Episode 12 – Utah wins to keep their slim conference hopes alive and BYU wins to secure at least a share of the conference. The Jazz continue their h

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The smack is really starting to flow freely here at the Utah Sports Cast, now that we are just two skinny weeks away from the annual Utah vs. BYU Rivalry game. This morning Zach and I spend about fifteen minutes instant messaging each other about John Beck’s abilities as a quarterback, and although I was being very complimentary for the most part, the whole session still had that faint taste of vitriol. It was like we were incapable of taking or receiving compliments about each other’s preferred program, even when that was the intended point of the conversation. Both of us were caught up in the rivalry, even though we were still trying to be objective. It was crazy, it was fun, and it only promises to get better for Utah and BYU fans as the weeks progress.

Brigham Young clinched at least a share of the Mountain West Conference championship this week with a horse-whipping of the Wyoming Cowboys, 55-7. They also moved up in both polls, and if you read any of the online stories about it, you will read about so many different polls and rankings it will make your head spin. It’s safe to say BYU is about 24^th in the nation right now, regardless of poll. With a win over New Mexico in the ED (Lavell Edwards Stadium) the Cougars can clinch the conference and likely boost their ranking even farther.

John Beck received the “John Beck Memorial Offensive Player of the Week” award from the Mountain West Conference, which is the fifth time they have given it to him this year. Frankly, Cougar fans, can you honestly tell me he DESERVES to keep winning that particular award? I mean, all he did this week was complete 77% of his passes, going 20 for 26 with 313 yards, throwing two touchdowns and running for two more. That’s it! Plus he became the all-time passing leader in the young Mountain West Conference and number two on the list of BYU’s all-time greats, behind only Ty Detmer. And still, the MWC just keeps shoving that award down his throat. I mean, come on, how about spreading the wealth around a little? Oh yeah, the rest of the offense looked unstoppable and the defense was awesome. In a nice little plus, the Arizona Wildcats beat the Cal Bears in the Pac-10, which not only makes that loss look somewhat more respectable for the Cougars, but keeps the Las Vegas Bowl rematch potential alive.

Utah’s offense came out of the bye week with a vengeance, racking up 526 yards of total offense on their way to a victory over Colorado State. Brett Ratliff, Brent Casteel and Eric Weddle were just a few of the noteworthy contributors on offense, although the impressive game called by Andy Ludwig saw nine different rushers and eight different receivers with the ball (although some of the rushers were also receivers, and vice versa.) Utah’s defense seemed a bit rusty and porous at times, as they let the Rams rush for 148 yards even though that was supposed to be the weak spot for CSU’s offense. The final score was Utah 35, CSU 22, although there was one just-so-we-feel-good-about-ourselves score in the final minute of the game for Colorado State. It’s interesting to note that all but one of Utah’s games this year (New Mexico 34, Utah 31) have been relative blowouts, which means Utah fans have seen a lot of garbage time touchdowns this year, either for or against their team.

The Utah Jazz continued their torrid start, going 2-1 in the previous week to improve their record to 6-1 overall. They dropped their first loss to New Jersey in a game where Carlos Boozer curiously didn’t play the entire fourth quarter, but went on to weather a decent run by Boston and 57 points by Michael Redd in Milwaukee to win both of those games. The Jazz have been impressive and are winning in many different ways this year. They have already had a blowout, several close games where they were forced to execute properly in the final seconds, and a few “hold-on-for-dear-life” situations. The rookies are getting quality minutes and making quality contributions, and Boozer and Williams are consistently good. Not to mention Fisher, Okur, Harpring, and most of the rest. On a sad but expected note, Andrei Kirilenko’s ankle problems have resurfaced and he will be out for a few games tending to a sprain. X-rays were not able to confirm that his ankle is, in fact, made out of porcelain, but Jazz fans everywhere are beginning to wonder.

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posted by Nate and Zach @ 9:37 AM