Yes the first team offense had its most effective start in years because of the yewts' weak defense. I'll bet brian johnson completed about a dozen 4th & 18's. HAR!!!

Please, please, let the Utes and Cougars be as good as expected this year.

Good Luck to Coach Kyle and the Utes this year. Love to see him do well and hope Utah can knock off Michigan! Have a great year! Want to see both teams do well heading into the finale!

Re: weak defense

WEAK SAUCE!

It's a new season.

Try doing some actual critical analysis of why you think Utah's defense is going to be weak instead of throwing out juvenile name misspellings and hackneyed "4th and 18" smack from last season.

Nothing better to do then live in the past at 1:00 a.m. in the morning? Get a life!!!!

weak defence? lol you dont know much about utah. lets keep this message boad positive. that means, it has nothing to do with byu so.... leave that team out of it.
GO UTES

We need a better coach than Whittingham if we ever want to be relevant. He is steadily dragging our once great program down to nothing. Get Kyle out of here.

Too bad they have to go through UNLV. Oh, and go Weber St.!

kyle is a great coach for x's and o's actually, but he is just finally learning how to motivate, which is such a huge part of it. last years streak showed some improvement in that regard. before the streak they could only self motivate after losses, which is pretty easy. but after a rebound win, they weren't pushed to keep a high level, making them inconsistent and win-loss-win-loss all year. hopefully he can keep doing better at motivating now.

i don't think the U defense is weak, it is quite good. with faster linebackers, we should do better against the run and on the backs coming out on swings, etc., which was a weakness a few years ago. but last year was already pretty stout by the end of the year. key will be an edge rush (at least one side) and replacing tate. i look for paul kruger to be huge this year if he is all the way back from the attack.

Sounds like the coaching staff was pleased with the opening day. I'm cautiously optimistic -- very encouraged with BJ's progress and as mentioned, hopefully the line and receiver depth develops. What is with splitting the squad and sending half to the weight room?? Isn't that what the summer offseason is all about? Isn't that why the strength and conditioning coach is allowed to work with them all summer -- so you don't have to use valuable practice time on weight training? I'm still puzzled at some of the decisions made by our coaching staff....

How cute, a BYU fan is pretending to be a Ute fan.

Kyle is dragging the program down?

At Utah, when numbers continually get bigger, that means there is improvement. 7 wins, 8 wins, 9 wins, 3 bowl wins. If that means that Kyle is 'dragging the program down' then I hope he keeps dragging it down. If he does, the Utes will be in a BCS bowl in no time.

As I remember the utah players have historically been low key and downplayed how well the practices went in the past, so the fact that they are all saying that everything looked so good on day one probably means they looked tremendous. The main difference between utah this year and in past years will be experience and leadership, both from the players and a now experienced Coach whit.

I'm cautously optomistic about the michigan game. As long as we dont get the "deer in the headlights" at the bighouse we should probably do just fine. But if not, we shouldnt let it damper a potentially great season like poor opening weeks have done in the past 2 seasons. The michigan game is not make or break and could be a tremendous way to get the utes prepared for the rest of the season. Utah will not play a defense nearly as talented as the wolverines for the rest of the year.

Sounds like the Utes are right where they want to be. Going to Michigan, win or lose will help them compete in the conference. They won't see anything like the Big House here in the Mountai West.

There are huge differences between Utah and BYU. Utah is excited about their potential where BYU thinks they are "on a quest for perfection".
Utah is working hard, and promising to get better, BYU is already claiming a conference championship and looking to the BSC (which BYU built and Utah Busted).

I would much rather be in Utah's shoes right now. They are willing to work hard and admit that they have room to improve, BYU thinks they have arrived. Doesn't Bronco and the Boys listen to any of the firesides that they put on? Arrogance and pride (like that of Austin Collie) always come before the fall.
Tread lightly BYU, Utah, TCU and Air Force could come by and light you up.

GO Utes!!!!

August is going to be a long month. Go Utes!!

No team under Bronco will EVER be arrogant. Not going to happpen. BYU understands who they are more than Utah does however. Utah is lacking confidence and a win against Michigan would do wonders. I think they do get a BIG win against Michigan because Michigan stunk last year and probably will this year too according to pre season predictions. BYU has a tougher opening pre-conference schedule @Washington and then UCLA at home. I could see the Washington and UCLA games going either way.

I'm encouraged to hear that the offense had a great opening day. In previous years, what we have been hearing on opening day and all during fall camp is that the defense is way ahead of the offense and that that is normal. I think that is still pretty common, but to hear that the offense is already rolling along well, it's a good sign. And they should roll along well - they've got tons of weapons that can get the job done. With BJ healthy, and depth at RB, receiver, and OL, the offense should be top 25 in the country. On defense, the LBs sound like they are going to be solid and quick, and the corners and safeties are experienced. Hopefully, the defensive line will step up quickly. It should be a great year. GOOOOOOO UTES !!!!!!!

And where did your clueless insight into what BYU's players and coaches are thinking come from?

ALL of BYU's quotes from preseason practice directly contradict your claim that BYU's players already think they've won a conference championship and that their work is finished.

Clueless Utah fans fail to grasp the true meaning and motivation behind the "Quest for Perfection," which is to IMPROVE on what BYU has accomplished the last two years. To set the bar even higher.

Once you've cleared 7'0", the logical next step is to raise the bar to 7'1". You still have to work just as hard to clear 7'0", but now you have work even harder to clear an even higher standard.

Every other truly movitated team in the country, including Utah, has the same goal, to improve upon what they accomplished last season.

For Utah, that's winning the MWC championship, finishing in the Top 25, and winning their bowl game.

For BYU, that's winning the MWC championship, finishing in the Top 10, getting a BCS invitation, winning their bowl game, and possibly playing for a National Championship.

We will just have to agree to disagree about the Arrogant factor.
I do not see your point when you said that "BYU has a tougher opening pre-conference schedule @Washington and then UCLA at home".
I think that Michigan is twice the team that Washington is. This Michigan team last year ended the season very strong and capped it off by handing Florida a very disturbing loss.
BYU will have a tougher time getting past the Mountain West then they will UCLA (who is not good at all) Washington has not seriously competed for 5 years. The Mountain West is a solid conference with real teams this year. Every school has BYU in their sights and they are going to execute.
I think that Utah, TCU and BYU will be bowl eligible, I am just not ready to call the conference champs yet (due to the fact NO ONE HAS PLAYED, THIS IS ALL MEDIA HYPE)

I think that BYU will lose some easy games and it will bring them back to earth, where they should have been all summer.
Bronco is not the arrogant one down there, It is the players.

The University of Utah is just the best, don't you think so fellas? I just love Coach Kyle Whittingham. He really makes his boys play hard and he is just the sweetest coach I've ever known.

There's a certain disconnect when you compare the strength of schedules for this year's BYU and Utah teams and then use the opponent's teams from last year as the basis for comparison.

NOBODY knows how good UCLA, Washington, Michigan, and Oregon State are going to be this year. In hindsight, we'll have a better understanding of which team played the tougher schedule. Making bold assumptions about your team's schedule being much tougher than another team's schedule is ridiculous.

That's why the preseason polls are so meaningless. Nobody knows how good or how bad a team is until they've played a few games.

“BYU has a tougher opening pre-conference schedule @ Washington and then UCLA at home.”

Don’t forget Northern Iowa! THAT is your REAL pre-conference OPENER…and it’s at HOME. At least you all have a creampuff to tune up your squad. The Utes go to the Big House for OUR opener, and without even the benefit of knowing which brand of offense our opponent will run. And don’t even TRY to compare Washington to Michigan. Suggesting UW is the tougher opponent is disingenuous and ludicrous. And arrogant.

Utah has the tougher non-conference schedule this year.

Michigan and Oregon State both went 9-4 last year and both won bowl games.

UCLA and Washington both finished under .500, and niether of them won a bowl game.

@ Michigan will be a tougher game than @ Washington or vs. UCLA. Vs. Oregon State will be just as difficult, if not more difficult, as vs. UCLA and it will be very similar to @ Washington.

It's curious how meaningful the strength of opponents is to Utah fans whe comparing regular season games and yet becomes so meaningless when it comes to tauting bowl records.

On paper, based on last year's teams, Utah has the tougher OOC schedule.

@Michigan > @Washington (very likely)
Oregon State > UCLA (somewhat likely)
Weber State < Northern Iowa (absolutely)
@Utah State = @Utah State (punt)

On the field, that may not be the case.

Did you say a bad Michigan team, the same team that took apart defending National Champion Florida. Did you say BYU will "EVER"-NEVER be arrogant under Bronco. I got news for you, they already are. Trying to alter the fact that Utah does have a tougher schedule than BYU is stupid. If BYU were playing Michigan in the Big House in their opening game, all we would hear is how tough your schedule is. You don't fool anyone with crazy statements as to how though UCLA is. I take it back your no arrogant your ignorant.

The talent is there, the experience there, the health for now there. IT ALL DEPENDS ON LUDWIG!!!If he figures out how to play endzone to endzone Utah has a great year, if he keeps up with this sideline to side line 3 yards on first down try for a huge play on second (or some stupid trick play) setting up third and forever, we are doomed. If he cant figure it out another 8 to 9 win season.

Go UTES

As a cougar fan, I love to see the Utah fans drool over Brian Johnson (Football's answer to Tim Drisdom). BJ Arceneaux is great athletically, but marginal as a quarterback, and you will all know that by the end of Weber Junior College game. Keep Kyle at the U. He's the best thing to happen to BYU football in a while.

...as in "you are"

Michigan in the Big House is always a big deal. But, this is Michigan team in transition, with a new coach and a new offense. How well Michigan is able to work out the kinks is anyone's guess.

They could easily struggle out of the gate. Or, they could be good enough to pummel Utah even without being in sync. We'll find out in a few short weeks.

Just an observation. The report out of Ute training camp seems much more positive than out of the Cougar camp. BYU seems confident...maybe too confident. Hopefully they won't need a couple of early losses to wake them up this year. Still I'd rather have early non-conference losses then late season ones.

I hope the Utes pummel the Wolverines and represent the mountain west.

What are you basing that on?

Are you going off of '05 when BJ was 4th in the nation in total offense? Or are you going off of his record last year when he was 8-1 in games he started & finished despite playing with a seperated shoulder?

This is a joke. Utah's game against Michingan is by far the toughest test of the season for either Utah or BYU. It makes me sick to think that other BYU fans actually can argue that Washington and UCLA compare to Michigan. As a BYU fan I am ashamed of your ignorance. Turn off the mtn once in a while and tune into the major networks and you will see why Michigan is superior. If Utah wins this, they are on track to a BCS game, not BYU.

Waddya speckt? Wes jus stupid foo9tbal fanns. Its ovius you(r)(re)yaint!!

Michigan stunk last year? Top 3 in their conference, with losses to Oregon (who was a Top 5 team before Dixon's injury), Ohio State, and Wisconsin...hardly stunk. App State shouldn't have beat them, but don't forget that they won their NC for the second straight year. Michigan hardly stunk...don't forget their performance over defending Champ FL in their bowl game. Underperformed last year? Yes. Their studs came back with one goal...a NC. But stunk? No sir. This will be a tough test for the Utes.

Qualifying for a BCS bid isn't determined by one game, but by the complete season. BYU and Utah both control their own destiny this season.

BYU beating Washington and UCLA will launch them into the Top 10 and well positioned for a BCS bid if they keep their record unblemished.

Utah beating Michigan and Oregon State will get them close to if not into the Top 10 and also well positioned for a run at a BCS berth.

If both scenarios occur, then the winner on November 22nd is a lock to get the non-BCS team BCS bid. How well Michigan, Oregon State, Washington, and UCLA are doing by then will be irrelevant.

The only thing that voters will be looking at in November is the winner of the game between two Top 10, MWC, 11-0 teams. The minor bump in the computer ranking from strength of schedule for either team will be miniscule.

Beat the wolverines Utes! A nice win there will look sweet for our conference, for the state, and for the rivalry. For the Utes that are going, don't stop cheering

Michigan had a good season, but no one can argue the fact that this year is a transition season. They may be great, but they are inexperienced at key skill positions. Plus they bring an all-new offense under Rodriguez - I would expect growing pains. May work out fine, but then again, look what happened when Nebraska tried the spread. Tough game, but the Utes timing is good and they should be competitive.

i like the informative comments and not the bashing before games have even happened comments.

Hey, all of you talking BYU, take a hike.

This is Utah Football country.

Alma, quit posting about BYU, unless you are on the
BYU board.

and who appointed you hall monitor?

btw, your post mentions BYU 3 times more often than it does Utah. Maybe you should stop obsessing with BYU football and concentrate more on Utah football; or at least strike a happy medium, as this post does.

Good luck to both teams in the coming season!

“…the winner on November 22nd is a lock to get the non-BCS team BCS bid.”

Not so fast. Fresno St. is in the running too, and currently possess the higher strength of schedule rating. Should THEY be undefeated at season’s end, it is most likely the Bulldogs will bump either an undefeated BYU or Utah squad. They have to face Wisconsin, UCLA, and Rutgers (and Toledo, but so what?). It would be a shame for a 12-0 MWC team to face another 6-6 PAC-10 team.

good thing they can see red, cause most of them can't spell it.

Just remember, only one non-BCS team can get in.

If Utah, BYU, Hawaii, and BSU all make it into the top 10 (impossible, I know) only one gets into the BCS bowl.

If that happens, though, there can be pressure put on the right people to BUST the BCS and get a fair playoff put into place.

Playing in one Fiesta bowl does not bust the BCS.

The BCS system needs to be thrown out.

We need everyone to do their part and just WIN across the board.

Having BYU, BSU and Hawaii win does not diminish the U, it will only help show the inequity of the BCS.

Once it's shown, the BCS conferences will have to give in before congress gets involved (such as boxing, pro baseball, etc (it's the regulation of interstate commerce clause in the constitution). The NCAA doesn't want hearings, or an outside souce making decisions for them, and a fair system is the only way out.

Let's all get out there and kick some BCS bootie.

GO UTES...can't wait for the great year ahead!

Fresno State MAY have a higher SOS, but the polls will determine the non-BCS bid to the BCS. Right now, BYU is in the driver's seat being ranked well above Utah and Fresno State. It'll be almost impossible for either of those teams to bypass BYU in the polls if the Cougars stay undefeated.

"BYU has a tougher opening pre-conference schedule @Washington and then UCLA at home. I could see the Washington and UCLA games going either way."

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!

If BYU loses to UW - a PAC 10 doormat - you've got a big problem on your hands, Cougars. Spare me with the season comparisons. The only relevance strength of schedule has for either team is with the BCS speculations, and that is neither here nor there at this point of the season for either team. (And given Hawaii's invitation to the BCS, that doesn't seem to matter either.)

The most important element of the season is WINNING every game, one week at a time, regardless of who the opponent is. For example, if Utah beats Michigan but loses to TCU, it won't really matter how difficult their overall schedule is. Every game is important.

All either team can do is take it one game at a time and save the best for last. I'm hoping for a barn burner come November!

Go Utes!

Should an Aggie fan really dare to show him/herself in a sports forum? Call Merlin Olsen if you want to talk about good Aggie teams and don't pretend that USU is better academically than the U.

BYU has not claimed any crown yet, so quit with the sad attempts to make them sound like they are overlooking the season. I have a great amount of respect for both BYU and U players, and look forward to the next installment of The Holy War. U fans should stop talking about the BCS game they won though, because your best has never been our best. National Champions. Suck on it.

"It'll be almost impossible for either of those teams to bypass BYU in the polls if the Cougars stay undefeated."

He he he ... I guess the Utes will have to do something about that in November. As far as I'm concerned, let BYU win all but the last - it'll be all the more traumatic. :)