Taking the temperature: What is the state of the Utah-BYU football rivalry?

BYU and Utah football fans haven’t agreed on much throughout the history of their favorite schools’ storied, heated and mostly competitive rivalry.
But many are in accord that the disdain and boorish, out-of-control behavior and rhetoric hit a zenith 15 years ago, after BYU’s 26-23 overtime victory at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo. BYU fans stormed the field, at least one fight broke out when a man grabbed a fan’s cellphone to stop the fan from taking pictures of distraught Utes, and Utah coach Kyle Whittingham’s wife Jamie, who had intervened at some juncture, suffered a fat lip before police took control of the situation.
But that wasn’t all.
Nearly an hour after the game, BYU quarterback Max Hall uttered his now infamous anti-Utah rant, proclaiming he hated “everything” about the school, its fans and its football program. He apologized later, but the ugliness had reached a crescendo that late-November day.
The nastiness wasn’t just happening in Provo. In 2012 at Rice-Eccles Stadium, Utah fans stormed the field three times to celebrate a 24-21 win over BYU, even though the teams were no longer in the same conference, and a picture of fans taunting crestfallen BYU player JD Falslev went viral.
No question, the rivalry burned hot from 2009 to 2021, when BYU, having accepted an invitation to join the Big 12 the day before, snapped Utah’s nine-game winning streak in the series with a 26-17 win in Provo, setting off another wild postgame celebration on the field.
The Cougars and Utes haven’t played since, giving the rivalry its longest break since the schools separated by 45 miles skipped four years playing each other from 1942-46.
That recess will end Saturday, as struggling Utah hosts undefeated BYU at 8:15 p.m. MST in the first-ever Big 12 game pitting the longtime rivals. The stakes are incredibly high for both squads, but especially BYU, which is 8-0 and trying to get into the Big 12 championship game and, possibly, the College Football Playoff. Some say preseason Big 12 favorite Utah (4-4, 1-4) can resurrect a disappointing season with an upset win.
So what is the state of the rivalry now? What is its current temperature? Cold, hot as ever, or somewhere in between?
In his weekly press briefing Monday, BYU coach Kalani Sitake spent more than half of his 27 minutes behind the microphone talking about the rivalry, his friendship with Utah coach Kyle Whittingham — his former boss — and all his connections with the program on the Hill. His primary message to fans, after he said he didn’t like to tell fans how to behave, was to treat each other with respect and admiration.
“We need each other,” Sitake said. “That’s always been the case, and now that we are in the same conference, it is going to be fun (for it) to be a consistent thing that we get to count on this game being (played) every year.”
Sitake said that if it weren’t for Utah, he wouldn’t be at BYU, and if it weren’t for BYU, where Whittingham played, the legendary coach wouldn’t be at Utah.
“I have a lot of love for that program and a lot of love for the people there. I hope the fans can enjoy the game and keep it at that,” Sitake said. “Just remember we are all closely related and we are all connected. … This game can be a rivalry on the field, but let’s show a little bit more appreciation for each other as we go through this game.”
Sitake said having it be a conference game, with so much at stake, makes it even better.
“Now that it is back we can really have fun with it, and that is from the fans’ perspective, but also players and coaches,” he said. “This is a really cool thing that we are both in the Big 12. … This separation (wasn’t good). It truly is a cool reunion and I don’t know what the result of the game is going to be, but the level of respect and admiration should be from both sides, and maybe a bit more understanding.”
Whittingham was far less exhaustive when he talked about the rivalry’s renewal last Monday, which was expected. The Utes’ coach since 1995 has never been as outspoken about the rivalry, or lack of a game some years, as former BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall or Sitake have been.
Whittingham even said the dynamic of the rivalry game doesn’t change that much now that it is a league game again.
“It’s another game, and whether we are in the same league or not, all it does is have implications in the conference standings,” Whittingham said. “Now, we know we don’t have a shot at the conference championship, but otherwise, you approach it the same way.”
He did acknowledge that the tables have been turned from preseason expectations, and a win over the No. 9 team in the country “would be a big help” to Utah’s sinking season. The Utes have lost four straight games.
“We are in desperate need of a win; there’s no doubt about that,” Whittingham said. “We’ve had four in a row now, and the average margin is about a touchdown, so it’s not like we’re not competing.”
Fifteen years ago, after the 2009 game, Mendenhall had this to say to The Salt Lake Tribune about fan behavior getting out of hand:
“It would be great if the fans would take on a stronger spirit of sportsmanship and be able to compete against each other, but do it in a civil way. And I think it certainly is possible, and I think it is desirable, and would add a lot more class to the rivalry. … I am speaking for both sides. Not just one.”
Longtime media member and radio host for The Zone Sports Network, Patrick Kinahan has followed the BYU-Utah rivalry for more than three decades. He spends many of his mornings on 97.5/1280 talking with co-host David James, guests, and fans about the state’s best rivalry, and one of the best in the country.
Kinahan agrees that the rivalry has cooled off a bit because of its three-year absence, but believes Saturday’s game will jumpstart a new era of intensity.
“With a nonconference game, it stinks to lose, but it doesn’t have to be devastating,” Kinahan said, reminding fans that when the Utes lost to BYU in 2021, they still went to the Rose Bowl. “Now that it is back to a conference game, I think it is going to ramp up to all-time levels.”
Kinahan said the rivalry from Utah’s perspective “did go down a little bit” because the Utes had won nine in a row, and also because winning Pac-12 games became more important.
“Utah fans were infatuated with beating USC more than BYU, and they were probably right in doing that,” he said. “For BYU, they have not been on a level playing field as an independent. But now, BYU and Utah can both achieve the same thing, so I think it is going to grow more intense despite Kalani’s repeated efforts to bring out the love between the two schools and the coaches — which is a true thing, but I don’t know if the fans are necessarily going to buy into that.”
Utah’s director of broadcasting, Bill Riley, who also serves as the play-by-play voice for the Utes’ men’s basketball and football teams, said he’s loved calling Utah’s Pac-12 games, particularly against USC, but nothing beats the rivalry game. He’s thrilled that it is back on the schedule, even if it might take a few years for it to get back to where it once was from an intensity standpoint.
“I think it has probably cooled off a little bit, just because they haven’t played in a few years, but I fully expect it to heat back up moving forward with them being in the same conference again and playing every year, which I think is great, because it is my favorite game to call,” Riley said. “I think it will heat up. Obviously this year (is different) with the juxtaposition of where people thought the seasons would be — high expectations going in for Utah and no real expectations for BYU, with so much unknown.
“And now with their seasons going opposite of what people thought before the year, I think that is going to add to next Saturday’s buildup coming in, especially with the game being at Rice-Eccles Stadium,” Riley continued. “It won’t take long to fire back up again.”
Riley believes the trash talk and rhetoric will be somewhat muted this week, partly because of what Sitake had to say Monday, but also because there are only a few players left who got a taste of the rivalry in 2021. The only players left from 2019, the last time BYU lost to Utah, are tight end Keanu Hill and right tackle Brayden Keim.
There’s also the added element of the “four most visible figures” on BYU’s staff “are all Kyle Whittingham’s guys,” Riley said, referring to Sitake, defensive coordinator Jay Hill, offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick and defensive analyst Gary Andersen.
“We have seen plenty of years when one team is a definitive underdog and it ends up being a one-possession game,” Riley said. “Obviously the game for Utah becomes a lot bigger because you can at least show something big for your season. For BYU, it is huge because you are trying to remain undefeated and push toward the playoff. So I don’t think it will lack for storylines, that’s for sure.”
Former BYU defensive lineman Hans Olsen, now a KSL Sports Zone daily radio host and radio color analyst for BYU football games on the BYU Sports Radio Network, said the rivalry is “pretty calm right now” and has “cooled off a little bit,” but quickly adds that everything will change on Saturday.
“All it takes is one league game, maybe even one drive, one coach to feel wronged, one player to feel like he took an illegal hit, one player who doesn’t like the crowd, and then it gets vocalized and then the rivalry fires back into the stratosphere,” Olsen said, sort of summarizing how things went in the 2000s and 2010s. “It will ignite again. It’s only a matter of time.”
Olsen said it “always felt like the games were on the verge of getting ugly” before Sitake replaced Mendenhall in 2015 and said he would cheer for then-Pac-12 member Utah to win every game except one.
“You have got Kalani telling everybody to calm down. Kyle is 4-4 so he is not stomping around and flexing on BYU, and so it feels like it is pretty calm right now,” said Olsen, who was teammates with Sitake. “I feel like ever since Kalani got in as head coach, he’s tried to keep it tempered. He doesn’t trash talk. He doesn’t flex on anybody. He doesn’t try to hold dominion on anybody. He wants it to be a fun game. He wants to win, but he also doesn’t want it to become something that is ugly.”
Olsen said BYU’s win in 2021 “took a lot of weight off a lot of people, including Kalani,” and also alleviated some tension, especially from the BYU side.
“But it probably quietly motivated Kyle, and I am sure it is quietly motivating Utah to get the win this year because they have had to sit on that loss,” Olsen said. “I feel like Kalani getting off that streak, it de-intensified it, deescalated it pretty well. Because now you just don’t hear the noise.”
A call for input from fans on the temperature of the rivalry via the social media website X drew a variety of opinions, mostly from BYU supporters who are feeling good about their team these days.
Here are some of the responses:
“What is the current state of the rivalry? I have no idea. But I’m happy the X algorithm has figured out that I like living in a world where Cougars and Utes can enjoy the rivalry, including playful trash talk, while still being cool to each other at the end of the day.” — Micah McBride, Texas
“The (rivalry) is as heated as it has ever been, for the fans. However, when it comes to the players, it may just be another game. Hopefully now that both teams are in the same conference, the players will start to really feel the heat of the rivalry as much as the fans do.” — Mitch McKenzie, Magna
“As a Utah fan, I’ve missed playing BYU the past few years, but I also miss some of the rivalries we developed in the Pac-12. A lot has changed. Saturday’s game will be interesting — I don’t sense as much animosity toward BYU as in the past. We will see, I guess.” — Kirk Livingston, Salt Lake City
“We don’t just want to beat the Utes this year, we want to blow them out. We want a drubbing. Haven’t given them a true beatdown since 1996.” — Brandon Greenwood, Smithfield
“The rivalry has definitely cooled. I think the landscape shifted, for good, when BYU was announced to the Big 12. The next day BYU finally wins that game vs. Utah, and all of a sudden, Utah’s advantage that it has had for so many years is gone. Utah fans (enjoyed) the fact that they were in a conference, making superior money, playing in ‘big-time’ matchups. Utah had what BYU couldn’t have, and Ute fans absolutely loved that and loved to remind BYU fans of it. The moment the field was leveled, it seems that now Utah fans realize their moment of superiority is gone, and you can now sense the panic up on the Hill. And I love every bit of it.” — Andrew Allman, South Jordan
“I thought it wasn’t a rivalry anymore. Ute fans and (Kyle Whittingham) have been telling us for years that they aren’t BYU’s rival anymore. They’ve got Colorado to worry about.” — Evan Frost, Millcreek
“My father got his BYU season tickets back in the ’70s and we’ve sat in the same spot for almost 50 years (42 in LES). I’ve always said the extreme Utah fans are bad winners and the extreme BYU fans are bad losers. So when BYU is winning the toxicity seems to go way down. In other words, the vitriol in these two weeks will be way better than if the win/loss records were switched.” — Eric Gibbons, Riverton
“I actually think the duration of the layoff has been the perfect amount of time. At the time they last played, I felt like the toxicity of the rivalry was so intense that the game was definitely not worth playing. Now that there has been some time for things to cool off, I feel like some civility has returned to the rivalry. In my interactions, just with friends, at work, at church, that kind of thing, there’s a lot more friendly banter and not nearly as much animosity. I think the timing to play the game again is good, and I’m excited for it to be back. I just hope the current civility can be maintained in the coming years. I have my doubts, but maybe both fan bases will surprise us.” — Parker Lee, Utah fan, South Jordan (Daybreak)
“BYU and Utah fans are missing the boat big time. If they want to be invited to the Big Boy Conferences — SEC, Big Ten — they need to be rooting for the other team to be good, too. They both are much more attractive and have more value if they are both good. Single teams don’t get invited to a conference. They are invited as pairs. We all need to get along and stop hoping for the worst for the other team. Wouldn’t it be great if the (rivalry game) was two 8-0 teams? That would have some national attention.” — Dave T. Fokken, Draper