BYU Cougars

With BYU's bigger bowl dreams dashed, Utah is ideal opponent in Las Vegas

Published Dec. 18, 2015 11:12 a.m. ET

foxsports

It was a roller coaster of a season for BYU, but early on, they were ranked and looking to make a prominent bowl game. Injuries are the main culprit as to why that didn't happen, and BYU finds itself in the Las Vegas Bowl for the sixth time.

But make no mistake: this is still a huge game, mainly because it comes against Utah.

“You always want to know how they’re doing because they’re so close and you know some of their players,” Cougar wide receiver Mitch Mathews said of the Utes. “You want to know who’s the best in the state. We didn’t think we’d play them so you watched them (casually) during the season.”

That losing streak is “something that’s in the back my mind. Everyone knows it, right?” Mathews said. “We’re glad we’re playing them to show what we’ve got and play our best.”

(h/t Deseret Morning News)