Nothing swings a BYU-Utah game faster than a turnover, and the history between these two teams keeps proving it.
The arguments this week will center on quarterbacks, runners, coaching and everything else that fuels a rivalry of this size. Bear Bachmeier or Devon Dampier?
Wayshawn Parker or LJ Martin, if he plays? Rice-Eccles Stadium or LaVell Edwards Stadium?
Those debates will get loud, but the real separator in Saturday’s highest-ranked BYU-Utah game ever is much simpler: who protects the football.
The recent results have been shaped by exactly that.
In last year’s game in Provo, Talan Alfrey jumped on a fumbled punt in the second quarter, setting up a Will Ferrin field goal. Later, Tanner Wall intercepted Devon Dampier in the fourth quarter before Bear Bachmeier finished the game with a 22-yard touchdown run.
The year before that in Salt Lake City, BYU grabbed two more takeaways. Jakob Robinson intercepted a double pass by Damien Alford in the first quarter, Crew Wakley picked off Brandon Rose in the third, and Alfrey recovered another Utah fumble on the final play to seal the Cougars’ 22-21 win - BYU’s first in Salt Lake City since the Utes left Jonny Harline open in 2006.
The pattern goes back further. In 2021 in Provo, Utah gave the ball away twice in the first quarter, and BYU used both mistakes to snap a nine-game losing streak in the rivalry. Chaz Ah You intercepted Charlie Brewer, Isaiah Herron recovered a Tavion Thomas fumble, and the Cougars rolled to a 26-17 win.
That gives BYU three straight victories and a +7 turnover margin in those games. But the ball bounces both ways in this rivalry, and Utah has its own reminder of how quickly things can flip.
In 2019 at LaVell Edwards Stadium, Francis Bernard and Julian Blackmon each returned Zach Wilson interceptions for touchdowns, and Mika Tafua recovered a Ty’Son Williams fumble at BYU’s own 24-yard line. Utah turned those three Cougar mistakes into 21 points and won 30-12.
This season, Utah has forced 13 turnovers and BYU has forced eight. The Utes had a pick-six at Cincinnati, and the Cougars got a fumble recovery against No.
2 Notre Dame, but those plays are just part of the season ledger. On Saturday, they won’t matter nearly as much as what happens in the moment.
For 3½ hours, the rivalry stands on its own. The players know it, even if the adults in the stands sometimes treat it like something bigger and heavier than that. The game may be packed with emotion, but it still comes down to the same thing every time: one bad snap, one tipped ball, one lapse in concentration.
That’s what makes this rivalry so maddening and so compelling. Every play matters, and the turnover story may be the one that decides it again.
In Other News...
Utahs Season Opener Raised A Readiness Question Fans Cant Ignore
Utahs season opener offered plenty to like and plenty to sort through, even in a win. The Utes had to lean on their interior presence for rebounding and rim protection, and Trey Campbell gave them a steady hand with the ball while also making plays at both ends. TJ Burchs defense was part of the energy that helped turn the game around, but the overall performance still came with the kind of rough edges that usually show up in November.
Turnovers and missed chances around the basket made the night harder than it needed to be, which is why the result felt more revealing than reassuring. For a team trying to establish its identity early, the comeback was a reminder of its resilience, but also a sign that the margin for error may be thin if the Utes dont clean up the details that nearly cost them against Long Beach State. [Read more 🡒]
Utahs Unbeaten Start Still Comes With One Huge Playoff Doubt
Utahs unbeaten start has put the Utes squarely in the national conversation, but the first College Football Playoff rankings could still leave them with work to do. ESPNs Rece Davis said the committee is likely to view Utah as one of the countrys top teams, yet the resume may not carry the same weight as some of the other unbeaten contenders because the schedule has not been as demanding.
The next few weeks should help clarify whether that perception changes. Games against BYU, Arizona, TCU and West Virginia give Utah a chance to add the kind of wins the committee tends to reward, and the stretch begins with an opponent that could say plenty about how seriously the Utes are being taken. [Read more 🡒]
Utah Gets A Huge Chance To Expose BYU In The Big 12
Saturdays matchup gives Utah a chance to make a statement not just in the Big 12 race, but in the broader conversation around how good BYU really is. The Utes have been one of the more efficient teams in the country by the underlying numbers, and that kind of profile tends to travel well in a rivalry game where the emotions are already built in and the margin for error usually shrinks.
BYU, meanwhile, has been living a little higher in the rankings and in the public eye than some of its performance metrics suggest, which only adds to the intrigue here. If Utah can control the game the way its efficiency profile suggests it should, the Utes would do more than win a rivalry game - they would force a harder look at whether BYU belongs in the same tier as the teams around it. [Read more 🡒]