This analysis was performed by Jordan Rogers, a student research fellow at BYU’s Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy, in collaboration with CSED faculty. The writing is mostly his. Inquiries about this research should come to me (Quin Monson). While Jordan cheers for BYU, his brother graduated from the University of Utah.
Since Brigham Young University (BYU) and the University of Utah (U of U) football teams played earlier than we’re all used to this year, researchers at BYU’s Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy decided to have a little fun with the rivalry. After all, there is a basketball game on Saturday.
In our September 2011 Utah Voter Poll (UVP), after asking a variety of political and demographic questions, we asked, “Who do you cheer for when the University of Utah plays Brigham Young University in athletic events?” (Note: we even alternated the order of the schools in the question stem to avoid biasing the results). Let’s take a look and see how BYU and U of U match up.
First of all, BYU and U of U supporters don’t have meaningful differences in educational attainment, income, or gender ratios. In a lot of ways, BYU and U of U fans are very similar.
But a stark difference arises when we look at politics. For example, respondents were asked to rate a variety of national and state politicians using a typical “thermometer” question. The table below shows average ratings for all respondents, each school’s fans, and a difference between the two. University of Utah fans have much more favorable opinions of Jim Matheson and Jon Huntsman, while BYU fans have more favorable opinions on the rest.
| Politician | Average Rating | BYU Average | U of U Average | Difference BYU – UofU |
| Gary Herbert | 59 | 72 | 46 | 26 |
| Orrin Hatch | 51 | 63 | 37 | 26 |
| Mike Lee | 50 | 63 | 36 | 27 |
| Rob Bishop | 50 | 64 | 38 | 26 |
| Jim Matheson | 58 | 56 | 63 | -7 |
| Politician | Average Rating | BYU Rating | U of U Rating | Difference BYU – UofU |
| Mitt Romney | 67 | 82 | 54 | 28 |
| Jon Huntsman | 57 | 53 | 63 | -10 |
| Michele Bachmann | 31 | 40 | 21 | 19 |
| Rick Perry | 31 | 38 | 24 | 14 |
| Ron Paul | 40 | 41 | 36 | 5 |
However, before we make too much of these differences, it might be good to check whether the differences actually reflect the different partisan leanings among BYU fans and U of U fans. There are far more Republicans among BYU fans (85% GOP) than among U of U fans (40% GOP); however, even if we look only at self-identified Republicans, we still find that the two fan bases differ in their favorability ratings. The table below again compares the average ratings from each set of fans, but this time, only Republicans are included. Republican BYU fans have more favorable opinions of Gary Herbert, Orrin Hatch, Mike Lee, Jason Chaffetz, Rob Bishop and Mitt Romney, while Republican U of U fans have a more favorable opinion of Ron Paul. Jim Matheson received identical ratings from Republican BYU and U of U fans, perhaps explaining his uncanny ability to win reelection in Utah’s 2nd Congressional District.
| Politician | Average Rating | BYU Average | U of U Average | Difference BYU – UofU |
| Gary Herbert | 71 | 76 | 63 | 13 |
| Orrin Hatch | 64 | 67 | 56 | 11 |
| Mike Lee | 67 | 68 | 65 | 3 |
| Rob Bishop | 65 | 68 | 60 | 8 |
| Jim Matheson | 54 | 54 | 54 | 0 |
| Politician | Average Rating | BYU Average | U of U Average | Difference BYU – UofU |
| Mitt Romney | 81 | 86 | 77 | 9 |
| Jon Huntsman | 52 | 51 | 52 | -1 |
| Michele Bachmann | 43 | 43 | 41 | 2 |
| Rick Perry | 41 | 40 | 41 | -1 |
| Ron Paul | 42 | 39 | 43 | -4 |
Overall, these data suggest some substantial political differences between U of U and BYU fans. While these differences get smaller among Republicans only, they don’t quite go away. In other words, there appear to be political differences among Republicans in Utah that can only be explained by knowing which school an individual cheers for. In that spirit, we reveal that we cheer for BYU and wish the BYU basketball team good luck on Saturday.
