SALT LAKE CITY — They were all tiny blotches of blue in an overwhelming mass of crimson red for nearly four hours. But about 15 minutes after Will Ferrin split the uprights from 44 yards out to keep this surreal undefeated season motoring on, those flecks of royal blue united into one long line that stretched around the front row in enemy territory.
It was a hell of a way to punctuate a hell of a win in a hell of a rivalry that always seems to deliver.
So BYU fans, who will live on in a state of sheer reverie for yet another week, stuck their hands out and were greeted by players who took the joyful, earned lap around Rice-Eccles Stadium and thanked them for being there. As players made the rounds, others posed at midfield for photos. Cosmo the Cougar, BYU’s acrobatic mascot, found Ferrin and took a selfie with him. BYU yell leaders ran a huge blue flag that whipped through the crisp November evening.
I’ve heard a lot of BYU post-game fight songs, after wins and losses. This one was one of the more special ones. #CougarBlueRoadTrip pic.twitter.com/msF1xO4lRa
— Jared Lloyd (@JaredrLloyd) November 10, 2024
BYU head coach Kalani Sitake looked to be the only calm one in the mix. He, at least for a fleeting second, pleaded with his team to head into the visiting locker room to continue the festivities. Everyone in blue opted to stay out in the cold where they were warmed by the thrill of an epic 22-21 win over Utah on the road in Salt Lake City.
BYU KEEPS ITS UNDEFEATED SEASON ALIVE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/g6LxnaRgqE
— ESPN (@espn) November 10, 2024
No. 9 BYU improved to 9-0, is one of only four remaining undefeated teams in college football this season and remains in firm control of first place in the Big 12 Conference with three weeks to go. No. 4 Miami became the latest unbeaten to falter, losing on the road at Georgia Tech earlier on Saturday.
The lone unblemished teams left this year: No. 1 Oregon, No. 8 Indiana, No. 9 BYU and No. 25 Army. You can bet, with No. 3 Georgia losing at No. 16 Ole Miss this weekend, that Indiana and BYU will receive boosts in next week’s College Football Playoff rankings, too.
That’s what lies ahead for the Cougars. What was present in the first hours of Sunday morning was this latest installment of a rivalry game that tends to get so weird, so zany, so amped that tempers flare, players cry, coaches berate referees, athletic directors cry foul, and well, the list goes on.
But for these Cougars to stay perfect, for them to beat their desperate rival now riding a four-game losing streak, a rival so many pundits believed would be where they were come early November, they had to be lucky.
Actually, they had to just stay within striking distance. Which, at times, looked like it wouldn’t be possible. Utah’s defense handcuffed BYU’s efficient offense throughout. It knocked quarterback Jake Retzlaff off kilter often. He was throwing high or wide or having passes tipped at the line of scrimmage. But the thing about perfect seasons is, you need to experience the sort of breaks in high-stakes situations. BYU had too many to count against Utah.
“This is the Big 12,” said Retzlaff, “anything can happen.”
Basically.
The Cougars survived Retzlaff looking more off than he had in months.
The Cougars survived not one but two fumbles and fumble recoveries by Retzlaff himself — one deep in Utah territory and the other back in BYU territory — that would’ve otherwise been disastrous.
The Cougars needed a controversial fourth-and-10 holding call on their 9-yard line with 1:35 left in the fourth quarter to stay alive.
The Cougars needed Utah freshman cornerback Cameron Calhoun to drop an interception that would’ve sealed it for the Utes on the very next play.
The Cougars needed team captain wide receiver Chase Roberts to snag a 30-yard pass with such grace that he kept the nose of the football off the turf by mere millimeters on the very next play after that.
CHASE ROBERTS CATCH!!!!#CollegeFootball #BYUFootball pic.twitter.com/WWtf6Kbq1G
— Pick 6 Pack (@Pick6PackFB) November 10, 2024
It’s games like this, underachieving for most of a night against a rival on the road and finding a way to squeak out a win, that now has folks in Provo wondering if this is a team of destiny. Sitake was asked about that very lofty, yet very subjective potential final reality. He does what he knows to do — deflect the sort of expectation his program now has. At least publicly.
“Just keep believing in each other,” he said. “We’ve doubled down on our culture, trusting and loving each other. I think it’s gone well.”
At 9-0, with three regular-season games remaining, being alone at the top of the Big 12 Conference and having just snatched a needed win from the firm grasp of your rival: How could anyone argue otherwise?
(Photo of BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff losing control of the ball before regaining it late in the second half: Chris Gardner / Getty Images)
