You all know my personal story with last year's rivalry game. No need to revisit sad memories.
So, instead, let's focus on a good one - Brandon Burton's blocked field goal.
Since the 2006 season, Utah fans had been tormented by close, last second losses to BYU. The stretch of awful, emotionally exhausting defeats at the hands of our rivals was only broken up by the lone lopsided victory in this series since the Whittingham-Roscoe era began. Of course, that was the '08 game and Utah, with a huge third and fourth quarter, cruised to a 48-24 victory over the Cougars, punching their ticket to the BCS.
But outside that game, we had Harline Is Still Open, Magic Happens and George Is Still Running. In all three defeats, the Utes held the lead before each heartbreaking play materialized. '06 still remains the most painful of losses because Utah was one stop away from pulling off arguably one of the biggest upset in the rivalry's history.
With one block, though, all that pain washed away. The close losses, giving Cougar fans a year's worth of fodder, vanished with one play.
The game itself was pretty unremarkable. Neither team could find any offensive movement and though the Utes trailed 13-0 heading into the fourth quarter, you sensed they would eventually make a play or two to get back into it.
And that's exactly what they did. To start the fourth, Joe Phillips connected on a 40-yard field goal and pulled Utah to within 10 points. A touchdown less than two minutes later would make it a three point game before a Mitch Payne kick ballooned the lead to six points.
That's where Jordan Wynn had one of the biggest throws of the game, hitting Dallin Rogers on a 30 yard pass that put the Utes at BYU's three and, a play later, Matt Asiata punched it in for the go ahead score.
Of course, this is the Holy War and rarely do games end like that. There was still nearly five minutes left in the game, plenty of time left for a Cougar game-winning drive.
Cue the '06, '07, '09 flashbacks.
Brandon Burton was not going to have any of that. After the Cougars toyed its way down the field to get into field goal range, the heavens opened, God smiled on our fair Utes and we created a little magic of our own.
Brandon Burton's Game Winning Blocked Field Goal vs. BYU in 2010 (via UtahUtesHighlights)