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October 13, 2025 21 mins
Catch “The Drive with Spence Checketts” from 2 pm to 6 pm weekdays on ESPN 700 & 92.1 FM. Produced by Porter Larsen. The latest on the Utah Jazz, Real Salt Lake, Utes, BYU + more sports storylines.
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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, Scott Mitchell, Monday afternoon. Hello Scott, how are you, sir?

Speaker 2 (00:05):
I'm doing wonderful. How are you doing? Spence doing? I
didn't understand what happened with coach Whittingham. I do tell
I didn't. I didn't hear this.

Speaker 1 (00:12):
We will be playing it in the five o'clock hour
so our listeners can hear it. He was asked about
bear Bachmeyer and his response was, he's focusing on his
team and and people are People are mad, Scott because
it's rivalry week and it's Monday.

Speaker 3 (00:25):
So people are upset. Good for Kyle All good man, all.

Speaker 1 (00:30):
Right, let's you know what, Let's just start here. I've
been asking my guest this today. I'll ask it all week.
You're a man that played for Utah play quarterback at
a very high level. When I say b Yu Utah football,
what are some memories that pop in your mind?

Speaker 2 (00:44):
Oh? You know, I have so many memories because I've
lived on both sides of this. As a kid growing up,
I was the biggest YU and the fan, biggest BAU
fan in the world. Gifford Nilssen took me to football camps,
I mean all the way through through high school. Every
summer I was at a football camp with Gifferd Nelson.
He was my childhood hero and all of those things,
so and I just followed all of them. You know,

(01:08):
Mark Wilson, you know who I know well, and just
think the world of Mark, and of course Steve Young
and and McMahon and the nineteen eighty Holiday Bowl was incredible,
and Kyle Whittingham was actually on that team. And then
the eighty four national championship BYU team that was an
incredible team for me, and so I always you know,

(01:30):
I walked. I don't know if I can say more
about the you know when you ask me the question
about both of them. You know, the history of BYU
at that time was just incredible. And Lavelle Edwards, who's
actually a relative of mine. My parents went to BYU.
So so BYU is a team that I cheered for.
And then I just I went to Utah and had

(01:51):
a very powerful conviction that's where I should go to school.
And had an incredible time at Utah. And you know,
being part of winning a rivalry game when it really hurts,
when it's unexpected, when you know it's been ten years,
which is what happened when we beat Uyu. We were

(02:12):
we were playing, Okay, you taught we weren't great, But
to beat them, that's having a rival and that's what's
so great about and that's what I really remember, and
it's fun for me. You know, the Utah fans who
actually remember and remember that game. It's usually the first
thing people bring up to me is I remember back
in nineteen eighty eight when you beat them fifty seven

(02:33):
to twenty eight, And that was a special game, a
special day, and something I'll never forget. And of course
now to me, what it means is, I'm just so
excited about this game. I don't care about the rivalry
and get in you know, the weeds and all of it.
These are two powerful teams in the conference together do

(02:55):
king ate out for a chance to go to the
conference championship and potentially go to the college football playoffs.
And that's what you want to see, and that's what matters,
and we all should be really excited about it, and
everyone should put their best foot forward this week and
it needs to be an incredible game and Utah needs
to win and life is good.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
I remember I was just a pop respectfully in eighty eight.
Scott but I remember the reason why people always point
to that game is Utah hadn't beat BYU since nineteen
seventy nine, and after BYU won the next four, So
you that game was crunched in between two pretty historic
BYU runs.

Speaker 3 (03:33):
I think that's why it resonates with so many Utah fans.

Speaker 2 (03:38):
Yeah, and you know when you're and what I hated
about that time Spence was b way you had no
respect for us, right, They just they they thought they
were going to roll all over us. That all the
players said, you know, this isn't even a rivalry, it
doesn't really mean anything, and it be everything does and
we were And so to beat big brother, to kind

(03:59):
of be the underdog and win, that's always what's great
about sports, And to be a part of a game
like that is just always always fun, you know, when
you aren't expected to win and not only do you win,
but she kind of kicked the trash out of them.

Speaker 1 (04:13):
Yeah no, I mean it wasn't even close. It was
certainly it was an ass kicking. So let's look back
at Utah ESU real quick. The way I've described it today,
Scott as I was relieved to see Utah do what
they did.

Speaker 3 (04:25):
I didn't know what to expect.

Speaker 1 (04:27):
I was wrong about how I thought the game would
play out. Arizona State came in with a pretty stout
run defense, but very susceptible through the air, so I
thought Devin was gonna have to throw it.

Speaker 3 (04:36):
He did not have to throw it because it just
ran over him.

Speaker 1 (04:39):
Now, the Levitt news is significant because we've seen Jeff
Simms play college football for six years, and I don't
want to crack on a college kid, but he just
doesn't do a lot well and never really has at
any of his previous stops.

Speaker 3 (04:51):
So what impressed you the most?

Speaker 1 (04:52):
What stood out most as far as the way Utah
just dismantled as you on Saturday night, Well.

Speaker 2 (04:58):
It was obvious from the very start that offense line
for Utah was just they were steamrolling, and I mean
it was, you know, basically two or three yards before
someone's going to get touched. And I just felt like,
as the game went on, eventually someone's going to start
popping these runs for big games. And it certainly happened
and really started with Devin Dan Pierre, and so that

(05:18):
offensive line really jumped out of me. But then then
it was Devin and how this is I think the
player everyone expected him to be. Clearly, the bye week
was very beneficial to him, and he was just doing
some stuff that was super special and you know, avoiding people,
you know, the pitch on the option with his left hand,

(05:40):
the runs, the touchdowns, but also the awareness in the
craziness to get out and protect himself. And I think
he's kind of learned, hey, I need to be healthy
and I need to be at my best or I'm
not going to be the player that I am. And
if I can't run and I can't do all that

(06:00):
all that stuff, we're not quite as effective as we
can be. So I loved I loved him being aware
of that in situations because he could have gotten a
lot more yards on you know, two or three of
those runs he had, but he he very cautiously. He
lived to play another down and it was just really
good to see. And then the other thing was Smith Noden,
I mean, Jordan Tyson is he's one of the top

(06:24):
four receivers in the country, and they matched up Smith
Node with him and he went toe to toe and
there was never a big play, and not with the
lack of trying. I mean, he had I think he
had sixteen you know, throws at him, so they were
throwing a ball to Tyson and and just Smith Nottenon
never gave up a big play, made a lot of

(06:45):
just really really good plays, and just was very very
much up to the task. But it was the most efficient,
most perfect game I think you could see really across
the board. It was. It was just a really solid,
very statement like win, dominant win for Utah.

Speaker 1 (07:05):
Yeah, and it felt like, you know, because look, I
think it's just probably Scott time to say, like Tech
is really good.

Speaker 3 (07:11):
They just are. They're housing everybody, right, So I don't know.

Speaker 1 (07:15):
That it's any more scenario where we just say Texas
Tech is probably the best team in this conference. It's
probably just time to say they're one of the best
teams in the country. So I don't think that loss
is going to really come back to bite Utah. And
certainly if Tech continues to roll and people that understand
that Utah Tech was actually like a three and a
half quarter rock fight, it could actually come back to

(07:37):
help Utah as what I would you know, perceive to
be a beneficial loss. A loss is a loss is
a loss. But I don't think the Tech loss is
going to come back to bite them that much.

Speaker 2 (07:46):
Scott Well, I mean, if you want to argue losses
and say they're valuable, look at Texas, look at Notre Dame.
You know, they're two loss east that are still in
the top twenty five. I don't know how that happens,
but they are. And so yeah, I think people will
look at that to some degree. I think part of
the thing is Utah just hasn't had a lot of exposure.

(08:08):
You know, the little exposure they got, they didn't really
they didn't really shine at all. And of course Deven
Dampier wasn't completely healthy. He was not the player against
Texas techaus he was at Arizona State, So that game
might be a little bit different in the future. But yeah,
you know, if you're going to lose, lose early in

(08:30):
the year. You know, it was Utah's first conference game,
and and they're just slowly fighting their way back and
they their destinies in their control, and so you just
keep you just keep playing week after week and and
uh and let it happen. I mean, b Yu, you
look at their schedule moving forward, it's it's a it's
as tough as it gets in the Big Twelve, and

(08:52):
I think Utah's is very manageable. You know, you're gonna
play Cincinnati, who You're gonna play Baylor, You're going to
play Kansas. So you've got some team that are good,
but you certainly winnable games, and you win those games,
and it puts you in the in the driver's seat
to get back to the conference, to get to the
conference championship. I should say so.

Speaker 1 (09:11):
On the other side, you know, the bottom line is
BYU has simply passed every test that has been put
to them.

Speaker 3 (09:18):
And that was a gutty comeback win. Man.

Speaker 1 (09:20):
I thought like five different times I thought that game
was over down to Tucson where it can get weird,
and it did get weird, but they get it done
in double overtime. Now, the strength of schedule stuff like
BYU strength of schedule is one of the lowest in
the Big twelve. So it just simply says the data
indicates thus far they have just not played the best

(09:40):
of competition. But again, you give a team a credit,
the credit for just doing what they're supposed to do.
Do you feel like you have a grasp on how
good this BYU team is?

Speaker 2 (09:48):
So far, not really. I mean you know that, you know,
I don't know how good Colorado is. They kind of
struggled in that game, but they did win it. And
there's something to be said about having to come back
and win games regardless of the competition. Same thing with
the other night of Arizona. So you know, if I'm
being completely candid, and I said this earlier today and

(10:10):
I'm gonna say it again, I'm gonna say it all
week long. I believe Utah is a better team. I
don't think it's even a question mark. I think if
the team that showed up on Saturday against Arizona State
shows up in Provo, I really believe Utah will win
that game. I don't think BYU had one or even
play the team as with the talent and ability that

(10:32):
Utah has, and so I they're you know, the only
thing that gets funky is it's a rivalry week and
you just you know, there's factors that go into that.
I don't know how to quantify, you know, what is
what is the impact of a rivalry? Is it is
it ten points? Is it five points? Is it twenty points?
You know, and are you home and away? And you
know because play Look, coaches over build this and I

(10:54):
kind of like what coach Whittingham said after the game.
I don't want to make too big a deal out
of this. You know, you make too big a deal
out of it as a coach, and then the players
play tight and the coach is coach tight, and you
just do stupid things and and so I you know,
if you get if you take that out of the equation,
and hopefully you can and some years you can, some
years you can't, you do that. You know, Utah should

(11:16):
win this football. I mean, I believe that the initial
lineup on where it is now, but I believe you
Thaw was favored and they should be. And you know,
and saying you've got a young freshman quarterback, how does
he handle this? And how mature is he? You know,
does because this is really the biggest and the big
you know, the probably the biggest test. I mean, BA
plays tex A second. I just you know, I just

(11:39):
think Utah is a better team.

Speaker 1 (11:42):
So the Fox Big newon kickoff guys are coming back
to Utah this time they'll be down in Provo.

Speaker 3 (11:48):
I wonder what how does that.

Speaker 1 (11:51):
Change, if anything at all when it comes to the
approach of a player. I mean, I've said this four
or five times today, Scott, and I'll continue to repeat
it until game day because I believe it to be true.

Speaker 3 (12:01):
We'll see what the data looks like afterwards.

Speaker 1 (12:03):
There's a chance this is the most watched game that
BYU and Utah have ever played in over one hundred meets.
We have a prime time kick, we have Fox Big
Noon in town, and we'll see what the number looks
like after the game. But there's a chance this is
the most watched iteration of BYU Utah and the history
of the rivalry. What what element does that bring in

(12:24):
a play when it comes to preparation, if anything at all,
or if you're a coach or a player, you just
got to keep your head down and make sure you're
practicing hard.

Speaker 2 (12:35):
There's kind of you know, it's it's kind of the player,
and it's kind of the coach because there are some
people that are just like, man, if I need the spotlight,
like I want the spotlight, I want it to be
as big as it possibly can be. And I know
in my career, you know, the big the big game
in the NFL was Monday Night football. And I love
Monday night football. Oh my goodness, I love Monday night football,

(12:55):
and so I relish that. And and but some people,
oh my, you know, there's there's a nervousness. And I
think there was a little bit of that when Utah
played the first time against Texas Tech, and the players
and the coaches actually admitted it. So this time around,
you want to hope that you've you've learned from the experience.

(13:16):
And you know that I don't know that the big
new guys, you know, they're going to be talking to
the b YU guys. And and what's hard is they're
they're around, they're kind of disrupting your your normal deal.
They're at practice. You're aware of them. You have conversations
and meetings and interviews, and and they start blowing smoke,

(13:36):
you know, and and telling you how wonderful and amazing
and BYU is you know, undefeated, and they're all that
you know, and and so you start you start having
to answer all that, and it starts getting in your head,
and it starts and it will mess with you if
you let it. But big games can really propel a
player to play like their very best, or it can

(13:58):
it can go the other way. And I believe if
that happened, like Logan fanos, like down the field ten
yards on a pass play and and it just looked
like Utah was trying so hard in that game and
really kind of out of their normal flow and rhythm
and and it absolutely can be damaging. But boy, I
just I love them. I'm so I'm so excited about

(14:19):
this game. It's what, you know, it's the best. It's
the best possible scenario that you could ask for if
you're a fan of football in the state of Utah.
Your two marquee football programs on a national stage playing
really for a chance to win the conference and go
to the college football playoffs, and that's never happened, and

(14:41):
that that's just that's a huge deal. And I'm so
happy that both of these teams did what they had
to do to be in you know, someone didn't screw
the pooch and lose the game they shouldn't and all
that stuff, and and you want you want that in
this game where everyone's at their best, they have their
best record, and it means most because that's when it's
really a rival. Because the loser of this game it's

(15:04):
gonna suck. It's gonna sting. It's gonna be a bad
thing for a long time.

Speaker 3 (15:09):
What's the origin of the term screw the pooch.

Speaker 2 (15:13):
I'm not sure I should look it up, but it
just for me, it goes back to the Apollo, you know, development,
and I guess, and so Gus Grissom he he blew
the hatch on the on the Apollo spacecraft when he

(15:34):
got to the ground. Basically everyone else was a hero,
but Gus Grissom, he said, I screwed the pooch. I
so I don't know. I don't know what that means.
I just it's a bad thing.

Speaker 1 (15:45):
I have the definition up, and there's a Reddit definition
that I'm gonna leave off.

Speaker 2 (15:49):
Air Well Rand. It's not a good definition of anything.

Speaker 1 (15:53):
Simply means to screw the pooches, to make a bigger,
humiliating mistake.

Speaker 3 (15:57):
That's according to the dictionary. So we have that.

Speaker 1 (16:00):
We have that covered now, Scott, let me ask you this.
We always make a big deal of like all of
these coaches know each other, right, It's different now with
the It's different with the rosters because both of these schools,
and both of these football programs have expanded their recruiting
footprint nationwide, So there's just a lot of out of
state kids that didn't grow up playing against each other.

(16:20):
But the coaches they know each other. Does that matter
at all? I mean, as far as you know uh
Kilani coaching for Kyle and knowing his style and vice versa,
does that come into play at all?

Speaker 2 (16:32):
I think it does to some degree because you were
creatures of habit and we we kind of in a
in a pressure situation or even just in a certain situation.
A lot of times when we fall back to certain
norms and you know, I sit and watch BYU play
or watch Utah play, and I know, Okay, in this situation,

(16:53):
this is probably going to happen, just because that's how
these coaches coach, and they're they're aware of it. They're
they're also aware of like the weekly conversations, you know
what they these coaches know exactly what the other coach
is saying about this week. And I do know this
that they all, regardless of their relationship or their their

(17:14):
familiarity with one another, they want to win this game
so bad. Now publicly they'll they'll be one way, but
behind closed doors, boy, this this one as a coach
means way, way, way, much more than probably any other
other game.

Speaker 1 (17:29):
Do you have any insight on the way Wit approaches
this week? There are all these stories out there from
former players and people that seem to have knowledge of
just how different this week is when it comes to
Wit himself.

Speaker 3 (17:41):
Do you have any inside there?

Speaker 2 (17:43):
So my insight to some degree is from Kyle in
just conversations that we've had, or you know, Kyle, I
used to play golf quite a bit and we don't
anymore because I'm my golf game's just horrendous. But we've

(18:04):
talked about this before and he says, oh, I just
I can't lose that game, like I just can't lose
that game. And so I know how much it means
to him, But I know from other players they say,
oh no, there is a definite different feeling in the
building that week, and there's a sense of urgency and

(18:26):
there's a sense of whatever it takes, whatever we have
to do, we cannot lose this game.

Speaker 3 (18:34):
All right. So you referenced the line.

Speaker 1 (18:36):
It opened up at three and a half, and it
has stayed at three and a half.

Speaker 3 (18:40):
Nobody's touching it, you.

Speaker 1 (18:42):
Know, barring some sort of two thousand and four talent
gap when Utah just curb stomped BYU because there was
just a much better team. These things are always close
and it's usually weird. Do you feel like that linees
about right? I mean, we have Riley Jensen on earlier
said if the rivalry dynamic wasn't a part of this

(19:04):
matchup and these were two teams on a neutral field,
he thinks Utah is about fourteen points better than BYU.
But again, with all of the things we've discussed, now,
whird it can get before I say you lose just
three and a half?

Speaker 3 (19:16):
Feel right, what are your thoughts?

Speaker 2 (19:20):
It actually doesn't to me, even with the rivalry. I
think with Utah that Texas Tech game had an impact
and it was one of those games that kind of
was a wake up call. And this team seems pretty
dialed in and focused, and I think they're kind of
over the big new miss of things, and you know
a lot of times the players. I just think Utah

(19:44):
is a better team. I really do, and I think
they've played better teams to prepare for this, and I so,
I know I do get your point, and I know
it's a thing I wish I knew what the value
of a rivalry, was like, is it worth end points?
Is it worth more if you're the home team, you know,
to get more value at home as a way, you know,

(20:07):
But I know there, I know there's a factor there.
But some years it isn't. Some years it just has
no impact on things and one team just kind of
goes through it. But more than not, it does factor
into I just I feel like this is a year
where it's not going to though.

Speaker 1 (20:23):
Do you have a final score prediction you'd like to
lay on the listeners? Are you going to save that
for your show?

Speaker 2 (20:29):
I don't care. Let me think about it. I really,
I mean, I think it's fourteen to seventeen points more
for Utah. Yeah, so let's just say thirty one to seventeen.

Speaker 1 (20:40):
Thirty one seventeen. All right, Scott, appreciate the time. Gonna
be a fun week, so appreciate the perspective.

Speaker 3 (20:45):
We'll chat to you.

Speaker 2 (20:47):
Got a buddy. Thank you, Scott.

Speaker 1 (20:48):
Mitchell, former Utah quarterback who was the quarterback under center
for one of the most famous Utah wins over BYU
of all time, back on November the nineteenth nineteen. BYU
came into that game having beat Utah nine straight times,
I believe for five, six, seven, eight nine, and then
after that by you won the next four. So that

(21:11):
was the one win over a fifteen year stretch that
Utah actually won. And it was an ass kicking and
Scott was under center, so a legend for that
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