... as much as it is about having something to play for the entire season. Because BYU is not in a conference, and because BYU often has a bowl tie-in, the outcome of BYU's season is effectively decided after their first loss, which is often week 1 or 2 because of the nature of independent scheduling.
For everyone else, they lose a couple games and sure, their championship hopes are gone. But then they have a division title to play for. And until they have lost 3-4 games, that goal is still in the running. Then, even when that goal is lost, they can still play their way up to a better bowl game by winning 10 games instead of 8 or 8 games instead of 6. Only after they lose 6-7 games do the games become meaningless. So unless your team is REALLY struggling, you have something to play for (i.e., cheer for) every game of the entire season.
Im not criticizing/endorsing independence, I'm just saying I get it when people say "I'm tired of independence." I can't fault people for losing enthusiasm after the first loss either. It's not as fun to follow your team when the rest of the season is already decided, especially when you look at the last 5 or so games on your schedule, and you'd rather watch a training camp practice, because at least in the training camp practice, starting positions are on the line.