Brigham Young University began its football program officially in 1922. Over their many years playing college football, the Cougars have played in over 1,000 games. That long history means the BYU Cougars rank among the most popular teams on the West Coast, and have a huge fan base that shows up for every big game. BYU is an Independent, which means they play a schedule of top teams from across college football's major conferences. Each season the BYU schedule is a bit difference, except that you can expect them to play big name teams like Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, Boise State, Idaho, USC, Utah and Utah State. Their fans have high expectations for BYU in 2021 and want to see the Cougars secure a spot in a top bowl game.
The Cougars found their greatest success when they hired LaVell Edwards as head coach in 1972, and he implemented his unorthodox aggressive passing scheme while other college football teams were relying on run-heavy offenses. BYU's ability to rack up points fast is something still seen in Provo today. Edwards coached until 2000. They would win a national championship in 1984 and 19 conference titles under coach Edwards. After Edwards' departure and before becoming an "Independent" program the Cougars won more conference championships and still is an exciting team to watch today.
BYU Top Games
- vs Boise State
- vs Idaho
- vs USC
- vs Utah (the Holy War)
- vs Utah State (winner claims the Old Wagon Wheel trophy)
Holy War Tickets (BYU vs Utah)
The biggest opponent on BYU's schedule each season is the Utah Utes. The BYU vs Utah football game is known as the "Holy War" by locals who claim it is the most intense rivalry game in college football. The two schools located a mere 45 minutes apart have played each other over 100 times in their history, making it one of the longest running games in football.