2010 had its good and bad moments, sometimes from the same program.
The Utah State Aggies football team won its first game over BYU in over a decade, and watched in sadness as its greatest sports figure, the incomparable Merlin Olsen, passed away at age 69.
Others watched in awe as individuals, like Paul Millsap, churned out heroic performances. Magna's Scott Eyre retired from professional baseball after 13 successful years as a Major League pitcher.
The face of college athletics in the state changed in ways it never has. Utah joined the PAC-12 Conference and BYU went independent, ending many decades of the two schools competing in conference play. Even Southern Utah joined the Big Sky Conference.
Utah sports had it all, from the slopes to the turf. The order may vary depending on your preference, but one thing is for sure: you would be hard-pressed to find 10 Utah sports stories with more impact.
10. Utah State football upsets BYU for first time in 10 years. After nearly knocking off eventual Fiesta Bowl champion Oklahoma in its season opener, the Aggies had something to prove to its followers and to itself. The mighty BYU Cougars came into Romney Stadium at Merlin Olsen Field on a Friday in September. What happened next is something the Aggie players will tell their grandkids about as they upset the Cougars, the first time Utah State had defeated BYU in 10 tries. The Aggies finished with four wins in 2010, and BYU eventually won the New Mexico Bowl, but it was a season Utah State fans will not soon forget.
9. Utah wide receiver DeVonte Christopher’s “Girlse State” tweet before Utah-Boise State game. In what was arguably up there with some of the most ridiculous Holy War quotes ever, this pre-Las Vegas Bowl quote came from a freshman prior to the Utes’ game against Boise State. As if the heavily favored Broncos needed any more ammunition as 18-point favorites, they got some when Christopher’s Twitter comment hit the Internet. The tweet made Christopher an instant Twitter trend, and the Broncos later won the game, 26-3. Note to self: Don’t refer to a football team, especially Boise State, as “girls.”
8. Real Salt Lake advances to CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals. Following up on its MLS Cup title, RSL gained entry into the CCL by virtue of its first championship. In its first year in the tournament encompassing the CONCACAF region (Canada, U.S., Mexico, Central America league champions.) Real Salt Lake finished first in its CCL group and defeated Mexican giant Cruz Azul in its final game.
7. Utah Jazz forward Paul Millsap scores 46 points on LeBron’s Miami Heat. The 6-foot-8 workhorse was largely forgotten by everyone because of the Al Jefferson trade that brought the 6-foot-11 forward to Utah, but he had everyone around the world saying his name after he dumped 46 points on Lebron, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat in the Jazz' overtime win.
6. Steven Holcomb pilots U.S. four-man bobsled to first gold in 62 years. A Park City resident, Steven Holcomb provided the biggest moment for Utah athletes at the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver when he and his team earned the first American four-man gold medals in over six decades. Prior to Vancouver, Holcomb had competed in several Winter Games and had never won an Olympic medal. He was among a select few Utahns who medaled in Vancouver.
5. BYU goes from Mountain West to football independence (West Coast Conference in other sports). The school stunned many when it announced that it was leaving the Mountain West Conference (it was rumored beforehand that the Cougars would go to the Western Athletic Conference) and would become a football independent. In sports like basketball, volleyball and others, BYU would join the West Coast Conference. Many referred to BYU as the “Notre Dame of the West.”
4. The “Jimmer Game.” For a regular season basketball game, “The Jimmer Game” had the trappings of a heavyweight title bout. Several local newspapers took out 16-page special sections, hyping the return of BYU guard Jimmer Fredette for a game against Vermont in Fredette’s hometown of Glens Falls, N.Y. The local civic center sold out in a matter of days, Jimmer’s brother performed his rap during the halftime show and the Cougars won handily as Jimmer made good in his homecoming.
3. Austin Collie plays at the Super Bowl as a rookie. Many criticized former BYU wide receiver Austin Collie for leaving college early to go pro, but Collie quickly silenced his critics with a solid rookie season for the Indianapolis Colts. He caught 60 passes from Peyton Manning for 676 yards and scored seven touchdowns on his way to the Super Bowl against the New Orleans Saints. The Saints won the Super Bowl, but Collie -- who may have played his last football after suffering several concussions in his second NFL season -- had a game to remember in a losing cause, with 6 catches for 66 yards.
2. Merlin Olsen dead at age 69. Olsen was a Logan native, and a Utah State Aggie legend for whom the football field was named after and a longtime, all-around good guy to everyone who knew him. Olsen enjoyed an All-American career with the Aggies, and was part of the Los Angeles Rams’ “Fearsome Foursome.” Later the defensive lineman was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and moved on to Hollywood as an FTD Flowers pitchman and acted on TV shows “Father Murphy“ and “Little House on the Prairie,” among other notables.
1. University of Utah announces it is moving from Mountain West to PAC-12 Conference. Say what you will about the Utes; it was big news when the school announced it was leaving the Mountain West Conference for the Pacific-12 Conference. Some saw it as the ultimate sign of betrayal from the first BCS-buster; others saw it as a giant stepping stone for a school that would now compete on a year-in, year-out basis with UCLA, USC, Stanford, Oregon and others.
Honorable mention:
5. Real Salt Lake forward Alvaro Saborio signs first-ever designated player contract.
4. BYU’s 56-24 win over UTEP in New Mexico Bowl.
3. Former BYU star Max Hall starts as NFL rookie for Arizona Cardinals.
2. Al Jefferson signs with Utah Jazz.
1. Utah-TCU pregame hype, the uniform press conference, the ESPN GameDay crew before the 47-6 loss.
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