UTEP it is

Whooohoo! I can hardly contain my excitement :)



http://www.newmexicobowl.com/index.php/news/144/38/UTEP-Accepts-Invitation-to-2010-New-Mexico-Bowl" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Imagine playing our team from the first half of the season and that's basically what UTEP is. They've done the exact opposite of us. They started 5-1 but lost 5 of the last 6 to finish 6-6. I think we will murder them.



So THIS is what ute bowl games feel like.

UTEP already had a 30 point loss to the Cougars this year---the Houston Cougars.



Lets make it 2 for 2.

This bowl is exactly what we need this year. more time to practice and another game that we can get experience in and win. Happy about it.

I don't think UTEP is any worse or better now than they were when they were 5-1. Their schedule was front loaded with cupcake games at home and near the end it was loaded with road games. They had 6 home and 6 road games so it eventually balanced out.



UTEP was 5-1 at home and 1-5 on the road if I counted correctly. They did manage to beat New Mexico on the road and that was it. They did not play any particularly great teams. SMU might be their marquee win. They lost to some pretty ordinary teams on the road.



What I am saying is that if we played their schedule, we would possibly have been 5-1 early on and the difference is, with our later improvement when Jake Heaps started throwing with precision aond consistency and the defense got shaken up by Bronco, we probably would have gone about 5-1 on the back end of their schedule as well.



That is the optimistic view - 10-2 Vs their schedule and no possible way any worse than 8-4 in my book. But, UTEP might have beaten us if we had played them at their crib the week we played USU. If Nelson had stayed healthy - which he might have done vs UTEP's level of opponents, while Heaps further developed, we might have won them all.



We should have scheduled cupcakes outside of conference. We would have made as much noise as Utah this year.



On a neutral field in a less than 3 weeks - I think we are going to end our season with a winning record. For me - this really matters. I hope the coaches and team take this game as seriously as a rematch iwth Utah or Nevada would have been taken or a tough one vs Hawaii or Boise State would have been - ND, etc.



I will be able to put this season behind me if we end it 7-6 (8-5 if you count the moral victory over Utah). I originally expected 8-4 with a Bowl loss likely. Ending it 6-7 would be a bitter pill to swallow. There can be no moral victory Vs UTEP.

I do not remember a situation where BYU was or will be probably more favored against an bowl opponent then UTEP, but just as in the 1985 game where BYU was favored heavily and gave UTEP their ONLY win that season, it's hard to ignore them. I think we've lost enough this season to come out strong against the Miners.



With a 6-6 record, I can't actually think of a better selection. Yea, we could probably beat a ranked team or at least someone a whole lot better than UTEP, but with a 6-6 record and no chance to be ranked whatsoever, this situation really is ideal. Get the extra practices, end the season 7-6, and get home for the holidays.

I'm usually not overconfident about games, but I'm pretty confident BYU is going to slaughter UTEP.

We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

scott715 wrote:
We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

I bet we get in about 9 practices. It's a really poor time for a bowl. Finals are next week.

scott715 wrote:
We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

No, not as I understand the rules. There is a limitation on the number of hours they can spend in a week, something around 20 hours, including the game. There may be some loophole for when classes are over and finals are done, but those obviously don't apply here as the bowl game is the day after the last day of finals.

kitic77 wrote:

We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

I bet we get in about 9 practices. It's a really poor time for a bowl. Finals are next week.

That's always the "tough deal" about college sports - especially football. Trying to get ready for a bowl game & having the crunch of Finals weighing down on you @ the same time. It's really a grind. But - I'm excited fir this Bowl game. I think the newly energized Coug Team gets a chance to showcase themselves & end on an up-beat note to end a difficult year. This game should be a solid positive for BYU Football.

byutx wrote:

We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

No, not as I understand the rules. There is a limitation on the number of hours they can spend in a week, something around 20 hours, including the game. There may be some loophole for when classes are over and finals are done, but those obviously don't apply here as the bowl game is the day after the last day of finals.

20 hours a week is for the regular season, but after the season is over, if you're invited to a bowl, you allowed 20 additional practice spots to use, but the 20 hour a week rule still applies.

hawkwing wrote:

scott715 wrote:
We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

No, not as I understand the rules. There is a limitation on the number of hours they can spend in a week, something around 20 hours, including the game. There may be some loophole for when classes are over and finals are done, but those obviously don't apply here as the bowl game is the day after the last day of finals.

20 hours a week is for the regular season, but after the season is over, if you're invited to a bowl, you allowed 20 additional practice spots to use, but the 20 hour a week rule still applies.

In other words, it would not be possible to have 2-a-days unless those practices were really short.

hawkwing wrote:

scott715 wrote:
We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

No, not as I understand the rules. There is a limitation on the number of hours they can spend in a week, something around 20 hours, including the game. There may be some loophole for when classes are over and finals are done, but those obviously don't apply here as the bowl game is the day after the last day of finals.

20 hours a week is for the regular season, but after the season is over, if you're invited to a bowl, you allowed 20 additional practice spots to use, but the 20 hour a week rule still applies.

Does the rule state that the practices have to occur before the bowl game? Bring the scout team and freshmen back for the remaining practices after the bowl game is over.

Wickchad84087 wrote:

byutx wrote:

We are allowed 20 practices but the game is 2 weeks away. How many practices do you think we will get in? Can they do two a day just before the game?

No, not as I understand the rules. There is a limitation on the number of hours they can spend in a week, something around 20 hours, including the game. There may be some loophole for when classes are over and finals are done, but those obviously don't apply here as the bowl game is the day after the last day of finals.

20 hours a week is for the regular season, but after the season is over, if you're invited to a bowl, you allowed 20 additional practice spots to use, but the 20 hour a week rule still applies.

Does the rule state that the practices have to occur before the bowl game? Bring the scout team and freshmen back for the remaining practices after the bowl game is over.

I'm pretty sure it does, but it would be neat to see the actual wording in the rules.

I think taking a break was a good idea. The players will come back rested and ready to practice with a renewed intensity.



It's just too bad that BYU plays in the first bowl game of the year. Later bowls can almost take 2 weeks off and still get the max practices.

Mars wrote:


No one mentioned that Bronco gave the team the entire week off after Utah. That could have been 6 practices. Bad idea? The team is going to practice 11 times, out of 15 available. Could have given the guys just Monday and Tuesday off and gotten back to work on Wednesday, instead of waiting all the way until the next Monday again...

I don't think we were allowed to practice before the bowl invitation.



But yes, I do think even just a light walkthrough to get back in the practice on Thursday and Friday could have been beneficial.

kitic77 wrote:

No one mentioned that Bronco gave the team the entire week off after Utah. That could have been 6 practices. Bad idea? The team is going to practice 11 times, out of 15 available. Could have given the guys just Monday and Tuesday off and gotten back to work on Wednesday, instead of waiting all the way until the next Monday again...

I don't think we were allowed to practice before the bowl invitation.



But yes, I do think even just a light walkthrough to get back in the practice on Thursday and Friday could have been beneficial.

I read on another site that teams that are 6-6 are allowed to practice up until bowl selection Sunday. But it was just some smuck of a fan, not even smart enough to be a BYU fan, so take that with a grain of salt.