Entering the Sugar Bowl, the Utes had to field questions about Hawaii's debacle in the Sugar Bowl one year earlier against Georgia, a lopsided loss which seriously damaged the non-BCS conference's credibility.

Well, the Utes restored that credibility, and more, by whipping the Crimson Tide, a team that was ranked No. 1 for five weeks during the 2008 season.

"It was a dominating win that proved that Utah is a great team," said BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe. "They proved that a team from a non-BCS conference, as they say, can dominate and that it belongs at the (BCS) party. If anyone questions that, they're crazy."

Maybe 2008 was a season that will ultimately lead to the demise of the BCS and change in the way college football decides its champion. President-elect Barack Obama, who ran on the platform of "Change We Can Believe In," believes a playoff needs to be implemented.

"If I'm Utah, or if I'm USC or if I'm Texas, I might still have some quibbles," Obama said Friday about the final polls. "That's why we need a playoff."

No doubt, the undefeated, historic seasons of the '04 and '08 Utes, and the '84 Cougars, have left their mark on college football.

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E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com