"Instant Karma's gonna get you,
Gonna knock you right on the head" -- John Lennon
No truer words were ever spoken when it comes to BYU athletics and especially their insufferable fans. Just days after the Cougars shot the lights out, again, to beat San Diego State in a big college basketball game and their fans gloated like crazy, their best frontline player, Brandon Davies, was suspended for the year for having sex with his girlfriend -- a violation of the BYU honor code. The Cougars lost their next game by 18 points to drop into, hey, a tie in the Mountain West Conference standings with SDSU.
If both teams win Saturday, or both lose, they'll finish in a tie at the top of the MWC heap. BYU would receive the top-seed in the MWC Tournament on the strength of their sweep over the Aztecs. If there's a split, the winner takes the title outright.
Both teams will be at home, but SDSU has the tougher opponent, Colorado State. Wyoming travels to Provo just hoping to end its nightmare of a season. So there is no gloating here, because BYU is likely to win its finale by 30 and figure out a way to restore an inside presence for March Madness. I also take note that, far different from football, the Aztecs coaches and players have nothing but respect for coach Dave Rose, Jimmer and the rest of the basketball Cougars. And you have to appreciate them for living by their standards, whether you agree with them or not. I actually hope they get things together for the NCAA Tournament.
Their fans are another story. If, and it remains an if, the teams remain tied atop the conference standings Sunday morning, BYU's fans will always see San Diego State right there with the same record. Priceless.
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Tony Gwynn and the SDSU baseball team is off to a 1-6 start, having only beaten Winthrop. The losses have come to highly regarded Vanderbilt, defending champion UCLA, tough UC Irvine and USD, so it's not like the wheels are coming off. They have a young team.
Yet, this weekend they play host to Cal, UConn and Oklahoma, and the following weekend Arkansas comes in for four. There's no reason to suspect the record is going to improve any. They could easily begin the season with only two or three victories despite playing 14 of their first 15 games at home. That is not a way to start a season.
Last May, I wrote that Gwynn deserved a mulligan for a 28-28 2010 record that included a ridiculous siege of injuries. You have to extend it to this year because of his bout with cancer and the youth of his team. Against the Bruins, Gwynn started four freshmen and two sophomores. Like coach Bill Grier with his tender young basketball team over at USD, we'll have to watch for signs of improvement over the course of the season before making any determinations about the future.
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