Rivalry Week 2007 - RANKINGS

Ranking the Best BYU vs. Utah Games

As a preface to these rankings, I tried to be somewhat objective (at least as objective as a die-hard BYU fan can be) in thinking about the best games. I ordered the rankings taking into account three things:

*DRAMA (how dramatic the game was, decided in the last few minutes or seconds)

*SEASON SIGNIFICANCE (how much the game meant to the team, above and beyond pride, taking into account conference championship implications, national rankings, perfect seasons, and breaking of streaks)

*BACK AND FORTH (lead changes, momentum swings, etc)

TOP 10:

1. 2006: BYU 33 - Utah 31 Classic game, BYU jumps out to a 14-0 lead, then falls behind 24-14 going into the 4th quarter. Beck leads the Cougars to two touchdowns and takes 27-24 lead, Utes score to go up 31-27 with just 1:19 left. Then John Beck hits Jonny Harline with no time left and BYU takes home the victory and ends the Utes 4-game winning streak in the series.

2. 1993: Utah 34 - BYU 31 The Utes may still consider this one the greatest game for them, partly because of the way it was won, a 55-yard field goal with 25 seconds left, but also the fact that it was the Utes first win in Provo since 1971 and BYU had won 19 of the previous 21 in the series.

3. 2001: BYU 24 - Utah 21 With the Utes leading 21-10 in the fourth quarter, Brandon Doman and Luke Staley put together two touchdowns in the final five minutes and gave the Cougs their first win over the Utes in Provo in a decade. Also, the win kept the Cougars undefeated season alive.

4-tie. 2000: BYU 34 - Utah 27 It has been called the "Miracle for LaVell" and the Cougars, after having dominated the game for 3 quarters and enjoying a 26-10 advantage, fell behind 27-26 and needed Brandon Doman to hit Jonathon Pittman on back-to-back bombs converting a 4th and 23 from their own 10 yard-line. Fitting for LaVell, the man who turned the series history on its head by winning 22 out of 29 games against the Utes.

4-tie. 1994: Utah 34 - BYU 31 The Utes claimed their second victory in a row over the Cougars by scoring two touchdowns in the last 6:30 of the game. Their touchdowns sandwiched a John Walsh touchdown to Mike Johnston with 2 minutes left. The Utes got a long kickoff return and scored the game winner with less than a minute to go. This one ties with the LaVell game because of how good both teams were this year (BYU finished 10-3 and the Utes finished 11-2 and both finished in the top 10 nationally)

6. 2005: Utah 41 - BYU 34 OT This game makes the list for a few reasons, one being the fact that it was the first overtime game in the series history and another that the halves were dominated so thoroughly by each team. The Utes held a commanding 24-3 lead at halftime with backup QB Brett Ratliff leading the team. The second half belonged to BYU who came all the way back, outscoring the Utes 31-10 in the second half to tie it at 34. The Utes converted on their series and the Cougars couldn't answer (redemption would have to wait another year).

7. 1998: BYU 26 - Utah 24 The "doink" heard round the state was Ryan Kaneshiro's chip-shot field goal missed in the closing seconds perserving a BYU victory and giving the Cougars the WAC Northern Division title. The Utes trailed 26-17 with only a few minutes to go, but a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown gave Utah hope. They got the ball back and drove down inside the Cougar redzone, but Kaneshiro's kick hit off the right upright.

8. 1999: Utah 20 - BYU 17 The Utes got a piece of the first ever MWC title by beating the Cougar again in Provo. Kevin Feterik's touchdown pass gave the Cougars reason to believe another comeback was in the works, but an interception late in the 4th quarter gave the Utes they victory and a share of the title with BYU and CSU.

9. 1985: BYU 38 - Utah 28 The game featured stars on both sides of the ball and both teams came in with good records, BYU 9-2, Utah 8-3. It was tied 21-21 at halftime. The Cougars controlled the 3rd quarter, but in the snow blizzard, the Utes battled back to within 31-28 midway through the 4th quarter. Lakei Heimuli broke through the Utes' line and went 83 yards for the score with just 7 minutes to go. The win gave the Cougars a shot at the conference title the following week against AFA (a loss and that game wouldn't have mattered against an undefeated AFA team).

10. 1996: BYU 37 - Utah 17 This one was a little self-indulgent and shows my BYU pride, but as far as the Cougars go, this had to be one of the best games in the last 30 years. The Utes had taken 3 straight in the series (2 in Provo). The Cougs went on the hill and dominated the Utes from start to finish, beating them by 20 and it wasn't even that close. The Cougars ran for over 350 yards, Sarkisian only passed for 70 yards and the Cougars continued their march to an amazing 14-1 season.