Best BYU/Utah Rivalry Moments As Mountain West Conference Opponents

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Some of the best moments of the Holy War came when Utah and BYU were competing against each other in the Mountain West Conference.

Utah and BYU joined the Mountain West Conference in 1999. The Utes left the conference after the 2010 season to compete in the Pac-12 Conference. BYU decided to go independent the same season that the Utes left the Mountain West.

KSL Sports highlights the best moments in the Holy War during the Mountain West Conference era.

2000: Brandon Doman Game-Winning Touchdown

Doman made sure that his head coach LaVell Edwards would win his last rivalry game as the Cougars head coach. Utah was up by one-point with 30 seconds left as he ran in a four-yard touchdown run to give BYU the 34-27 win over Utah at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

BYU’s junior quarterback finished with 284 passing yards and 39 rushing. He had two touchdowns, one passing and one on the ground.

The Cougars finished with a 6-6 record (4-3 MWC) in their second season in the Mountain West Conference.

2001: Luke Staley Scores Two Touchdowns To Beat Utah

The star running back took over for the Cougars and carried them back from a 21-10 deficit in the fourth quarter to score two touchdowns in a two-minute span.

His 30-yard touchdown run gave BYU the win as Utah couldn’t score in the last 1:16 of the game as the Cougars picked up a 24-21 win at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Staley ended up with 169 rushing yards and 28 receiving with two touchdowns.

BYU’s win gave them an undefeated record 11-0 before they lost two of their next three including a 28-10 loss to No. 23 Louisville in the Liberty Bowl. BYU won their first outright Mountain West Conference championship.

2004: Steve Savoy 92-Yard Touchdown Run

The Utah wide receiver scored his second touchdown of the game in the third quarter when he broke out a 92-yard touchdown run that gave the Utes a commanding 38-31 win.

Savoy would score one more time in the fourth quarter as Alex Smith threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to him. Utah knocked of BYU 52-21 to win their second straight Mountain West Conference championship.

The Utes finished with a 12-0 record and beat Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl 35-7.

2005: Travis LaTendresse Touchdown To Give Utah Win In Overtime

In tale of two halves that saw Utah outscore BYU 24-3 in the first half and the Cougars returning the favor with a 31-10 second half advantage saw the game go into overtime.

The first play of overtime, Utah quarterback Brett Ratliff found LaTendresse for a 25-yard touchdown. When BYU had the ball on the next possession, the Utes forced the Cougars to turn the ball over on downs and Utah won 41-34 at LaVell Edwards Stadium. This was Kyle Whittingham’s first rivalry game as the head coach of the Utes.

LaTendresse led the team with six receptions for 88 yards to go with his game-winning touchdown.

Utah finished with a 7-5 record (4-4 MWC) and beat No. 24 Georgia Tech 38-10 in the Emerald Bowl.

2006: John Beck Finds Jonny Harline For Game-Winning Touchdown

The Utes had a 31-27 lead with three seconds left in the game when BYU faced second down at the Utah 11-yard line. Beck dropped back to pass with plenty of time to decide who to throw to. He scrambled to his right and threw the ball to the left side of the field where he found tight end Jonny Harline wide open in the end zone to give BYU the 33-31 win over Utah at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

That was Harline’s third touchdown catch of the game to go with 118 receiving yards on seven receptions.

The Cougars won their second Mountain West Conference championship and finished the season with an 11-2 record (8-0 MWC) and beat Oregon 38-8 in the Las Vegas Bowl.

2007: Austin Collie Fourth Down Conversion

Utah was leading 10-9 with 1:13 left in the game when the Cougars faced a fourth and 18 on their own 12 yard line. Hall threw the ball deep down the field and wide receiver Austin Collie caught the pass for a 49-yard game that set up BYU’s game-winning touchdown. BYU won the game 17-10 at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Collie finished with five receptions for 126 yards.

BYU ended the season another 11-2 record (8-0 MWC) and won their third Conference championship. They beat UCLA 17-16 in the Las Vegas Bowl.

2009: Andrew George Touchdown In Overtime

After Utah kicker Joe Phillips hit a 40-yard field goal to send the game into overtime, the Utes scored first in the extra period on another field goal. BYU’s first play in overtime saw quarterback Max Hall connect with tight end Andrew George for a 25-yard touchdown and a 26-23 win over Utah at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

That touchdown catch was George’s second grab and he finished with 43 receiving yards.

BYU ended the season with an 11-2 mark (7-1 MWC) and beat No. 18 Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

2010: Brandon Burton Blocked Field Goal

BYU kicker Mitch Payne attempted the game-winning field goal as BYU was trailing 17-16. Utah defensive back Brandon Burton ran around the edge of the lineman and blocked the kick to give the Utes a 17-16 win over BYU at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

This was the final game that the two rivals would face each other as conference opponents.

The Utes finished the season with a 10-3 record (7-1 MWC) and lost to No. 10 Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl 26-3.