BYU-Utah remnants

Was that ever a quiet week.

I can’t recall a BYU-Utah week so subdued, at least since before the 34-31 years.

I also can’t remember the stands emptying so quickly at Edwards Stadium in the Bronco Mendenhall era. However, I’m not an expert on that, since I haven’t been to all the games.

There really wasn’t a great deal of anticipation for the game. It just sort of sprang into everyone’s awareness on Saturday. By kickoff, fans and media were “fully invested,” as Mendenhall might say. But it was just for the one day. Actually, the one hour, until it became obvious BYU couldn’t stop fumbling. Son even Utah fans started losing interest.

After 12 of the previous 14 games being decided by a touchdown or less, it was sort of jarring to see such a rout as 54-10. But until the score was 33-10, everyone seemed to think a big comeback was in the works.

Then they started leaving their seats.

***

The most interesting part of the day for me was long before kickoff.

The school brought back some of the Cougars’ greatest tight ends. I talked with the two classics, Clay Brown and Gordon Hudson.

What interested me all these years later was that they both seemed grateful for the opportunity they had to play at BYU, and both were humble. Both seemed rather amazed that the rivalry has become so close. Back in their day, they noted, the game against Utah wasn’t anything special to the Cougars, just another date on the schedule.

***

Finally, a word on traffic.

The news media put out the buzz all week that drivers needed to leave for Provo HOURS ahead of their normal schedules, due to construction. One TV station even suggested fans have breakfast in Provo — for a 7:10 p.m. game!

If the highway department had its way, maybe we should all go to Provo the previous Sunday.

As it turned out, I left for the game four hours early and got there three hours beforehand — and that’s because I took the long route to avoid the freeway.

Meanwhile, I had a media friend who said he left Salt Lake a couple of hours before the game and sailed to the stadium, no traffic problems whatsoever.

Apparently the traffic was worse three hours before the game than it was one hour beforehand.

Maybe there’s something to be said for showing up when you get around to it.