BYU football: Mendenhall more interested in strategy than outcome of Utah-TCU game

PROVO — Here's the dilemma for BYU: If No. 4 TCU beats No. 14 Utah on Saturday, the Cougars' hopes of claiming a piece of the Mountain West Conference championship will be all but dashed.

If the Utes defeat the Horned Frogs, the No. 22 Cougars would have a shot at grabbing a share of the title, if they beat Utah in the regular-season finale on Nov. 28.

Meanwhile, if the Utes manage to spring the upset, it will diminish the chances for an MWC team to play in a Bowl Championship Series game for the third time in six years — which would cost the league millions of dollars and national prestige.

So, will the Cougars bring themselves to cheering for their arch-rivals?

"Rather than to get too caught up in who I'll be pulling for, I'm more interested in the strategy," said BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall. "I think it's going to be an interesting matchup, and I'll leave it at that."

When asked to predict the outcome of Saturday's showdown in Fort Worth, Mendenhall replied, "I can't predict well, not even when we play."

Mendenhall said the fact that ESPN's College GameDay will be visiting an MWC campus for the third time in four weeks is a positive step for the league.

"It's an awesome thing for our conference. I think it will be a great football game. I think they are two good teams ... I think it's the kind of thing where the conference is deserving of it ... and it's deserving for the nation to stop and pay attention to that game. I think that's what's happening."

e-mail: jeffc@desnews.com