Recently I've felt an itch to post something on this blog again, if for no other reason than to give me something to go back and read someday. Plus, I've got to get this down on a permanent media like a blog, in case I'm right about the 2012 season for BYU.
It all starts with a lyric from Jonny Biscuit’s famous Tysman Rap. “Provo’s kind of sleepy ‘til about September 1st”. September 1st must be a special date. Here’s what’s happened over the past 30+ years when it fell on a Saturday (BYU record that year in parenthesis):
1979 (11-1) BYU starts the year off beating nationally-ranked Texas A&M in a nationally televised game then goes undefeated during the regular season and narrowly misses a perfect season when Brent Johnson misses a field goal against Indiana in the Holiday Bowl.
1984 (13-0) Undefeated, National Championship, obviously the best year in BYU football history.
1990 (10-3) Beat #1 Miami, Ty wins the Heisman Trophy, BYU ranked as high as #2 early in the season and again as high as #4 late in the season.
2001 (12-2) BYU wins 12 straight games and is ranked as high as #8 and in discussions for a BCS bowl before the Hawaii game, Luke Staley wins the Doak Walker award.
2007 (11-2) BYU goes undefeated in the MWC capping off a second straight year of beating every conference team, ends the season with the nation's longest winning streak (10) and ranked in the top 15, plus you had "Magic Happens"/Manumaleuna's block to end the season.
That means over the past 38 years, whenever September 1 falls on a Saturday, BYU’s season record is 57-8, an astounding 87.7% winning percentage. They also won a National Championship, a Heisman Trophy, and a Doak Walker award in those years. Besides 1990 (when the longest streak was just 6 games), each season included a double-digit winning streak. Every year was a double-digit win year. With September 1 falling on a Saturday in 2012, this could be a special year.
(By the way, if somehow Leap Year in 1996 could have been moved to 1997, then September 1 would have fallen on a Saturday that year as well and we could have included a 14-1 season with a New Year’s Day Bowl on the list.)
So there you have it. Pencil BYU in for at least 10 wins, probably more. Look for a long winning streak. And count on something special happening this season.
Often I will end an email or blog post with "Go Cougars!", but that is too ambiguous for today.
Go BYU!
