BYU had to wait roughly 2.5 hours longer than expected, thanks to an extended weather delay, but the No. 25 Cougars opened the season with a resounding 50-21 victory over South Florida.
Jaren Hall went 25-for-32 for 261 yards passing, two touchdowns and an interception.
Running back Chris Brooks had 135 yards and a score on 13 carries.
And wide receiver Puka Nacua scored a pair of rushing touchdowns.
Read the full game story here.
Chris Books hits the century mark
A 52-yard touchdown from Cal transfer Chris Brooks gives BYU a 47-14 with 5:32 in the third quarter. Brooks with 10 carries for 112 yards and a touchdown in his first game at BYU.
USF strikes back
The one area where BYU hasn’t been very good so far is kickoff return. Jimmy Horn Jr. took the second-half kick 89 yards to the house. It’s 38-14 BYU, with 14:44 on the clock in the third.
Maybe we’ll see more Jaren Hall in the second half than we thought.
Halftime: BYU 38, USF 7
Jaren Hall has 16 completions to 11 different receivers. He is 16-21 for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Would be fair to question how much we see of Hall in the second half.
Cougars keeps rolling
BYU caps off the drive with a 13-yard touchdown reception by Dallin Holker. BYU has over 300 yards of offense in the first half. WR Terrence Fall caught a ball on that drive. He is another guy down in the depth chart getting a chance today without Gunner Romney.
It’s 35-0 BYU, with 7:19 to play in the second quarter.
TV update
If you tuned into ESPN U looking for the game, switch over to ESPNews.
When it rains, it scores
BYU 21, South Florida 0
With 7:58 left to play in the first quarter ...
Is Puka Nacua BYU’s best ... running back?
Chris Brooks, the transfer from Cal is the Cougars’ RB1. Lopini Katoa and Miles Davis had good a good fall camp. But it’s Nacua, the wide receiver, who has rushed for the Cougars’ first two touchdowns of the season. BYU leads 14-0 in the first quarter.
Puka Nacua puts BYU up 7-0
After a 2.5-hour lightning delay, Puka Nacua flashed some of his own. The Cougars’ wide receiver took it 75 yards to the house on the season’s first play from scrimmage.
New kickoff time for BYU-USF
Weather delay in Tampa
(Jason Behnken | AP) Clouds move over Raymond James Stadium during a weather delay prior to an NCAA college football game between BYU and South Florida Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022, in Tampa, Fla.
A lot of people wondered what impact weather would have on this season-opener. But it was heat and humidity on their minds.
Instead, BYU and USF start the afternoon a weather delay for lighting in the area. Fans have cleared the seating area and we do not have a new start time yet.
Update at 5:01 p.m. ET ...
Update at 5:35 p.m. E.T.
Gunner Romney ruled out for the game
Kalani Sitake also ruled out senior wide receiver Gunner Romney for this game.
“We were hoping to the end that he’d be ready to go,” he told BYU radio. “We are looking forward to seeing him soon. After that, I think for the most part our team is healthy.”
Pregame storylines and reading
In BYU’s final year of independence, a vision comes together for Kalani Sitake
Dealing with the heat, how BYU and Utah took quite different approaches
