with Notre Dame was signed. A home-and-home with the Texas Longhorns was announced. The 2010 season finished with BYU riding an enormous wave of momentum. New coaches were added to the staff, with each of them possessing a tremendous upside. Surprisingly, BYU was able to find bowl agreements for the first three years of independence. Elite high school prospects Tanner Mangum and Troy Hinds committed to play at the Y. As the season neared, ESPN made it clear it would far exceed the guaranteed minimums in the contract for number of games broadcast on ESPN.
After Moses and Nephi’s experiences concluded, they were tested to see if they would stick with their convictions. After one year of buildup, BYU finally kicked off the first year of independence. The incredible events stopped happening.
The offense wasn’t as explosive as expected. The learning curve for the new coaches was harsher than expected. Two early losses were heartbreaking. ESPN started scheduling games late at night. For BYU, especially the fans, independence wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
During this trying season, BYU has had opportunities to go back to being a part of a conference. They weren’t the most attractive offers. It has been easy to look at these conference offers and say, "Who cares if they aren't attractive? Those incredible events feel so distant. They didn't materialize to anything great on the field. BYU should just ditch independence, cut its losses, and join take the best offer it has."
Independence may not be working out exactly the way we all wanted, but it is far too early to make any judgements about it. As Moroni taught, “faith is things hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith” (Ether 12:6).
The 2011 season has been a trial of faith for BYU and its fan base. We all hoped for a memorable season to jumpstart independence. It would have provided a witness that the move to independence was right, and sticking to independence would be better than joining the Big XII or Big East.
It may be hard right now, but let’s all stay loyal, strong, and true to our independent Cougars of BYU.
The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootball@gmail.com
The move was a bold one and would present several challenges, but the movement quickly picked up steam among the Cougar faithful. The outlook was bright, and there was great confidence that independence was the right choice for BYU football.
Then conference realignment resurfaced late in the summer of 2011. The Big XII had spurned BYU the year before, but was now showing what appeared to be genuine interest in the Cougars. After that fizzled, not once but twice, the Big East came along and made serious overtures. It seemed that, one way or another, BYU would finally find its way into a BCS automatic qualifying (AQ) conference. Then, the Big East talks stopped almost as abruptly as they started, at least it felt that way.
Yesterday, BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe appeared on the “BYU Football with Head Coach Bronco Mendenhall” show and spoke about the conference realignment situation. He confirmed that the Big East and BYU reached an impasse over TV rights. He clarified that the level of interest shown by the Big XII wasn’t as high as BYU fans were led to believe.
The double denial, again, by BCS AQ conferences has been hard to take. With not even one complete football season in the books, independence has lost a lot of its luster. That once sunny forecast has changed to one full of dark clouds and rainy days, in the eyes of many.
Is independence destined for doom? Was seeing the move to independence as the right choice the wrong assessment?
My response to these questions will involve examples from the scriptures. Before some of you stop reading, let me say that I understand that blending BYU football and religion is distasteful for some. If you choose to stop reading, I understand. Please don’t let this stop you from returning to the site. BLUE COUGAR FOOTBALL sticks strictly to football over 99% of the time. While over 500 posts have been made on the site over the past two years, I can only remember three times that religion has been blended in.
This situation with BYU and independence is not unlike many situations we have all gone through in life. A big part of life is making decisions. Most are made without much thought about the consequences. Often, there is a clear right and wrong choice to the decisions we face. Sometimes, a big decision comes along, and the right choice is hard to discern. The consequences of the decision can’t clearly be identified.
We contemplate these big decisions, and eventually reach a decision that we feel is right. We even get excited about our choice and the future it holds. Not too long after making the decision, we hit turbulent waters. We are put to the test. Will we stick to what we felt was right, or will we fold in the face of adversity?
Moses and Nephi faced a similar test.
Moses "saw God face to face, and he talked with him, and the glory of God was upon Moses" (Moses 1:2). God said and showed Moses things that made him feel the right thing to do was to worship God. Shortly after Moses finished talking with God, he faced a test.
"And the presence of God withdrew from Moses, that his glory was not upon Moses; and Moses was left unto himself. And as he was left unto himself, he fell unto the earth. And it came to pass that it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: … And it came to pass that when Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me" (Moses 1:9-10, 12).
Nephi wanted to know if the things his father was teaching were true. "Wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father" (1 Nephi 2:16). Not only did the Lord visit Nephi, he spoke to him and made great promises (see 1 Nephi 2:19-24).
Nephi’s test came right after speaking to the Lord. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father. And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem" (1 Nephi 3:1-2).
Moses and Nephi didn’t back track, but moved forward with what they felt was right.
I am not promising BYU fans that sticking with independence guarantees the same results as these two scriptural examples, but the parallels do provide one more angle to view what has become a somewhat murky situation.
Moses and Nephi had incredible experiences that led to their conviction of what was right. BYU football had some incredible things happen once it declared independence.
The Cougars signed an unprecedented television contract with ESPN. A long-term deal with Notre Dame was signed. A home-and-home with the Texas Longhorns was announced. The 2010 season finished with BYU riding an enormous wave of momentum. New coaches were added to the staff, with each of them possessing a tremendous upside. Surprisingly, BYU was able to find bowl agreements for the first three years of independence. Elite high school prospects Tanner Mangum and Troy Hinds committed to play at the Y. As the season neared, ESPN made it clear it would far exceed the guaranteed minimums in the contract for number of games broadcast on ESPN.
After Moses and Nephi’s experiences concluded, they were tested to see if they would stick with their convictions. After one year of buildup, BYU finally kicked off the first year of independence. The incredible events stopped happening.
The offense wasn’t as explosive as expected. The learning curve for the new coaches was harsher than expected. Two early losses were heartbreaking. ESPN started scheduling games late at night. For BYU, especially the fans, independence wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
During this trying season, BYU has had opportunities to go back to being a part of a conference. They weren’t the most attractive offers. It has been easy to look at these conference offers and say, "Who cares if they aren't attractive? Those incredible events feel so distant. They didn't materialize to anything great on the field. BYU should just ditch independence, cut its losses, and join take the best offer it has."
Independence may not be working out exactly the way we all wanted, but it is far too early to make any judgements about it. As Moroni taught, “faith is things hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith” (Ether 12:6).
The 2011 season has been a trial of faith for BYU and its fan base. We all hoped for a memorable season to jumpstart independence. It would have provided a witness that the move to independence was right, and sticking to independence would be better than joining the Big XII or Big East.
It may be hard right now, but let’s all stay loyal, strong, and true to our independent Cougars of BYU.
The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootball@gmail.com
I have felt the same way about BYU's independence. It has worked hard to get what it has by way of TV rights and exposure, things it was denied by the MWC/Comcast deal. There's no good reason for BYU to give it all up just to dive into a BCS conference where it may find itself without the same kind of TV deal. Patience is a virtue. BYU is exercising it even though many of its fans are not. I have to admit, all this conference realignment talk and activity has really dampened the 2011 college football season. And, of course, it would have been nice for BYU to win at least ONE of the big games on its schedule - especially with Utah at home. (I think the Utah loss did more than anything to fuel the BYU fan BCS envy as we have to watch Utah fly through the Pac-12 South . . . although its loss to Colorado on Saturday falls in the sweet category.) (Was Ole Miss really a "big game"? Yes, it was big to win that on the road, but Ole Miss is an SEC bottom feeder.) The ridiculous ongoing QB controversy has not helped, either. Hopefully, BYU will get a big win this weekend at Hawaii and finish with a bowl victory. That will go a long way to helping BYU fans forget the November pain of 2011.
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