50. 11/23/74 – BYU earns first ranking in national polls after Utah win: BYU – 48, Utah - 20

             The BYU Cougars (6-3-1) hosted the Utah Utes (1-8) to close out their regular season schedule with a chance to clinch the WAC championship. The most unique part of that statement to modern BYU fans might be the fact that they were part of a football athletic conference. Or maybe the fact that Utah had a 1-8 record. Or maybe even that schools as prestigious as BYU and Utah played for the WAC. But to Y fans of that era, the most unique aspect was that their team actually had a shot at the title. After all, the program had only won one league championship in their first 49 seasons, and had never been ranked among the nation’s top 20 teams. However, after having knocked off two ranked teams that seasons, Cougar fans were confident that this year would bring Provo its second conference championship.

That feeling was boosted on the very first play of the game. John Bethem received the opening kickoff in the end zone, and zipped straight up the middle of the field, plowing through one large clump of players en rout to a record-tying 100-yard kickoff return. Although Utah made it as far as the Cougar 20 on the ensuing possession, the Cougar D took back possession when Larry Carr captured their first interception of the night. The Defense dominated the line the remainder of the quarter, not allowing a single first down. On offense, meanwhile, QB Gary Sheide, organized a 64-yard TD drive midway through the quarter. Sheide hit Tim Mahoney with a 12-yard TD pass to double their lead.

Midway through the second, Sheide tacked on another 7 with a 1-yard keeper. However, a Cougar fumble on their next possession allowed the Utes a grand opportunity to get back in the game. After a short drive, Homer Warner found Willy Armstead with a 22-yard TD pass, giving Ute fans something to cheer about. Still, the Cougs headed back to the locker room with a 21-6 lead when the half drew to a close.

When the Utes came out for the second half, they came out a bit too aggressive, tossing up their second interception of the night, thanks to Dana Wilgar. The Cougars took advantage of the miscue, executing a 45-drive, and handing the ball off to star RB Jeff Blanc for a 2-yard TD score. A Ute fumble at their own 10 a couple of minutes later set up the Cougars’ next score - another 2-yard TD rush by Blanc. With a comfortable 29-point lead, Cougar fans began celebrating.

To their credit, the Utes didn’t give up. Midway through the fourth, Steve Peake capped a 48-yard drive with a 5-yard TD rush. However, a fumble recovery in Ute territory led to another Cougar TD - a 4-yard toss to Todd Christensen. When Frank Linford intercepted another Ute pass, and ran it back 55 yards for a Pick 6 with less than 3 minutes remaining, the party in Provo was going full throttle. Even a late Utah TD, a 4-yard rush by Jim Miller, and the resulting 2-point conversion couldn’t dampen the mood.

Jeff Blanc
Courtesy of BYU Photo

Gary Sheide
Courtesy of BYU Photo


After starting the season 0-3-1, the Cougars finished the regular season with a school record 7 straight wins, winning the WAC with a record of 6-0-1, and jumped into the AP poll at #20 for the first time in program history. Much of their success was attributed to QB Gary Sheide, who was finally gaining recognition as the nation’s premier passer, becoming the school’s first ever Sammy Baugh Trophy winner - an award that would become synonymous with BYU QBs for the next couple of decades. Nevertheless, it was on the ground that BYU crushed the Utes, outrushing Utah 173 yards to 37, thanks to Jeff Blanc’s 122 rushing yards. Following the win, the Cougars accepted an invitation to their first bowl game - the 1974 Fiesta Bowl vs. the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

 Season highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzbw0PbMDBM

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cougar Centennial preview

 This blog is dedicated to highlighting the 100 greatest games in BYU Cougar football history. I've been a BYU fan since I was a little kid, and attended the university from 1992-1996. When I realized that 2022 was the 100th anniversary of BYU's first official football game, I decided to compile a list of the 100 greatest games in the program's history (from 1922-2021) and do a write-up for each of those games. I did something similar for the 50th anniversary of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and figured I'd share my efforts with other BYU fans out there. Throughout the blog, I will be referring to Top 25 (or Top 20 prior to the expansion of the polls) rankings of either BYU or the teams they played. I realize that there are a couple of major polls, and even a few less famous ones, but for consistency sake I've decided to use the AP poll as the official ranking (even though BYU tends to be appreciated more by the coaches' poll). Also, many posts refer to the...
Read more

#98 - 11/1/80 – Most points in a game: #17 BYU – 83, UTEP - 7

Image
Junior QB Jim McMahon didn’t like to share the limelight with anyone. Yet that is exactly what he’d had to do in Provo. When Jim arrived in 1977, he found himself the backup to Marc Wilson, who enjoyed a spectacular sophomore season. The next year, the two QBs shared time behind center. That didn’t work out so well, so McMahon redshirted in 1979 - Wilson’s senior season. The result was the first undefeated regular season in team history. Now, it was Jim’s turn, and he wanted to break every single one of Wilson’s records, as well as set a bunch of new ones. Unfortunately, the Cougars started the 1980 season with a surprise loss to lightly regarded New Mexico. The loss served as a wake-up call to BYU, who were universally picked to repeat as WAC champions. The Cougars rolled out six straight victories, including a 28-3 win over Wisconsin on Sept. 20. These were convincing wins - with a minimum margin of victory of 16+ points. However, the Cougs didn’t break into the Top 20 until Oct. 18,...
Read more

#100 12/28/74 – BYU's first Bowl game: Oklahoma St. - 16, #17 BYU – 6

Image
               When the BYU Cougars (7-3-1) started the 1974 season with a 0-3-1 record, nobody would have guessed that they’d come back and win the WAC. However, since their 3 losses were against non-conference schools, they successfully won the conference title with a 6-0-1 record by knocking off two ranked teams (Arizona & Arizona State). As the winner of the WAC, the Cougars were invited to their first bowl game, to face the Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-5) of the Big 8 in the fourth annual Fiesta Bowl.                In the first quarter, the Cougar D corralled the Cowboys, forcing punts on each of the Cowboys first 5 possessions. The Cougar offense, meanwhile, moved the ball well early on. Senior QB Gary Sheide led the Cougars to the Cowboy 13, where Mark Uselman booted a 30-yard  field goal. Although they punted on their second possession, the Cougars took advantage of good field positi...
Read more