2009 BYU Cougars football team

The 2009 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cougars were led by head coach Bronco Mendenhall and played their home games at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

The Cougars finished the season with a record of 11–2, 7–1 in Mountain West play and won the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas 44–20 over Oregon State.

Oklahoma
BYU would enter the 2009 Cowboy Classic with a 14-22 record against the Big XII. However BYU was 1-0 against the Sooners. The only previously meeting was the 1994 Copper Bowl, where BYU won 31-6.


 * Source:

Tulane
BYU headed back down South for their second game of the season. The Green Wave would be their featured opponent. BYU and Tulane came into the contest with a 1-1 record against each other. The last meeting between the two was back in 2001, when BYU defeated the Green Wave 70-35 in Provo.


 * Source:

Florida State

 * Source:

Colorado State
BYU would try and bounce back after the loss to FSU. The loss to FSU ended a winning streak the Cougs had had at home since 2004. With a 37-27-3 record against the Rams, things looked good for BYU.


 * Source:

Utah State
The 2009 Beehive Boot began with the Battle for the Old Wagon Wheel as Utah State visited the Cougars. With a 42-23-3 record in one of the longest rivalries in the nation, BYU looked to try to continue to show the FSU game was a fluke.


 * Source:

UNLV
After the Conference Weekend showdown, the Cougs headed on the road for their second road game of the year against a team they have thoroughly dominated, UNLV. Going into the 2009 season, the Cougars found themselves 13-3 against the Rebels lifetime.


 * Source:

San Diego State
Back-to-back road games would be the norm most of the season, as was this case with Vegas and then San Diego. BYU would challenge the Aztecs with a 25–7–1 record against them intact.


 * Source:

TCU
Heading into Homecoming BYU looked to get back on the winning track against TCU. The Cougars had won 5 of the first 7 meetings against TCU, but the Horned Frogs took the win in 2008 to get their 3rd win against the Cougars.


 * Source:

Wyoming
BYU hit the road for the final back-to-back road trip of the year. Their first stop would be in Laramie. The Cougars came into the game with a 42-30-3 record against the Cowboys.


 * Source:

New Mexico
The final road game on the back-to-back road trip took the Cougars to Albuquerque for their regular showdown with the Lobos. The Cougars came into the game with a 43-13-3 record against the Lobos.


 * Source:

Air Force
The final home stretch began with an old match-up against everybodies favorite run-and-gun squad, the Air Force Falcons. The Cougars came into the game with a 23-6 record against the Falcons.


 * Source:

Utah
The regular season ended with the third edition of the Deseret First Duel. The winner would take a 2-1 lead in head-to-head football since the Holy War became sponsored by Deseret First Credit Union. The Cougars came into the game with a 30-50-4 against the Utes. With both teams at 6-1 in conference play, and with TCU likely headed to a BCS game, BYU and Utah came in knowing the winner would be getting a berth in the Las Vegas Bowl.


 * Source:

Las Vegas Bowl
The fifth consecutive trip to the Las Vegas Bowl awaited BYU after their win over the Utes. Their opponent would be Bronco Mendenhall's alumni school- Oregon State, his first meeting against them with BYU. It was the first ever top 25 showdown in Vegas Bowl history. It also would feature a match of runner-up's as Oregon State was one of three teams tied for second in the Pac-10. BYU would go into the game with a 3-5 record lifetime against the Beavers. After going 19-for-30 for 192 yards with 3 touchdowns, Max Hall would win the MVP honor. Hall would leave as the most winning quarterback in BYU history at 43-9. His running back, Harvey Unga, would leave the school as the all-time leading rusher.


 * Source: