BYU football: 15,000 BYU fans headed to Dallas for 1st game

A self-proclaimed "college football junkie," Travis Scoresby brings his lunch to work every day instead of succumbing to the temptation of eating out in order to save money for priceless opportunities like this.

On Labor Day weekend, the Salt Lake resident will be making his first visit to Dallas to watch BYU take on national power Oklahoma at the Dallas Cowboys' brand-new, state-of-the-art, retractable-roofed, 80,000-seat (expandable to up to 100,000 seats), billion-dollar stadium in Arlington, Texas.

It will mark the inaugural college football game played at that venue.

Scoresby is one of thousands of BYU fans making plans to attend BYU's season-opener against Oklahoma, which will be televised by ESPN, on Sept. 5. Never mind the Cougars haven't beaten a nationally ranked non-conference opponent since 1998. Never mind these are tough economic times.

Those factors aren't keeping typically frugal Cougar fans away from this much-anticipated showdown in Texas.

BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe expects 15,000-plus blue-clad BYU fans in attendance at the BYU-OU game at a stadium he calls the "Taj Mahal" of the world's sporting venues.

No way is Scoresby missing out on this one. For him, watching the Cougars and the Sooners — who are expected to be ranked in the preseason top 5 and boast 2008 Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford — collide in this unique stadium is tantamount to a college football feast.

What's more, he plans to road trip to New Orleans the following week to see the Cougars play Tulane at the Superdome. He estimates this 10-day trip will cost him about $600.

"I'm not rich, but I can guarantee 10 years from now I won't regret spending that $600, instead of eating out more," Scoresby said. "I have friends that think I'm crazy to go on a 10-day trip for football, but the reality is football is a catalyst that invites us to go to new places, experience new things, and ultimately bring our family and friends together. Some families hunt together; some go to Lake Powell. My family goes to football games. It has been a tradition for several years now for many of my family and friends to go to one of the non-conference away games. It's a great excuse to go somewhere new."

Holmoe said he's not surprised by how many Cougar fans have purchased tickets.