I do believe there is currently a talent gap, particularly with the second and third team. But, as I’ve pointed out in the past, that was true of USC vs Utah last year and Utah still destroyed them. It was true of BYU vs Utah last year and it didn’t catch up to BYU until the fourth quarter when they had to rely on Burt at RB. Teams with inferior talent win all the time. Utah should know that better than anyone, based on recruiting rankings they’d never beat UCLA, Oregon, USC, or Stanford in a million years. I’m not convinced that the current talent gap is “permanent” either. Utah is riding high now and still their rankings are middle of the Pac, what happens when USC hires Urban?

As far as the “Utah and BYU aren’t rivals anymore.” That’s hogwash. Look at how much fans care about this game. Look at how often they go up against each other for recruits and BYU still wins it’s fair share. Look at your Facebook feed. Utah fans aren’t poking Colorado fans in the ribs. 8 in a row won’t change that; outside a generational shift I don’t see Utah replacing BYU as their rival anytime soon.