In case you are unaware, arguably the most important rivalry game of this college football season will be played at Noon ET/10 a.m. local time. The 3rd-ranked Utah Utes host the No. 7 BYU Cougars. Not a prime-time game, late afternoon or even a midday game. It is one of the first games to be played this Saturday.

The initial reaction was intense. With several notable media personnel calling it a betrayal or a sin against the sport. While that reaction is understandable, we need to pump the brakes on how negative this might seem.

Everyone loves a prime-time game of significant importance. Many fans would love to ease into a later start time. Maybe mow the lawn, run to the hardware store or even just watch other games that seem less important before getting to the main event. However, that was not in the cards this year for good reason.

To view this from another perspective, we need to look at it from a network view. The Holy War will broadcast on ABC, and they would have no reason to have it any other way. BYU vs Utah is a ratings draw, especially this season. Utah is a top 5 team that only two teams have even been able to slow down. BYU has a top faith-based fanbase, right up there with Notre Dame.

ABC has three games on their Saturday slate. All three are important. BYU at Utah, Alabama at LSU and Georgia at Ole Miss. Every team listed there is a potential playoff team. ABC has a vested interest in maximizing all the viewers for each of their games, not just the most important one.

The television industry term “hammocking” was often referred to in the 1990s as the Seinfeld effect. As it pertains to ratings, no original art is dismissed by a modern audience. Strategically, the network would place lesser performing or newer shows before and after Seinfeld which had a dedicated audience.

The target was Seinfeld. The residual traffic from the show would spill over into the next time slot that needed additional viewers. Put a show before Seinfeld and that show could find Seinfeld viewers waiting. If you put a show on after Seinfeld, the other program might get carryover viewers.

Essentially, that is what ABC is doing. BYU, Utah and even other Big 12 viewers are likely to watch the Holy War either way. By putting the Holy War first, ABC is banking on the carryover. If BYU vs Utah is a close game or even goes into overtime, those viewers hoping to watch Alabama vs LSU could end up watching the end of BYU vs Utah.

In conjunction with the carryover viewers is the "Southern Exposure" aspect. SEC viewers are faithful to the SEC. On the surface, there is no reason to believe most SEC fans would expect to watch a game between the two Utah teams.

Placing the Holy War where they have will maximize views for both BYU vs Utah and Alabama vs LSU. The hope is that people whose priority was the Holy War, will stick around and watch Alabama vs LSU. The SEC fans who were only interested in the SEC would be exposed to the best Big 12 matchup of the season.

Another important detail not to overlook is the College Football Playoff. Thirty years ago, ABC, ESPN and Disney were all independent entities. Today, they are one big company that falls under the control of Disney. ABC bought ESPN completely in 2006. Disney negotiated applicable sports broadcasting deals in 2021.

ESPN is viewed as the primary college football playoff network, but both ESPN and ABC will run simulcasts as part of a multi-year deal under the Walt Disney Company through the 2031-32 season.

There is a synergistic aspect to this. Viewers watch games on ABC and ESPN. If those viewers watch games they might not otherwise, it will stand to reason those viewers might choose to watch a Utah or even BYU playoff game in December and January.

ABC, by way of ESPN and Disney, are playing chess, not checkers. Everything stays in-house and everybody wins. While fans of Utah and fans of BYU would have appreciated a prime-time kickoff, the early start time does make significant sense. It works as a benefit to all parties. Including and maybe especially the teams in the Holy War.