Austin, Texas • You could be forgiven for turning off the television after Xavier Worthy’s 74-yard punt return for a touchdown that gave Texas a 7-0 lead just three minutes into Saturday’s game.
At that moment, it looked like the beginning of a blowout loss to the No. 7 team in the country. And if you checked back in at the end of the game, a 35-6 defeat for BYU, you’d probably think you were right to skip this one.
“If you looked at the score and didn’t watch the game, it looks like we got our butts kicked,” BYU safety Crew Wakley said.
And to some degree, that’s all true. There was never a question of which team was more talented. Texas held the Cougars to under 300 yards and forced three turnovers. Not once did BYU seriously make it a game.
But BYU was never going to measure this season based on whether it could hang with a College Football Playoff contender in its first year in the Big 12. And it wasn’t entirely as bad as the box score would say — at least not on defense.
BYU quarterback Kedon Slovis (10) throws under pressure from Texas defensive end Barryn Sorrell (88) during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Austin, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
So to that fan who turned it off: You didn’t miss much, but Saturday’s outcome shouldn’t change your perception of who this BYU team is.
“We were riddled with a lot of mistakes,” head coach Kalani Sitake said. “I’ll do a better job getting us ready. ... But you have to give credit to the great talent on the other side. And the amazing coaching they have done.
“When you see them on film, they just pop off with the talent and the depth. You can tell this thing is starting to really build. They are going to be one of those teams that have a shot to win it at the end.”
Looking at it through that lens, Saturday’s game makes more sense. Texas did what it should against BYU and built a 14-0 lead almost immediately. Even as it threw an early interception, the Longhorn defense got it right back by picking off Kedon Slovis and turning it into points.
BYU briefly had a chance to make things interesting at the end of the first half. It went on a nine-minute drive and got all the way down to the two-yard line. It could have gone for a fourth-and-goal to make it a one-score game. But Sitake ended up kicking a field goal.
Texas capitalized on the missed chance and took the ball 75 yards on its next possession to take a 21-3 lead — all but ending it there.
BYU safety Crew Wakley, left, tips away a pass intended for Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders (0) during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Austin, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
“That’s on the coaches,” Stiake said after explaining his decision to kick it. “Get some points, get something positive. I don’t know. If we had gone for it on fourth so many times, we might keep it going and punch it in. ... That’s not on players.”
Slovis added, “Obviously now it’s easy to say we should have gone for it.”
But even for all that, BYU still didn’t completely roll over. Its defense continuously kept the game in check, holding the Longhorns 100 yards under its season average.
As Texas drove down inside the five-yard line twice in the second half, threatening to make it a blowout, BYU came up with stops. The first time, late in the third quarter, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian elected to flip it to Ja’Tavion Sanders from the 1-yard line and Jakob Robinson made the tackle short of the goal line.
Then early in the fourth, Texas went heavy personnel and tried to shove it down BYU’s mouth with running back Jonathan Brooks. BYU pushed him back and kept the score at 24-6.
“I don’t think anybody is in panic mode by any means,” Wakley said. “There are a lot of good things to take away from this game. Being able to go toe-to-toe. I don’t ever like the mindset of, ‘Oh, if we could only just play with them.’ That isn’t really my mindset. But after the game and we lose, we should have confidence going into every game.”
Texas quarterback Maalik Murphy (6) looks to throw against BYU during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Austin, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
The problem was BYU’s offense could never do anything with those chances. And if anything is to be gleaned from Saturday, the offensive issues might be the one thing the Cougars take with them as they leave Austin.
Slovis looked uncomfortable as he went 24-of-39 for under 200 yards yet again. He threw two interceptions, neither entirely his fault, and lost the ball on a hit late in the fourth.
The running game also struggled, finishing with 95 yards. After the first quarter, BYU only had 12 yards. It led to a day where BYU only sustained four drives of over four plays. It only had three drives of over 30 yards.
Those numbers won’t beat many teams, not just Texas.
But as for the score, and a loss to Texas, that is not something BYU should worry about past Saturday. Facing a top 10 team was always going to be a struggle for a first-year Power Five team.
“The score doesn’t indicate our identity,” Sitake said. “We are still trying to build and progress as a team.”
To the fan that turned the game off, move on to the next week.
