Third Quarter:
Coming out of halftime it seemed the Broncos were wanting to wear down the BYU defense and shorten the game as much as they could with their 8 point lead. I was proving to be rather effective as they had covered 33 yards on the drive. Unfortunately, a bad exchange between Rypien and Mattison lead to the able hitting the term and being removed by BYU. The Cougars made the most of the opportunity getting into the end zone for the first time in a few games on a 4 yard Zach Wilson run.
Wanting to get momentum back, Boise State stuck with the plan of running time off the clock. They opted for variety in play calling as they put together an 80-yard drive the took just over eight minutes off the clock before Alex Mattison got his 2nd scoring rush of the day.
BYU followed up with some trickery on their ensuing drive. After two plays of 15+ yards, the Cougars threw a backward pass to wide receiver Neil Pau’u, who then completed a 37-yard pass to Matt Bushman. On the way to the ground, Tyler Horton ripped the ball from Bushman and recover the fumble in the end zone for a touchback. What looked like a huge play for BYU to stay in the game turned into yet another turnover forced and recovered by Tyler Horton.
Boise State 21, BYU 13
Fourth Quarter:
Boise State continued moving the ball well to start the 4th quarter. Mattison and Robert Mahone lead the way rushing the ball and Rypien kept the field spread horizontally with short completions. After 12 plays and 46 yards, the drive stalled out on the BYU 34 yard line as the Broncos failed to convert a 4th and 11.
Instant replay played a big part for the Broncos on the ensuing drive negating two passes that were called complete on the field. One of the reversals was overcome with a holding penalty on Tyler Horton, the other was not as Wilson was sacked on the play putting the Cougars in a 2nd and 24 that they were unable to convert. BYU did get a field goal, however, narrowing Boise State’s lead to just 5 points at 21-16.
Both defenses came up with stops and forced and exchanging of 3 consecutive punts. BYU finally put together their final drive of the game. Starting on their own 17-yard line, Wilson took advantage of the aggressive Bronco pass rush with a screen pass to Matt Hadley for 59 yards, getting them down to the Boise State 24 yard line. After that was eight plays of pure mayhem.
The Cougars stuck to primarily running the ball and after converting on a 4th and 2 at the Boise State 2 yard line they only had enough time for a couple of plays. After an incomplete pass on first down the drive and game culminated with the Bronco defense coming away with their 7th sack of the game on the final play to seal the victory.
Final Score: Boise State 21, BYU 16
Key Moment:
THE moment of the game came on 2nd and Goal with :07 left in the game. Wilson drops back and is pressured, then ultimately sacked by the Bronco defense to seal the victory.
Player of The Game:
With another Co-Player of the game, the honors go to the Boise State Defensive Line. BYU was held to under 100 rushing yards and they repeatedly got to Zach Wilson with pressure. Coming into the game their heigh was 5 sacks in a game and they finished with 7 on the night and had numerous pressures. It was rare to see Wilson comfortably in the pocket.
Final Thoughts:
This one was a heart stopper and as Coach Harsin stated in the post-game interview, this victory came from having a lot of guts. The offense struggled to get anything going deep but was still able to move the ball and eat up the clock to put added pressure on BYU.
The defense stepped up in a huge way, especially after giving up 59 yards on a screen pass on the last drive of the game. This was an exhausting game and with Fresno State and Utah State still to come the Broncos are going to have to focus to not come out flat in their upcoming matchups.
Next Up:
Boise State hosts West rivals No. 23 Fresno State next Saturday in Boise. Kick off scheduled for 8:15 MT on ESPN2. ESPN’s matchup predictor gives Boise State the slight 51.4 percent edge.
