Boise State plays Brigham Young today, a nonconference football game between what were, once-upon-a-time, conference opponents in the Mountain West.
Of course, if it had been up to them, they would be on the way to being conference mates again — in an expanded Big 12.
But it wasn’t and the Big 12 presidents this week slammed the door on both their hopes (along with Air Force, Colorado State, San Diego State, UNLV …) by choosing to remain a 10-member league for the foreseeable future.
But while the 14th-ranked and unbeaten Broncos (6-0) still have a Mountain West championship to chase and hopes of cracking a playoff berth, what have the independent 4-3 Cougars got even if they win tonight?
Not that they will admit it much publicly, but the independence BYU opted for in 2011 hasn’t been much to write home about.
If they can look past their, at times, cumbersome pride, the Cougars would see that a return to the MWC might be the best course of action. For both themselves and the MWC.
Six years in, the Cougars have little to show for bolting the conference to go it alone. Last year the reward for an 8-3 regular season was the Las Vegas Bowl, a game they played in five times in the six years prior to going independent.
The TV package is better now but they are no closer to a spot in a Power Five conference, much less the pursuit of a national title.
Meanwhile, the MWC is looking for ways to secure a brand as the best of the non-P5 leagues, a steppingstone for those who entertain hopes of someday moving up. “I’ve challenged our membership to think about expansion — with or without losing (current) members,” MWC commissioner Craig Thompson told the Salt Lake Tribune last month at the height of Big 12 speculation.
History tells us that only one team has made independence work over the long haul, Notre Dame. And BYU isn’t Notre Dame, even in the Irish’s presently reduced circumstances.
In the current environment, even the Irish have come to see the benefits of a conference tie, aligning with the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Much as BYU might like to be invited into the P5 lodge, that isn’t happening anytime soon. The Pac-12 passed on the Cougars when it grabbed Beehive State rival Utah and reached over BYU when it took Colorado.
It was probably the pique of being bypassed while the Utes moved up as much as anything that led BYU to chart an independent course.
The Big 12 has had opportunities to take BYU and, time and again, has said, “thanks, but no thanks.” The latest rebuff being the most resounding.
Bronco Mendenhall, the most successful BYU coach since the legendary LaVell Edwards, saw the handwriting on the wall, bolting for Virginia last year.
You might wonder if it factored in Ken Niumatalolo’s decision to remain at Navy after being pursued by BYU. The formerly independent Midshipmen (4-1) are, by the way, atop their division and competing for the American Athletic Conference title.
Last week BYU students rushed the field after a victory over 2-4 Mississippi State. Is this really what it has come to for the Cougars?
Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.
