There's no need to rehash how successful KW has been against BYU head to head. It's been excruciating to even watch the rivalry games over the last several years if you are rooting for BYU and understand the the critical ramifications of the game.

I'm probably not healthy in this regard, caring way too much, but I usually am so anxious during the game that I make myself sick. I've seriously considered not watching the Holy War for a few years because of my level of anxiety during the game and subsequent anger followed by sadness after the game...I know I have a problem. This is me openly admitting to it. I need to realize the minimal importance of a football game in the grand scheme of things. I know.

But how on earth has Whittingham been so successful against BYU head to head? He beats us over and over again whether in Provo, SLC, neutral cite, when favored or the underdog. Why? How?

Surely one of you works with, knows, or interacts with a former player of Whittingham's. I'd love to know WHAT HE SAYS TO THE PLAYERS leading up to the game and then IN THE LOCKER ROOM before the game. Perhaps I've missed this and it's been shared before. If so, can someone please link?

I work very closely now with a former BYU player who never beat Utah. Played from 2010 to 2014. He said he gets similar sick feelings now when watching BYU (his former teammates) play Utah, almost like he dreads the situation. I recently asked him what the games were like and he said he hated them because they were thoroughly outcoached every time. He played offense and said the Ute defenders would call out the play pre-snap at least 50% of the time and they were almost always right. He said they did this way more often and way more accurately than any other team BYU played.

"It was like they had our playbook and knew exactly what we were going to do. We would go to the sideline and tell the coaches and they would bark back, 'It doesn't matter if they know the plays! Impose your will and it won't matter!'"

He said pre-game that Bronco would tell the players to stay calm, execute the game plan, and impose their will (My imagination tells me just the opposite was happening in the other locker room with Whitt lighting a fire under his players, getting in their faces and amplifying the importance of annihilating their rivals).

Can anyone weigh in on how Whitt prepares for rivalry games and what he says to his players to motivate them so effectively? I think we can all agree that Utah seemed to play better than it's norm against BYU and BYU played worse than it's norm against Utah between 2005 and 2015. The impartial betting lines on those games would concur.