Memoirs: BYU is competing for so much more than their Notre Dame adversary

Welcome to Memoirs from the Mount, a column that explores the twisting catacombs of my consciousness. From the solitary peak of Mount Fuji to the cascading slopes of Mount Timpanogos, I'm sending a telegram of my perspective on current events surrounding BYU athletics.

Previous edition of Memoirs: Inching closer to BYU football's point of no return

I'm sure you've heard by now, but in case you haven't, the second-ranked team in the AP Top 25, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, are coming to LaVell Edwards Stadium this weekend for a dance with the eighth-ranked BYU Cougars.

People are calling it the biggest home game in the history of BYU's football program and stuff like that; it's a very big deal. Most of all, this is the exact opportunity this football team has been craving since last season, when they were snubbed from the 12-team College Football Playoff for the second consecutive season.

Notre Dame, on the opposite sideline, also feels they were wrongfully excluded from last season's CFP. So much so that the Pop-Tarts Bowl invited the Irish -- the first team out, according to the CFP rankings -- to face off against BYU, the second team out.

Notre Dame declined. Instead, they chose to abstain from the postseason entirely. Playoff or bust.

BYU went on to win the Pop-Tarts Bowl against Georgia Tech. They were subsequently declared the "People's National Champion", sacrificed a sentient Pop-Tart via the world's largest toaster, and head coach and quarterback celebrated by stuffing their faces with the sizzling flesh of that brave toaster pastry.

Moments like that are what make college football so beautiful.

BYU vs Notre Dame is a matchup of destiny

But sweet as that victory may have been, it was ultimately hollow. How could a Power Four football team win 12 games in a single season without participating in the College Football Playoff?

Notre Dame, baffled and incensed, questioned how football royalty could be stripped of the benefit of the doubt.

It was a muddy situation for the College Football Playoff committee, which had to justify its decision against the outrage of a nation. That outrage led to a significant change over the offseason.

First, Notre Dame was granted an exception to the CFP's selection criteria. So long as they're ranked in the top-12 by the end of the season, no automatic bid can bump the Irish from the bracket. No other team is afforded this luxury.

Something changed for BYU football as well: the Cougars had been granted national respect.

Returning head coach Kalani Sitake, young quarterback Bear Bachmeier, star running back and reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year LJ Martin, and maintaining nearly the entirety of the previous season's exceptional defensive unit, the Cougars were a known commodity in college football, and earned their highest preseason ranking since 1985.

For the first time in recent memory, BYU football had the benefit of the doubt.

Two years ago, BYU was 5-0 entering Week 7 and ranked 14th overall.

Last year, BYU was also 5-0 entering Week 7 and ranked 18th overall.

In this year, 2026, BYU is once again 5-0 entering Week 7, but will face Notre Dame as the 8th-ranked team in the nation. Consistency has gotten the Cougars to this point -- one more win could push them further beyond.

And while the result of this game will have no effect on BYU's chances to win the Big 12 Conference title and earn the league's automatic CFP bid, the Cougars are playing for so much more with the Irish coming into town.

BYU has a point to prove.

In 2025, the Cougars began the year 8-0. It's an incredible accomplishment for a team that wasn't even bowl eligible in 2023, their first season as a member of the Big 12 Conference. But there's always a bigger fish, and that fish's name was Texas Tech.

Last season, BYU football faced top-10 Red Raiders twice with a playoff spot on the line. They scored only 7 points in each of those games and lost by a combined 49 points between the two. Debate all you want on the morality of barring the Cougars from the Playoff with their only losses coming at the hands of a team that had earned a first-round bye -- Kalani Sitake's team was outmatched and overwhelmed during their audition.

Fair or not, the margin for error is microscopic for Big 12 Conference representatives on the national scale. Yes, the league's champion will be granted entry to the 12-team CFP bracket by the end of the season, but no Big 12 affiliate has ever earned an at-large bid since the expansion from 4 teams.

Not 11-2 BYU or 10-2 Utah from a season ago.

Not 10-2 BYU, or 10-3 Iowa State in 2024.

The Cougars are lining up an opportunity to prove their worth to a national audience. ESPN's College GameDay will be in town for the first time in nearly two decades. Airing on national television during the primetime slot, BYU-Notre Dame is the premier contest on the college football schedule; all eyes will be on the field in Provo, Utah, this Saturday.

With a win, BYU can earn the respect of a nation. Not only for themselves, but for the Big 12 Conference as a whole. It's a league that, by the numbers, is currently the second-strongest in all of college football -- ahead of the Big Ten and the ACC -- but remains a second-tier talking point in media coverage.

Instead of being viewed as just a contender for the Big 12 Conference title, BYU could vault into the top-5 of the AP Poll and be undeniable in the national championship conversation.

Notre Dame already has the benefit of the doubt. They've had it for years. They had it last year, when they narrowly missed the cutoff despite a pair of losses to Miami and Texas A&M in the regular season. They had it the previous year, and validated that faith with a trip to the national championship game.

To be transparent, the Irish are heavy favorites to win this game, and all appearances suggest they absolutely deserve to be, even if BYU has won 15 consecutive games with a 5:30 kickoff or later.

The Irish's position in the college football pantheon is absolute; BYU hasn't convinced its doubters.

So go win this game, BYU. Win it for the fans who suffered through independence. Win it for your conference. Win it for the Pop-Tarts Bowl. But most of all, win it for yourself. Opportunity awaits -- who's going to capture it?

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