If you live near me, you're probably seeing more of the color blue lately, and it's not just because the fires have weakened and the sky is clearer. It's because fans of a football team located approximately sixty miles to the south me are excited, excited about the prospect of the future.
And they should be.
It's not that the BYU blue went away entirely--far from it. There have always been and there will always be fans of the school, be they alumni or not. They support their team, they wear their colors. But last year was a down year for the program, very un-BYU-esk. They didn't have a winning season and they didn't go to a bowl game. But when your team starts the season 3-1 including beating a top-10 team on the road, that's a reason to break out the flags, hats, shirts, bumper stickers, and neckties on Sunday.
I've made no bones about the fact that this team, this school's sports program in general, is not a favorite of mine. It stems from constantly getting beat down by their programs year after year in the 80s and 90s. They destroyed all local competition (and many of big national teams, too...). Finally, FINALLY, after decades of abuse and humiliation, the tide turned. The men in red began to defeat the men in blue, and more and more red began appearing on the scene.
I have no idea how the rest of this season will go. BYU, currently ranked #20, plays another nationally ranked team in Washington tomorrow. When BYU beat Wisconsin a few weeks ago, I was generally happy for them. They played better and they beat a team that didn't respect them. I doubt Washington will make the same mistakes Wisconsin did. Still, the fans, the players, everyone involved in the program is excited for the challenge. If they win tomorrow, they could end up having a historic year.
And, if BYU wins tomorrow, I know I'm going to see more blue out there. That's not a bad thing.
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