The Roar #3: "Shocked", tale of two halves, little brother, & Sark to USC

1. BYU gets "Shocked":

BYU faced the then 12th-ranked Wichita State Shockers (who are now ranked #11 in the AP poll, #10 in the Coaches) last Tuesday only to fall short in what was a close game, but ended very ugly. Nate Austin was throwin' "bows", and Dave Rose popped a blood vessel in his neck from yelling at the refs near the end of the game, or so it seemed. BYU lost by 13 points, which I don't have a problem with. As painful as it was when it happened, the better the teams BYU plays at the beginning of the season in non-conference play, the better suited and prepared BYU will be when entering WCC play, and the post-season.

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2. Tale of two halves:

What many considered was going to be blowout were soon surprised that BYU was down 10-0 at halftime to the 4-7 Wolf Pack. BYU's offense showed the ineptness that has existed in Provo since 2010. Good thing BYU snapped out of it in the 2nd half scoring 28 points under the legs of Jamaal Williams who had 15 carries for 219 yards and a score and was named the Independent Offensive Player of the Week. Hill also chipped in 26 carries for 154 yards and a TD, and was very accurate throwing 14/18 (78 percent) with 2 TD's. BYU finished 8-4 on the season and will face the 6th place Pac 12 opponent which right now is 8-4 Sark-less Washington.

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3. Still the Little Brother:

The Utah State Aggie fans aren't too fond of BYU. Twitter exploded with all sorts of trash-talking of Aggie bitterness before and after BYU beat Utah State in Energy Solutions Arena on Saturday 85-74 behind Tyler Haws' 21 points. Although the one-sided rivalry has been close the last few years, Utah State proudly and continuously embraces the role as BYU's little brother.

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4. BYU's Sark to USC:

Former All-American BYU QB Steve Sarkisian took the head coaching position at USC today. He had been the head coach at Washington the past 4 years. He's took them to four straight bowl games which is impressive considering he took over a program that went 0-12 the season before he arrived. Winning is in his bones. It was at BYU when he went 14-1 in '96 and led BYU to a Cotton Bowl victory and a top 5 ranking. It was while he was the QB coach at USC that the Trojans won 2 National Championships under Pete Carroll. And it most recently was at Washington when he turned around a program that was win-less the year before leading the Huskies to four post-season appearances, 8-4 this season. Congrats to Sark from Cougar Nation!

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5. How BYU's opponents finished:

Wisconsin finished 9-3, Texas 8-3 (with one game to play), Notre Dame 8-4, Boise State 8-4, Houston 8-4, Utah State 8-4 (with one game to play), Middle Tennessee 8-4, Georgia Tech 7-5, Utah 5-7, Nevada 4-8, Idaho State 3-9, and Virginia 2-10. Eight teams BYU faced this season finished with winning records and are bowl eligible. BYU went 6-2 in those 8 games. BYU went 2-2 against the 4 teams they faced that finished with losing records. BYU went 4-1 against teams that finished with an 8-4 record, 5-1 if Texas loses this week. BYU's most likely bowl opponent, Washington, is also 8-4.

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Your turn:

Question 1: What is BYU basketball's most impressive win so far this season?

Question 2: Are you satisfied with BYU football's 8-4 regular season record on this year's schedule?

Question 3: Do BYU fans consider Utah State a legitimate rivalry?

Question 4: Do you feel Sarkisian was qualified to take over the head coaching position at USC?

Question 5: Are you impressed with how BYU fared against the 8 teams that finished with winning records? (6-2)

Feel free to answer any or all of these questions in the comments below. Also you can chime in on whether you agree or disagree with any of the statements made above.