Remember that?

It was a long time ago. A year and nine days to be precise.

The Cougars have put 14 wins between their present and their past, the longest stretch of consecutive victories in all of major college football.

Over that span, there have been clinch-fisted triumphs, one of them taken after converting on fourth-and-18, two of them decided by a single point, five of them won by a touchdown or less, and lopsided laughers, eight of the wins coming via a substantial margin.

During the streak, BYU has piled up 479 points and yielded 196, finished off its second straight conference championship, as well as its second straight bowl victory, and currently finds itself ranked 11th nationally four games into this season.

The streak also has been abetted by two others: 17 consecutive Mountain West wins and 11 straight MWC road victories.

Back to the jumping off point: BYU's dismal night in Tulsa.

In that game, the Cougar offense gained a ridiculous 694 yards, including 537 through the air. Max Hall chucked four touchdown passes. Harvey Unga rushed for 100 yards. Dennis Pitta, Mike Reed and Austin Collie each had 100-plus receiving yards, and Collie gained 366 all-purpose yards.

But there were plenty of problems. BYU was penalized 14 times and gagged up four turnovers. And the defense put up as much resistance as an airport runway. It pointed fingers as much as it tackled, somehow transforming Golden Hurricane quarterback Paul Smith into John Elway.

Mendenhall's players, many of them, were bad throughout.

But, afterward, this is what Bronco said: "I take full responsibility as the coach to get our players ready and focused to play each week. As a defense, we did not execute the way we needed to. Tulsa ran some trick plays and had some quirks in their offensive scheme that we weren't completely ready for. I take full responsibility for that."

He's never had to take that kind of responsibility since. He's only had to praise his players after conquests.

After the last two, which the Cougars won by a combined score of 103-0, Mendenhall said he was proud of his players, they were getting back to what BYU football used to be. He called the thrashing of UCLA the most complete performance any of his teams had pulled off since he was hired as head coach in 2004.

Following the win over Wyoming, he explained, without speaking directly to the point, why his teams have won so steadily. Hidden therein is his secret.

"With this team, there are very few things unexpected," he said. "As you come into the game, it usually plays out about how we prepared them. It usually sorts out just about how we think it's going to sort out. They play just about how we think they're going to play. And so, I think there is a level of trust between the schemes, the players and the coaches."

Bingo.

That is Mendenhall's fantastic winning formula.

When he took over for Gary Crowton, who had guided the Cougars into their deepest nadir in more than 30 years, he was fully aware of the way the former coach had jerked the program from one end of the spectrum to the other. Crowton wanted the show to be distinctly his, not LaVell Edwards'.

But nobody could quite figure out exactly what that distinction was because it was scattered.

Nothing was consistent: not the way individual players were taught, not the way they were treated, not the way they were disciplined, not the way games were called, not the way training sessions were run, not the way the Cougars played at home, not the way assistants were entrusted. From day to day, no one even knew what time practice would start.

Mendenhall wrapped all of that, and more, into prompt and tidy synchronization.

He said he wanted to return BYU football to what it had been, and the Cougars have now won 15 straight at home. Consistency, in nearly every aspect of his management, from macro levels through to the smallest details, became his key.

That's not to say Mendenhall hasn't evolved.

"Bronco doesn't waver depending on which way the wind is blowing," assistant coach Lance Reynolds once said. "He's consistent, but willing to learn."

He's been flexible enough to alter his defense, and he's matured out of his mistakes. And he's continuing to mature.

After BYU was maligned for supposedly benefiting from a controversial call near the end of the Washington game, Mendenhall insisted his team took no motivation from the subsequent disrespect it reaped. Some of his players, though, contradicted his claim. He also said he pays no attention to the polls but recently relented, saying maybe he should keep track of what's going on. Earlier this season, he said his slogan, "Quest for Perfection," had nothing to do with on-the-field success, but last week he seemed to admit that it applied there, too.

The man's not perfect, but he's proved to be beyond good; a strong, crafty, principled motivator who deftly delegates to assistants and commands the respect of his players for holding himself accountable to outlined standards, just the way he holds them accountable.

Therein lies his empowerment, his cred with his players.

They believe what he believes. They do what he asks them to do.

Mendenhall's general themes and, to a lesser extent, his schemes have remained rock steady with him at the wheel. All of which has led to another constant, the best constant any coach could hope for: 14 straight wins . . . and counting, still.

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* GORDON MONSON hosts "The Monson & Graham Show" weekdays 2-6 p.m. on 1280 AM The Zone. He can be reached at gmonson@sltrib.com.