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Show 16 THE DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE November 2009 / / Rivalry Guide Rivalry spirit not limited to football Paige Fieldsted The annual football game is undoubtedly the biggest game in the Utah-BYU rivalry, but the majority of the Utah athletic teams get in on rivalry action at When someone says Utah or BYU, people's least once, if not two or three times a year. thoughts almost always turn to the Holy War. The Deseret First Duel, which is in its third year, was designed to bring more attention to the smaller sports that participate in rivalry games. Most coaches agree that the duel has helped fuel the already hot fire and makes the match feel more important. Utah's women's volleyball head coach Beth Launiere said last season that she likes a duel, and it feeds her competitive side. "It might be silly, but we want that little trophy," Launiere said. Despite the competitive drive, Launiere said she tries to keep the hype surrounding the game and the rivalry from affecting her team's performance. She LENNIE MAHLER/Tht Daily Utah Chroniclehas said on several occasions that her team knows the match is big, and it doesn't need to be talked Luke Nevill listens to some words from Jonathan Tavernari during about or hyped up anymore than that. last year's basketball game. The Deseret First Duet has added Other coaches go all out when it comes to the riexcitement to the games in all sports when BYU plays Utah. SPORTS EDITOR WHITTINGHAM continued from Page 6 Truthfully, when you look at it from a hard, tangible numbers outlook, it's hard to make a good argument one way or the other. Both coaches have done a good job notching wins, and both have strong records. It is in the intangibles, though, that Whittingham clearly emerges as Mendenhall's better and the more thorough coach. In 2006,1 was covering the BYUUtah game for The Daily Universe, and had made my way down to thefieldby the north end zone right before time expired. Jonny Harline was about 20 feet away from me when he caught the game-winning touchdown. Like any good, objective journalist, I stormed the field and collided with linebacker Cameron Jensen, who was on his way to the dog-pile. Amid the post-game melee, I saw Whittingham walk out to meet Bronco at midfield, and from the corner of my eye I saw something that rocked my fundamental BYU world. "Are those tears in his eyes?" my brain asked as it sent a "does not compute" message to the rest of my body. "What a fool to let emotions into coaching!" I mused, full of my own smug self-satisfaction. Just days_earHer, Mendenhall had hammered home his preparation secret for Utah—nothing new or out of the ordinary. That basically sums up what BYU football has been about, and will continue to be about, under Mendenhall— nothing new or out of the ordinary. Meanwhile, Whittingham has taken the Utes. and college football to strange,. . new places and made them experiment with exciting, tantalizing, BCS-altering scenarios. Whittingham, through using an interesting human tool called emotion, has established himself as one of the best big-game coaches in college football. That's why he's undefeated in bowl games. That's why Utah always comes out more fired up than BYU does, and that's why Utah wiped the floor with Alabama last year and should've been named the national champion. I suppose if the Cougars want to make football a God thing, I can handle that. It makes sense in a way, in that they've stuck to their guns and been bailed out by veritable acts of God in 2006 and 2007 against the U. Unfortunately, as Ute fans, we know that the only week that God cares about football is Rivalry Weekforthe Holy War. Maybe this year we'll see the Cougars win with the surprise return of Steve Young and the institution of a fifth down when they have 18 yards to go. I, however, will take wins that actually rely on coaching and skill, which, coincidentally, there have been much more of lately. Whittingham understands that football is a complex, multi-faceted game, and he coaches accordingly. As Mendenhall continues to do what he does, which is to try to make football preparation formulaic and predictable, he'll keep getting the same results. BYU will never be more than a perennial favorite for the Vegas bowl until there are changes, and maybe that*s OK for what he's working with. By being a complete, practical coach, Whittingham has taken the Utes to the highest they've ever been, and as he keeps doing so, the sky's the limit. jMmmons@chrQnicle.utah.edu valry. Jim Boylen, third-year men's basketball head coach, is one of them. "I think it's a huge thing for us," Boylen said. "I make it a huge thing. I don't downplay the rivalry. I think it is an honor and privilege to play in a rivalry game. Not everyone has that." Boylen said growing up around big rivalries such as Michigan-Michigan State and Michigan-Ohio State has. influenced his outlook on rivalry games. "I love it, and I make it a big deal to my guys," he said. "If I have a fault, I might make it too big of deal, but that's OK, I'll deal with that." Boylen isn't alone in making the rivalry a big deal to his team. Swimming and diving coach Greg Winslow is another coach who said he thinks the rivalry is one of the biggest meets his team competes in all season. Earlier in the year, when the freshmen and sophomores were preparing for a meet against BYU, Winslow said he wag excited to be able to introduce the See DUEL Page 21 MENDENHALL continued from Page 6 But like a rock, Mendenhall has proven to be reliable, and it's obvious he's perfect for BYLTs system. He has all the intangibles to be successful in Provo: the ability to balance expectations and regulations, an uncanny knack to teach as well as he coaches and even the talent of scouting and developing athletes in an extremely small pond of "perfect fits" for this unique program. BYU requires more than a coach—it requires a foundation, one that the rock called Mendenhall graciously provides. This is the reason Kyle Whittingham wouldn't have been nearly as successful as Mendenhall had he taken the BYU job in 2005. The four seasons following La Veil Edwards' retirement were difficult for BYU fans. The Cougars began the 2001 season with 12 straight wins before collapsing fester than Matt Asiata's ACL, culminating in a 28-10 drubbing by Louisville in the Liberty BowL The next three seasons featured back-to-back-to; back five-win seasons (translation: losing seasons) and three losses to Utah. The lone bright spot, a home win against Notre Dame, couldn't make up for Gary Crowton's lack of regard for school rules, ending in his firing around the same time Utah was popping corks over Pittsburgh's rotting corpse. You have to understand something about BYU fans: They believe their football players should be able to win tough football games and still be good, upstanding family men who just happen to flip the switch for three hours on a Saturday. Yes, it's a bit unreasonable, but that's what a coach has to deal with. That's what makes the "Bronco Era" such a relief for BYU fans—Mendenhall wins a lot of football games and does it with players who play by the rules. Players have myriad statistics to compare themselves to other players, but coaches only have their win records. Mendenhall is 46-15, Whittingham is 45-16. Mendenhall has two conference titles. Whittingham has one. They're 2-2 against each other. In other words, these guys are a wash. The only way to separate the two is through their postseason records, where Whittingham kind of looks like John Madden and Mendenhall smells strongly of Marty Schottenheimer. Still, it took a special guy to come into the wreckage of the "Crowton Era" and rebuild a proud program, and Mendenhall delivered. He's brought wins and national recognition, and he's kept his principles in the process. Whittingham has been exceptional for the Utes, but his introduction to Utah included accepting a crystal chalice from Urban Meyer filled with elite recruits and good memories. Call him a bad play-caller or call him conservative, but give the guy credit for what he's done: Mendenhall is the best coach for BYU. Gordon Monson was wrong— Mendenhall apologizes to no one. letters@chronicle.utah.edu |