If No. 2-ranked BYU were an ocean liner sailing the high seas, someone might shout, “Iceberg ahead!” ” But since the Cougars are playing in 80-degree sunshine in Orlando, Fla., on Saturday, I’ll say, “Trap game coming up!” »
The Big 12 battle at UCF (1:30 p.m. MDT, Fox) has all the ingredients you can find in a trap game. The Cougars (6-0) just beat No. 2 Notre Dame in front of their largest crowd since 2004 and with as many as 12.3 million people watching on television.
The dramatic victory propelled BYU to No. 2 in the AP Top 25 – their highest ranking since 1984. The victory also put the Cougars in the driver’s seat to reach their first College Football Playoff and quarterback Bear Bachmeier in the Heisman Trophy conversation.
With everything going on at BYU, here comes UCF. The Knights (3-3) will host the Cougars on the East Coast and at Acrisure Bounce House Stadium, where they are 3-0 but play as touchdown underdogs. UCF coach Scott Frost set the tone for the week Monday: “It’s a tremendous opportunity for us, when we come back, to go and take our shot.”
Yes, for BYU, this is the ultimate trap game – and isn’t it fantastic?
Which scenario would Cougar fans prefer: an underdog team that gave up a last-second touchdown to the heavily favored Irish and fell in the polls, or one that does exactly what it does?
BYU is beating the odds and living its best life, and that life comes with the challenge of maintaining it while someone else tries to take it away. It’s up to the Cougars to stay focused and do their job to win the game.
But for fans, it’s like having Disney World all to themselves, with unlimited churros. Most dream scenarios offer only half of what BYU achieves.
That 6-0 start, even with injured star runner LJ Martin missing some of it, poses a dilemma as the Cougars kick off the second half of the season. What kind of fan are you going to be: optimistic or pessimistic?
The optimist lives in the present moment. Aware that things can change in a flash, they celebrate Bear Bachmeier’s unexpected 18-2 start. They welcome Kelly Poppinga’s first year as defensive coordinator and admire the depth and physicality of his group.
They also believe the punt returner won’t drop another kick, that eating a second Cougar Tail is acceptable and that Kalani will coach at BYU forever.
The pessimist lives in fear and assumes that the worst lurks around every corner. Their joy lives alongside the worst scenarios. When Bachmeier goes racing, they yell at him to “lie down” or “go out of bounds” to avoid catastrophic injury.
They constantly claim “style points” and wouldn’t dream of eating a second Cougar Tail – and when the blue bloods come for Sitake, they’re convinced he’s out.
There is no right or wrong way to enter fandom. What makes Cougar Nation so special is that optimists and pessimists are often married or related by family. They can also be strangers who only see each other six or seven times a year.
Plus, both optimists and pessimists enjoy the freedom of switching from one side to the other, especially on a third pass when it’s “No! No! No!” on the draw and “Yes! Yes! Yes!” when he is caught for a first down.
What makes it all work are those moments when the optimist and pessimist find common ground, like when Notre Dame’s final pass fell incomplete on the final play. The unity and shared joy – and storming the field – was a piece of royal blue heaven.
For those few seconds, optimists and pessimists were one – and it was glorious.
No one knows what will happen in Orlando on Saturday. BYU could win as easily as lose, but that’s up to them. The Cougars practiced all week to be ready to take the best out of UCF. Four quarters of combat will reveal their usefulness in remaining among the undefeated.
For fans, watching it is just another episode of seasonal bliss that plays out better than expected. BYU is in a great place – in second place in the polls. They are like a vice president. No one takes them too seriously until something happens to the president. If misfortune finds Miami No. 1 on Saturday against Pitt and BYU beats UCF, the Cougars could be No. 1 on Monday.
That’s how close they are to the top, but this is written by an optimist who wouldn’t hesitate to buy a second Cougar Tail (when they’re chocolate) or any number of churros at a Disney theme park.
Let’s play the trap game and see what happens. If the Cougars won, do you know what that would mean? Arizona State will become the next “trap game” on Halloween before facing Utah – and so on.
Bring them on! Battle-tested fans remember a time, not long ago, when BYU didn’t have trap games — that’s when optimists hoped for this day and pessimists doubted it would ever come.
Fortunately for both of us, that day is here.
Dave McCann is a sports editor and columnist for the Deseret News, as well as a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” on ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.
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