BYU football Op Ed: The entire program needs a united goal and vision

A united fan base.

We fans have work to do, too.

Some are upset that Ty Detmer was relieved of his offensive coordinator duties, others are still upset that BYU let Mendenhall walk away. Some are worried about the culture being established.

All fans can agree on wins. Winning is a good thing, But there’s more to it than just wining and losing. It all depends on how those wins and losses happen.

BYU football fans were happy with Sitake’s first season, a 9-4 campaign that saw the Cougars win the Poinsettia Bowl. The losses were close and things were good.

But what if those losses were blowouts? Would things have felt the same?

Maybe not. Which brings us to our next point.

Look ahead to BYU football’s schedule next season.

Home Games: California, McNeese State, Utah State, Hawaii, Northern Illinois, New Mexico State

Away Games: Arizona, Wisconsin, Washington, Boise State, UMass, Utah

Run through that schedule. How many wins do you see?

Even with the bluest of blue goggles on, you come away with nine victories. But more realistically, you’re looking at six to seven wins.

McNeese State, Utah State, Hawaii, Northern Illinois and New Mexico State seem like wins. So that puts you at five wins. Arizona, Wisconsin, Washington and Boise State are probably losses. That leaves us with California and Utah. Splitting those games puts the Cougars at 6-6.

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Would fans be happy with 6-6? Maybe if the games were all close and competitive. But things don’t get easier schedule-wise for the Cougars. Front-loaded Independent schedules are tough to deal with.

And if those six or seven win seasons continue, fans will be just as upset. On paper, it will look like the entire program got worse. In reality, it will probably be that P5 programs just got better. But even if my last assumption is incorrect, and the Cougars get worse (or plateau at a lower level), then what will be done?

Fans will be mad, but will the donor money be there? Will the BYU Board of Trustees decide to pony up the cash necessary to play with the big boys?

What needs to happen?

Everyone needs to get on the same page.

Fans need to determine what they’re happy with. If six to eight wins, no major upsets and competitive games are what we want, cool. Let’s get it.

If getting ranked, playing in primetime, reaching a NY6 bowl is the goal, then we need to figure some things out.

The administration needs to determine what it wants, too. If being flexed to a 9:30 PM Eastern time slot on a Friday night in October on ESPN2 is what they want, cool. Be open about it. But don’t keep saying that the goal is to compete at the highest level, only to not put forth the necessary actions.

That’s like saying the intentions are to win a race, then tying your shoe laces together.

But regardless, we each have a part to play in this. And while the Board of Trustees, Tom Holmoe, Kalani Sitake, the staff, the players and the fans all have differing opinions, we all share one thing:

A love for BYU football. Let’s use that, come together to lift up a program that’s at a crossroad.

Rise and shout. Day or night. Rain or snow.