What BYU fans should expect at the “Big Noon Kickoff” in Provo – Deseret News

When Fox Sports' “Big Noon Kickoff” wrapped up the final rehearsal for Saturday's show Friday outside LaVell Edwards Stadium, only two things were missing: thousands of fans and analyst Urban Meyer.

The show's analysts expect a huge party with Cougar fans for the two-hour show and the pre-show tailgate before No. 14 BYU's game against Arizona.

Analyst, former Heisman winner and NFL running back Mark Ingram II said he heard the game day atmosphere in Provo was “psyched up” and “fired up” and that's what he expects from the crowd on Saturday.

“That's why 'Big Noon' exists. That's why I'm here because we love where the energy is and I heard you all have great energy so I can't wait to see the energy tomorrow morning,” Ingram told the media Friday.

While the show doesn't track attendance, it had its largest crowd ever two weeks ago at UCF. Ingram hopes BYU can surpass it.

“I hope it’s a bigger party,” he said. “UCF, they came out and showed themselves. Colorado last year – they came, they showed up, so now we need BYU, we need Provo to pull up and show up for us.

“The Big Noon is the best college football party in the country, in the world. We have fun. We celebrate the football game. We're having Cosmo (the cougar) do some acrobatic tricks tomorrow. We will celebrate the game and the players who play it. We’re just going to have a lot of fun and hope that all of Provo, the entire BYU nation, has a great time with us tomorrow.”

And for BYU fans looking forward to welcoming Meyer back to the home of “Team Down South,” he will be at Saturday’s show. The former Utah head coach lives in Florida and his travel plans were delayed due to Hurricane Milton.

What can BYU fans expect at the Big Noon Kickoff?

If Cougar fans feel like BYU isn't getting enough respect from the national media, they can rejoice by attending or tuning in to “Big Noon Kickoff.” Host Rob Stone described Saturday's show as a two-hour commercial celebrating BYU and sharing the football program with the world.

“I want us to use our two-hour platform to highlight BYU football and make people aware of how good this program is and has been.” Listen, there are a lot of young college football fans out there who aren't “Know who a Ty Detmer is, don't know who a Jim McMahon is, right?” he said.

“They need to be educated on this, and a lot of people will say, 'I had no idea BYU played in the biggest stadium in the Big 12 and had a Heisman winner and had 12 All-Americans at one position alone. “So part of that is also our responsibility to educate and improve this program.”

Saturday marks the first time the show has come to the state of Utah and the second major sports network to come to the Beehive State in the last week.

On Tuesday, ESPN was in downtown Salt Lake City, broadcasting the Utah Hockey Club's opening game from outside the Delta Center.

“If you will, we enjoy spreading the gospel of college football to different places that maybe don't get the attention they deserve, and BYU is clearly one of those programs this season,” Stone said.

BYU fans can expect an interview with head coach Kalani Sitake and plenty of Cosmo appearances thanks to Stone's love for the mascot. After seeing Cosmo's push-up stunt, he told Fox before the season began that they needed to include Cosmo if they came to Provo.

The producers listened and gave the beloved cougar three segments.

“Cosmo is all over our show,” Stone said. “He starts our show and he ends our show, so we pray for Cosmo. I hope he delivers.”

The pre-show tailgate begins at 6:30 a.m. MT on Saturday in the parking lot west of LaVell Edwards Stadium. According to BYU, breakfast will be served on a first come, first served basis.

The show starts at 8 a.m. MT. Fans are encouraged to bring signs and the fan with the most creative sign will win $500.

What did the Big Noon Kickoff analysts say about BYU?

Ingram told reporters that BYU's success this season and 5-0 record is a testament to what fans love about college football.

“I think that’s why we love college football, and especially in this new era, you never know who’s going to show up and show up. That's what BYU did. “I mean, now they have a real chance to qualify for the Big 12 and earn an automatic spot in the College Football Playoff, and that's exciting,” Ingram said.

Stone doesn't think the BYU hype is unjustified. He can see the Cougars, who were originally expected to finish at the bottom of the conference, making it all the way.

“Why not BYU? I know Steve Young said basically the same thing this week, but why not BYU, right? You look at the Big 12, which is wide open. They can come to the Big 12 Championship Game. At that point, you can put yourself in a playoff position,” he said.

“Why not BYU? You should all be convinced that this has the potential. The 5-0 start is a great start and they've put themselves in a position to get into the conversation now that people are starting to talk about them and we're coming here to give them a two hour commercial, that they need to deliver, and they know it.”