Final: BYU 26, Utah 17
The Cougars bought everything they had and were rewarded for it.
BYU beat Utah in Saturday at LaVell Edwards Stadium, finally being Utah after nine straight losses. Thousands of BYU students rushed the field after the final buzzer sounded.
Cougars quarterback Jaren Hall threw three touchdown passes and amassed 149 passing yards and 92 rushing yards. Running back Tyler Allgeier ran for 109 yards on 27 carries.
Utes quarterback Charlie Brewer went 15-of-26 for 147 yards. He threw one touchdown pass and one interception.
Utah had four turnovers.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post did not accurately reflect the number of fans who stormed the field. There were clearly thousands of them.
Max Hall makes an appearance
BYU hasn’t beat Utah in nine straight games. That’s part of the reason why Saturday’s game between the two rivals is so important.
Jaren Hall started against the Utes, hoping to help break Utah’s streak. But another Hall was actually at the game.
Former Cougars QB Max Hall (no relation to Jaren Hall) was shown on the ESPN broadcast. He was the last quarterback to beat a Utes team.
With the way the game has been going, both Halls might have a reason to celebrate.
BYU 26, Utah 17
Cougars kicker Jacob Oldroyd makes his second field goal of the night to give BYU some breathing room with 3:17 remaining in the game.
Micah Bernard makes score BYU 23, Utah 17
Bernard, one of Utah’s main running backs, bounced off some Cougars tacklers and ran 22 yards for a touchdown with 9:31 left in the fourth quarter.
That puts the Utes down by only one touchdown after trailing 23-7 at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
It’s raining lots of rain
It started heavily raining in Provo between the third and fourth quarters. The rain was so significant that the ESPN announcers said the players would have to make sure they hold on to the wet football.
Those watching the game in person also started posting on social media about the rain.
BYU 23, Utah 10
Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, Jadon Redding makes a 47-yard field goal to cut BYU’s lead to less than 14 points.
End of 3: BYU 23, Utah 7
Hall throws his third touchdown pass, this time to Gunner Romney for 4 yards. With 38 seconds left in the third quarter, the Cougars got some separation.
Hall used two impressive run plays in a row to give BYU the field position for the touchdown. He now has 64 rushing yards, the most on the team.
Utah misses a field goal
The Utes had the opportunity to cut into their deficit with 4:35 left in the third quarter. But Jadon Redding missed a 49-yard field goal wide right.
Utes convert their first third down of the game
After four failed attempts, Utah finally pulled out a third-down conversion.
It happened midway through the third quarter on third-and-6. Brewer threw 37 yards to Jakob Robinson. The play was also Utah’s biggest play of the game in terms of yardage.
The Utes are now 1-of-5 on third downs.
Halftime: BYU 16, Utah 7
Hall passes to wide receiver Samson Nacua for a 2-yard touchdown. Nacua has now scored a touchdown for the Utes and the Cougars in the rivalry between the two teams.
The play before allowed for the situation that led to the touchdown. Hall scrambled for a few seconds and found receiver Keanu Hill for a 33-yard completion.
Nacua was given a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct after he took his helmet off in celebration of the touchdown. The penalty contributed to the Cougars missing the extra point because it was from further away.
BYU has 179 yards of total offense compared to Utah’s 149. The Cougars converted six of their 11 tries on third downs.
Cougars nab a fourth-and-short stop
The Utes were in the red zone on fourth down with just 2 yards to go for a first down. Utah opted for a run play in shotgun formation and were stopped short by the Cougars defense.
Fan’s weren’t happy with the play call by the Utes.
BYU 10, Utah 7
Utes tight end Brant Kuithe catches a 20-yard touchdown pass from Brewer with 7:22 remaining in the first half.
Utah’s drive lasted just six plays and went all of 80 yards.
BYU 10, Utah 0
Hall throws a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide-receiver Neil Pau’u to give the Cougars a 10-point lead with 10:37 remaining in the second quarter.
End of 1: BYU 3, Utah 0
The Cougars capitalized on Utah’s second turnover of the game with a field goal for the game’s first points. Jacob Oldroyo connects on a 37-yard field goal, his first attempt and make of the season. It was with a little more than four minutes left in the first quarter.
The second quarter is coming up and BYU still has possession.
Utes start with two straight turnovers
The BYU defense is giving the Utes huge problems.
In the first two drives for Utah, the Cougars have forced turnovers. The first came on an interception from Chaz Ah You, and the second came on a fumble from Utah running back Tavion Thomas that BYU recovered. Thomas has fumbled the ball in two consecutive games.
BYU, Utah honor memory of Ty Jordan pregame
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Brigham Young Cougars wide receiver Samson Nacua carries a Ty Jordan memorial flag to the Utah Utes sideline before they play in football, Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 in Provo.
The memory of late Utes player Ty Jordan will be honored by Utah all season in various ways. One of those is having a spot for Jordan in the team’s brand new locker room.
And even though Saturday’s game is at LaVell Edwards Stadium, the Cougars welcomed Utah to fly a flag pregame that read LLTJ, which means “Long Live Ty Jordan.”
But that wasn’t all. Nacua, who used to play for Utah, presented Utah backup quarterback Cam Rising. The flag then then ended up in the hands of cornerback Aaron Lowe with the flag.
BYU Roar of Cougars are ready to roar
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Annie Mecham from Brigham City sits in the student section before the Brigham Young Cougars play the Utah Utes in football, Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 in Provo.
BYU’s official student section arrived early in droves to get ready for the game against the Utah Utes, who have the opportunity to win their 10th straight game against the Cougars. Neither team has won 10 straight against the other in the entire history of the rivalry.
The BYU ROC looks like it is going to do everything it can to help their Cougars pull off the upset.
