BYU/Utah Rivalry Taking Two-Year Break For Utes’ Florida Series

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Brigham Young University and the University of Utah have come to terms on a agreement that will allow the Utes to replace the Cougars with the Florida Gators during the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

The announcement was made Monday evening. Earlier in the day, the Gainesville Sun reported Utah had scheduled a home-and-home series with the University of Florida from the Southeastern Conference.

The series is expected to start in 2022 when the Utes will travel to Gainsville, Florida. The Utes will then host the Gators at Rice Eccles Stadium in 2023.

Per sources, Florida has scheduled non-conference games against @Utah_Football with game in Gainesville in 2022 and Salt Lake City the following year. Plan accordingly.

— Pat Dooley (@pat_dooley) September 23, 2019

Utah already had BYU on its schedule for those two seasons, and head coach Kyle Whittingham has said in the past that we would not schedule another Power 5 non-conference game with the Cougars already on the schedule.

As part of the agreement to change the previously agreed upon games, the BYU and Utah agreed to reschedule and add two more games to the schedule.

After taking a two-year break, the teams have added games in 2025, 2026, 2027 and 2028, in addition to games already scheduled for 2020, 2021 and 2024 – seven out of the next nine seasons.

In a joint announcement with BYU, the Utah athletic department announced they were finalizing an agreement with “an opponent from the Southeastern Conference,” but did not confirm the series with Florida.

“We appreciate the tremendous relationship and cooperation we have with Tom Holmoe and BYU to work together to not only ensure the future of this rivalry but to demonstrate the strong partnership that is in place,” said Mark Harlan, Utah’s  athletics director. “We each share the intention to continue this great rivalry in football and across all of our teams for many years to come.”

Official: BYU and Utah are taking a two-year break in the rivalry in the 2022 and 2023 seasons. But they also announce four additional games.

The four additional games will be added to the series in 2025, 2026, 2027 and 2028 @kslsports

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) September 24, 2019

BYU director of athletics, Tom Holmoe, expressed similar sentiments about continuing the rivalry series.

“I appreciate the great working relationship we have with Mark Harlan and many others at Utah,” he said. “We have a responsibility to take care of the future of this great rivalry, not just in football but across all of the sports. There may come a time in the future where we need to ask Utah to make an adjustment for us. That’s how a relationship works. Utah approached us about an opportunity they have and we agreed to work with them.”

Details were not released about what teams BYU planned to play with Utah out of their 2022 and 2023 seasons.

The Utes and Gators have only squared off once in their history, back in November of 1977, when Florida beat Utah 38-29.

The series would mark a reunion of sorts for the two head coaches. Florida head coach Dan Mullen spent time on the staff at Utah from 2003-2004 as the quarterback coach under Urban Meyer, along with current Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham. He was the defensive coordinator and linebacker coach.

When Meyer left to Florida, Mullen went with him.

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If confirmed, Florida would be the second SEC team that Utah has scheduled this year. Earlier, the Utes locked in a home-and-home series with Arkansas for the 2026 and 2028 seasons.

It would also mark the first non-conference away game outside the state of Florida for the Gators since 1991, when they traveled to Syracuse and lost. Florida also recently announced a home-and-home series with Colorado in 2028 and 2029 that would see the team outside the state once more.

Utah already has their non-conference schedule finalized for 2022 and 2023. In 2022 they are scheduled to play BYU, Southern Utah and San Diego State while in 2023 they will play Weber State, Baylor and BYU.

Below are Utah’s non-conference opponents for the next nine seasons:

• 2020: vs. BYU, vs. Montana State, at Wyoming
• 2021: vs. Weber State, at BYU, at San Diego State
• 2022: vs. at SEC team (Florida), vs. Southern Utah, vs. San Diego State
• 2023: vs. Weber State, at Baylor, SEC team (Florida)
• 2024: vs. Southern Utah, vs. BYU, vs. Baylor
• 2025: vs. Wyoming
• 2026: at Houston, vs. Arkansas
• 2027: vs. Houston
• 2028: at Arkansas

BYU’s opponents for the next nine seasons:

• 2020: at Utah, Michigan State, at Arizona State, at Minnesota, Utah State, Missouri, Houston, at Northern Illinois, at Boise State, San Diego State, North Alabama, at Stanford
• 2021: Arizona (in Las Vegas), Utah, Arizona State, Southern Florida, at Utah State, Boise State, at Baylor, at Washington State, Virginia, Idaho State, at Georgia Southern, at USC
• 2022: Baylor, at Oregon, Wyoming, Utah State, Arkansas, at Liberty, at Boise State, Dixie State, East Carolina, at Stanford
• 2023: Tennessee, at Virginia, at Arkansas, at Houston, Boise State, Southern Utah, at USC, Stanford
• 2024: Hawaii, at Wyoming, Georgia Southern, at East Carolina, at UNLV, at NC State
• 2025: Utah, at Hawaii, Stanford, Minnesota, at Boise State, Virginia
• 2026: Utah, Arizona, at Virginia Tech, Boise State
• 2027: Utah, at Arizona, at Boise State
• 2028: Utah, Boise State