Provo • So, the suffering continues.
The mountain BYU looked forward to climbing — or did it, really? — on Saturday night against its rival offered a wicked ascent. Everybody, including the Cougars themselves, knew Utah had owned them for six straight games, and seven long years.
And now, their chance was here, again, to scale a rugged face that opened for them an opportunity to end that bad dream or to sleep and agonize through that nasty slumber for another 12 unbearable months.
Mixed metaphors, but you get the point.
Agony was and is their competitively cruel fate, losing again to Utah, this time by the count of 19-13.
BYU simply could not get past a Ute team that has so much of what the Cougars wish they had — a Power Five conference, a big annual television payday, a wider recruiting base, better athletes, a better schedule, better postseason opportunities, a yearly shot at the Rose Bowl — although that has not yet been hit — and a place to belong.
And now, BYU’s seven-year itch to at least punch the Utes in the mouth, and gain a bit of satisfaction in relishing victory, is extended to eight years … and counting.
If the Cougars couldn’t beat Utah this time, on their home field, in front of their own fans, with a more veteran quarterback and a quality defense, when the Utes were still breaking in a raw QB, a new offense, a new offensive coordinator, a new offensive line, a new defensive secondary, then … when would they?
Never, that’s when.
The Cougars will never beat the Utes. Never. Ever.
OK, that’s a stretch.
But just like Kyle Whittingham promised his players after losing in 2009, the last time, saying his team would never again taste defeat at the hands of the Cougars on his watch, it’s now written in the stars. It’s a matter of fact. It’s a fat pill for BYU to swallow, a remedy that is no remedy at all, as their malady festers, sliding from defeat to disappointment to desperation to disillusionment.
Any arguments? The Cougars simply cannot beat the Utes. They just can’t. Even when they can, at least in theory, they can’t. And they couldn’t on Saturday night.
The reason here was their offense, while not as weak as it was in New Orleans, could not find the consistency it needed against a Utah defense that is what it always is — physical, fast, stout and stubborn. The fixing that Kalani Sitake said his assistants and players would do this week went mostly undone. Undone enough to lose.
The run game … no.
The pass game … no.
The offensive front … no.
The skill guys … no.
Not enough space was created, not enough holes were hit, not enough timing was found, not enough yards were gained. Utah got 430 total yards, and BYU? ... Well, we’ll get to that. It wasn’t much.
Frustration, there was plenty of.
The defense did what it could, but did not do what it couldn’t — put a bunch of points on the board.
As is befitting a rivalry game, in which the care factor on both sides is fumble-finger high, player nerves, all around, were not just apparent, they were abundant. Crazy things happened — turnovers, near turnovers, trick plays, bad snaps, tipped completions, sacks, false-starts on third-and-1, jangled throws, reversed calls, targeting flags, disqualifications, and a whole lot of stumbling and bumbling.
Congruent with that theme, BYU’s offense wobbled with familiar troubles — anemic running, limited passing, ineptitude, a lack of playmakers. An interception set up Utah’s first points — a field goal. A couple more field goals gave the Utes a 9-zip lead at the half.
.@BYUfootball LB Matt Hadley discusses if the defense gets frustrated with the offense when the latter struggles to score #BYU #UtahvsBYU pic.twitter.com/BHOkzSGFoa
— Brennan Smith (@BrennanJSmith) September 10, 2017
Even when things went right for BYU, which wasn’t often, they went wrong. In between the Utes’ scores, Tanner Mangum found some comfort, making throws, moving the ball, inspiring teammates. Not only did the Cougars gain a few first downs, they actually crossed midfield more than once, but an offensive pass-interference call killed a touchdown, followed by a missed chip-shot field goal.
Mangum finished 21 of 39 with one touchdown pass and three picks, one of them batted. All told, BYU gained 233 total yards, just 63 on the ground. Ty Detmer’s offense wasn’t efficient or effective enough to conquer the Utes. Tight end Matt Bushman is the Cougars’ only real playmaker.
“It was not good enough,” Sitake said, afterward. ”... We have to execute better.”
The Cougars turned a Ute fumble into a touchdown in the third quarter, and an impressive 11-play, 76-yard scoring drive near the end made it a 6-point margin. Close, but ... no, it wasn’t enough.
Not enough to do what BYU can’t — beat Utah.
GORDON MONSON hosts “The Big Show” with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone.