I feel bad for Sitake.
“I feel bad for Sitake“.
But I don’t feel bad at all for their segment of insane fans (see cooterbored for reference). 
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I don’t. He made a business decision.
Sometimes those work. Sometimes those don’t.
It is funny to see visiting fans talk about how they handed out brownies and ice cream to the visitors section after the first quarter.
Last time my family went down they handed out glass bottles, that were thrown.
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Yep. Feeling bad for Sitake is one thing; feeling bad for the group you mention is something else altogether. My problem has always been with the obnoxious segment of BYU fans—the kind that live in a mental bubble and post on CB. I have friends and loved ones who are BYU fans and are not part of that segment. (Even with that part of the fan base I tend to avoid discussions about BYU sports.)
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I take exception with this (from the article)
“in front of 60,754 fans who deserve far more from this once-proud program”
Those entitled pricks deserve exactly what they are getting. Actually, they should be thanking their lucky stars that they are even at the table.
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Really.
Players who’ve been at both programs tell it straight - the irrational expectations of Y fans are a big reason the team struggles. It starts to snowball, there’s just so many people who have a strong opinion but don’t really understand the game.
“Utah fans are more knowledgeable and appreciative, no question”.
It’s not just one bad season. These folks were bad-mouthing Lavell Edwards - “why didn’t we get Gary Crowton before? Somebody should have nudged Lavell into retirement earlier!”
Then Crowton became garbage.
Then Bronco was the magic ticket, until it got so bad his wife was fighting with the fans and he bolted to Virginia, really pissing off the fanbase.
Then Sitake was the savior… until he wasn’t .
BYU would be a much easier program to build up if the fans were apathetic. They really are their own worst enemy.
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Their fans are never going to see better. The Blue Goggles story needs to look at the totality of BYU football. When you do that, you find a school that once caught lightning in a bottle in the 1980’s, but the rest of the time has been an also-ran program - mostly competitive in the more recent decades, but definitely an also-ran.
Independence hurt their program. Winning the cupcake cotillion part of their schedule every season (and there was a lot of cupcakes), then getting mauled by middle off the road P5 teams (though occasionally winning) created a mirage they were playing big-time football well. They weren’t.
Now they are in a Conference with programs that have been playing at a very high to elite level for a long time. Yes, the Conference is losing what is left of its Blue Blood programs in Oklahoma and Texas. That said, the PAC 12 additions will be coming in and be immediately competitive. Arizona, ASU and Utah will help balance the ledger to keep thing from being relevant for national viewers. I am leaving Colorado odd that statement because like BYU, they had a couple of years of success, but have generally been a doormat whatever conference they’ve played in.
This season should’ve been considered a success for BYU if they got bowl eligible. It is likely they won’t be doing that - hence the lamenting article. If they are ever going to be competitive again, they are going to need to build roster depth, the likes of which they have never seen before. Last night’s debacle in Provo should have been the learning point. Like Urban Meyer used to comment - everyone’s #1’s are competitive with everyone else’s #1’s. What makes the difference is what happens when the #1’s go down? Can your team still play great football? Right now, they can’t. Maybe in the next decade they will get that figured out, but today, they don’t have it. What adds to the lament is their knowing Utah has been winning with backups all over the field. It took us a decade to build up to being able to do this. Their sector of douche nozzle fans that article points out think it should already be the case.
Time to exit the soapbox, but I will say in closing caving their program in next season will be entertaining. I was there when Lavell and RUTS was their thing…when Jim McMahon, Steve Young, and Ty Detmer shelled the ■■■■out of us…when they won their MNC almost losing it in SLC to “Bo Diddley Tech”…watching them get rolled by middle of the road P5 teams in Bowl Games…they were a good team for a time that some people confused as being a great team.
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By “once proud program” are they referencing their being former Pac12 Champs? My, how they’ve fallen.
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I still have a soft spot in my heart for Kalani Sataki. Maybe he can achieve something as the HQ at Colorado when Deon inevitably bounces out?
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damnit, now I’m craving a brownie
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This is a really interesting topic for people like LA Ute and me. I assume that LA is probably just a bit older than I am. I’m 66 years old right now and I don’t have to remind you of our travails during the 1970s and 1980s. I spent my entire junior high school years, high school years, college years, and into early adulthood, being pounded and ridiculed by BYU and their insufferable fanbase, many of whom were extended family and acquaintances of mine. The scars and PTSD run deep, LOL.
My wife and I moved to San Diego in December 1983. I actually attended the 1984 Holiday Bowl on a free ticket from visiting cousins who stayed with us. Imagine if you will how THAT went!!! (The Horror)
That being said, many of my extended family members and business associates, and friends at church continue to be BYU fans. For the most part, ever since Utah joined the Pac 12, the vast majority of these BYU fans I encounter have become very quiet and withdrawn. They are cordial and freely admit that Utah is the superior program and has been since before the Pac 12 era began. They have really atrophied over time.
I can’t even imagine how awkward life in the Utah County bubble must be at this point. Because I am so far removed, I really have no bone to pick with BYU fans in general.
From my POV, there are some BYU fans who behave horribly, there are also a faction of Utah fans that behave terribly. I am thankful that I am not near either of those two factions. Rant over.
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To quote Jay Drew:
“Sitake’s squad lacks talent, depth & skill”.
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Apart from those needs, I’m sure they still have a lot to work with.
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at this level they needs some serious upgrades in talent. I’m not convinced they can achieve that.
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Some rare honest insight on CB:
The day KWhitt chose the U over BYU changed two programs for years to come (cougarboard.com)
As those of us from the really lean years remember, I think the progression was:
- Ronnie Mac essentially pulled Utah even, and raised our talent level to be slightly better, IMO
- Urban used Mac’s talent to propel us permanently ahead - this is manifested by unhealthy levels of hate for a guy who was here two years.
- Whitt built everything higher from that foundation, even though Utah fans had tasted a perfect season and expectations had elevated along with a rapidly growing fanbase.
- When Utah went to the PAC, the separation was amplified (although at the time many thought the 2 schools had roughly equivalent situations, “Notre Dame of the West”, etc.)
- This summer when the PAC dissolved and Utah ended up in the B12 with BYU they completely lost their minds, absorbing that the gap was going to mean more in-your-face suffering for them.
Understanding BYU’s predicament today requires understanding how Utah eclipsed them over the past 25 years. This dynamic has made that job really high risk. When Kalani took that job I could understand the ambition and going back to his alma mater, but the whole picture is pretty scary.
Kalani is a great guy and a solid coach, but the vast majority of successful HCs will bypass that volatile situation for the foreseeable future. For one thing, the honor code is a major anchor on their ability to build quality depth. But it’s the fanbase with deep seated PTSD about being passed by their rival that make it impossible. The dominant lens their fanbase looks at things through is subconsciously comparative.
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Of course that “honest” post quickly had someone “correct” the record.
Apparently Kyle chose TDS, but they paused and thus Kyle didn’t get the job. And now he hates them because of it.
A UFO must be buried under LES
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TDS and the state of Utah…where integrity goes to die. Haha
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Which is great for me since that’s when I started college coming from parents who went down there but my older sister and I got full out of state tuition scholarships to Utah. My first game was during college tour amd it was the last game at old Rice Eccles. We were allowed to tear apart benches because demolition crews were on standby after that game. Then I came in and Urban set the stage for some fun times. 2nd year of the MUSS (before that, bball was the better student section - I went to every game from Van Cott hall and had to arrive early to get lower bowl student seats).
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That’s like saying, " Except for distance and accuracy, I’m just as good as a PGA player !"
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Yes, that pretty much captures it. I was a fine basketball player in my youth, apart from my lack of hops and quickness.
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