Bowl picture clouded as BYU loses two straight

Steve Guiremand

Wednesday, Nov. 24, 1999 | 9:28 a.m.

What looked like a potential Top 10 season came apart at the seams for BYU coach LaVell Edwards with season-ending back-to-back losses to Wyoming and Utah.

Now the question is will the 8-3 Cougars, who still earned a share of the Mountain West Conference championship despite the poor finish, be home for the holidays?

The MWC only has two bowl berths -- the Liberty and Las Vegas bowls -- for potentially four first-place teams. Is it possible that BYU -- the conference's marquee charter member -- could be passed over for a bid in favor of stronger-finishing schools Colorado State, Utah and/or Wyoming?

Not likely, considering the tremendous LDS national following of the Cougars.

Besides, as Edwards pointed out during the MWC's weekly coaches' conference call on Tuesday morning, shouldn't a bowl bid be determined on the entire season?

"I'd like to think we played a pretty difficult schedule, tougher than most," Edwards said. "I'd like to think we're as worthy as anybody (to go to a bowl game)."

It would seem Edwards has a valid point.

The Cougars defeated Pac-10 runner-up Washington (35-28) and Cal (38-28) in nonconference play and, minus the services of star linebacker Rob Morris, lost to Thomas Jones and a talented Virginia squad, 45-40. They also hammered everybody's late-season darling, Colorado State, 34-13, back in September.

It's no coincidence that BYU's late-season swoon coincided with a key injury to starting running back Luke Staley. Prior to Staley's injury, the Cougars averaged nearly 130 yards per game rushing and Staley had a conference-leading 10 touchdowns. Without the talented freshman from Oregon, BYU averaged just 27.3 yards per game on the ground and scored just one rushing touchdown.

Staley is expected to be back for the Cougars' bowl appearance (provided there is one).

Edwards acknowledges that the possibility of BYU getting passed over for a bowl bid does exist. And there figures to be more than a few anxious moments in Provo between now and Sunday night, when the Liberty and Las Vegas bowls are expected to make their decisions.

"It was very disappointing the way our season ended the last couple of weeks," Edwards said. "It's over with. We'll just have to see what happens from here on out.

"Nobody likes to end their season on a downer. But nobody is going to slit their wrists, either. But it would be nice to get a bowl bid."

Edwards isn't the only MWC coach who will be holding his breath until the bowl bids are handed out.

"This year it would be tremendously difficult if we take care of business (and don't go to a bowl)," Colorado State coach Sonny Lubick said. "Last year it wasn't so difficult even though we went 8-4 because a lot people thought we underachieved. But this year if it would happen ... that would be very, very difficult."

Utah coach Ron McBride skipped Tuesday's conference call and passed up his last chance to lobby with the Mountain West media. Meanwhile, Wyoming coach Dana Dimel almost sounded resigned to the fact his club would not be going anywhere even if it finished 8-3 and earned a share of the crown with a win at San Diego State on Saturday night.

"Our ultimate goal at the start of the year was to win a championship," Dimel said. "If only two teams go, it's a shame, but we can't control that. If we win (Saturday), we get a ring for winning a conference championship. ... For us to share a conference title is so much more important right now than the bowl situation. Next week, hopefully, we can talk about the bowl situation."

Mountain West Conference commissioner Craig Thompson, still holding out slim hopes of perhaps placing a third team in the Motor City Bowl, said he had no idea which two teams would get bowl bids.

Stay tuned.