BYU and Tulsa have run into one another on the gridiron before. And if we get anything resembling the last time these two tussled four years ago, hang on to your hats.
The specifics say that the Cougars (9-3 straight up, 8-4 against the spread) and Golden Hurricane (8-4 SU, 7-5 ATS) will be playing in the 8th Armed Forces Bowl, on Friday in Dallas at SMU’s Gerald J. Ford Stadium, which has become the temporary venue for this game while TCU’s Amon Carter Stadium continues to undergo renovations. This bowl is slated to return to Fort Worth next December when work is complete at the Horned Frogs’ stadium, which will supposedly resemble a sort of “Camden Yards” for football. We can’t wait to see the refurbished facility, which was already one of our favorite venues in its former configuration at one of our favorite campuses in the country.
In the meantime, a check of the Don Best odds screen shows that this game is rated a toss-up at most Las Vegas wagering outlets, with a handful pricing BYU as a narrow 1-point favorite. The total sits mostly at 55½ around the various sports books in town.
Kickoff for the Friday game will be 12 noon (ET), with ESPN providing the TV coverage. The start time is early enough to probably guarantee that the game won’t extend into New Year’s Eve, although past meetings have often seemed like they would never end.
We mention the 2007 tussle between these teams because it was such a wild and memorable affair. Indeed, it recalled the old days of the WAC, of which BYU was a charter member and which Tulsa joined for several years beginning in 1996. The teams met three times in the mid-90s, with the Cougs prevailing by 45-35, 55-30 and 49-39 scorelines. BYU also won a 2006 renewal at Provo by a 49-24 count.
But the Golden Hurricane would get its revenge on September 16, 2007 at the newly-named Skelly Field at Chapman Stadium in Tulsa, although it took over four hours for Tulsa to gain its pound of flesh. The teams combined for a whopping 1027 passing yards that night, as Cougar slinger Max Hall accounted for 537 of those himself, with four TD passes. Three BYU receivers gained over 100 yards from their catches.
Not to be outdone, however, Hurricane counterpart Paul Smith passed for 454 yards and five TDs in a breathless display in which Tulsa rallied from a 34-31 halftime deficit to an eventual 55-47 win that to this day has Cougar coach Bronco Mendenhall shaking his head.
“I certainly remember that game,” recalled Mendenhall to the Deseret News. “We had no idea what we were defending, quite frankly. That was one of the most explosive offensive schemes we’ve ever seen.”
Most observers expect something a bit more tame on Friday in Dallas, although for a time this season, we weren’t quite sure we’d be seeing either of these entries in the postseason.
Indeed, it's too bad the Cougs and Golden Hurricane didn't begin their seasons until October; September was almost as bad for both as it was for the Boston Red Sox.
Tulsa, however, had a legit excuse...its schedule.
Facing three powerhouses (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Boise State) out of the chute in the first four weeks of the campaign. any Golden Hurricane BCS Buster talk was muffled before autumn officially began. BYU also got off a bit slowly, and had Mitt Romney and other diehards worried when local rival Utah rolled up a 54-10 win at Provo in late September.
But, like in 2010 when the Cougs found traction by midseason, this BYU version also managed to reverse course and concluded its first season as an Independent entry with quite a hot streak. Mendenhall's crew won eight of its last nine and covered the spread in the last six, with a win margin better than 30 ppg the last three triumphs.
Like last year, however, it is fair to question the validity of the late-season uptick accomplished mostly at the expense of struggling WAC and Big Sky opposition. A year ago, BYU answered its critics by blasting UTEP in the New Mexico Bowl. Can the Cougs do the same to Tulsa?
It won’t be as easy, but BYU will like its chances, especially since livewire southpaw QB Riley Nelson returned to action from rib injuries and looked as good mas new in the regular-season finale at Hawaii when passing for 363 yards and 3 TDs. Along the way, Nelson has also developed admirable rapport with wideouts Cody Hoffman and Ross Apo, who combined for 16 TD catches between them. The running game, while not spectacular, has been serviceable, with JJ Di Lugi and Michael Alisa each gaining better than five yards per carry and providing a modest infantry diversion.
In an interesting peripheral development, former starting QB Jake Heaps, a ballyhooed recruit in 2010, has recently decided to transfer to Kansas, although a healthy (and more mobile) Nelson had supplanted him in the lineup.
No matter, the Golden Hurricane will believe it can trade points behind senior QB G.J. Kinne (25 TDP) and a pair of RBs who are closing in on 1000 yards, JeTerian Douglas (8.2 ypc) and Trey Watts (J.C.'s son). Kinne was also able to flourish despite the absence of last year’s top receiver and kick return threat, Damaris Johnson, who was suspended before the season commenced. Johnson’s absence allowed hybrid RB/receiver Willie Carter (61 catches) to emerge as field-distorting threat.
Tulsa's 90th-ranked stop unit, however, leaked more than BYU's, and the Cougars likely have the top defensive playmaker on the field in 6-3 LB Kyle Van Noy (5 sacks; 3 ints.), a force who can also drop back effortlessly into pass coverage and provides Bronco Mendenhall's stop unit added flexibility.
Also remember that the Golden Hurricane "D" was obliterated by the best attacks on the Tulsa slate, most recently by Houston in the C-USA regular-season finale that cost the Golden Hurricane a chance to win the Western half of the conference in coach Bill Blankenship’s first year in charge. Tasked to rejuvenate Tulsa for the bowl game after that 48-16 loss, Blankenship’s motivational skills will be put to the test after a crushing end to the regular season for the Golden Hurricane.