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Tag: BYU football

  • Four takeaways from TCU football’s ugly beatdown at the hands of No. 12 BYU

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    PROVO, Utah

    With a chance to keep its season alive and earn a signature win for the program, TCU football came out flat in an ugly 44-13 loss to No. 12-ranked BYU on Saturday night.

    It was a thorough beatdown across the board, as the Cougars led 17-0 in the second quarter and scored on their first seven drives.

    BYU (9-1, 6-1 Big 12) was more physical, more creative offensively and played a much cleaner game as the Horned Frogs (6-4, 3-4) dropped their second straight and are now eliminated from reaching the Big 12 championship game.

    The Cougars delivered the knockout blow at the start of the fourth quarter when running back LJ Martin powered in on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to give BYU a 37-13 lead with 13:36 remaining.

    TCU was outgained 447-298, and while the Horned Frogs made it a two-possession game on two occasions, it never felt like TCU was truly competitive in the game.

    While BYU is one step closer to reaching the Big 12 title game, the Horned Frogs will now focus on improving their bowl standing. TCU next plays at Houston (8-2, 5-2) on Nov. 22 at a time to be determined.

    Here are four takeaways from the loss:

    Josh Hoover outplayed?

    The showdown between TCU quarterback Josh Hoover and BYU freshman phenom Bear Bachmeier ended up being a showcase game for the freshman, and it was yet another poor road performance by Hoover and the offense.

    Bachmeier played more like a redshirt senior with his poise and patience. It felt like he made the right decision on each throw even if it resulted in an incompletion.

    Meanwhile, Hoover played decent enough in the first half, but had two turnovers in the second half while playing with a much higer degree of difficulty than Bachmeier’s. Bachmeier had clean pockets most of the night outside a few pass rushes by Devean Deal, but Hoover was forced to run for his life most of the night as BYU clearly won the battle at the line of scrimmage.

    Even with the advantage on the offensive line, Bachmeier’s accuracy and dual-threat ability stood out as he led the Cougars to seven straight scoring drives. After BYU took a 30-13 lead, Hoover committed a critical mistake as he forced a pass to Eric McAlister that was intercepted on third down with 3:09 remaining in the third quarter.

    Hoover later threw a second interception that safety Tanner Wall returned 68 yards for BYU’s final touchdown. Hoover ended up completing 10 of 23 passes for 183 yards with the two interceptions.

    Defense exposed

    TCU’s defense was on its heels all night as Cougars offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick dialed up a masterful game plan. BYU threw everything at TCU from jet sweeps, speed options and creative play action passes that got tight end Carsen Ryan wide open multiple times

    Everything started up front with BYU’s rushing attack as the Cougars rushed for 152 yards and averaged 4.0 yards per carry. It was the most rushing yards TCU has allowed since its 27-24 loss to Arizona State on Sept. 26. With the run defense struggling, it only magnified TCU’s other glaring defensive issues, like its inability to matchup with the league’s best tight ends and the inability to get off the field.

    Ryan had four receptions for 79 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown where he outran the entire TCU secondary. Parker Kingston also proved to be a matchup problem with 80 yards on five receptions.

    The Horned Frogs didn’t get a stop until it finally forced a punt with 10:44 remaining in the fourth quarter. It was easily the worst performance of the year for the unit.

    Offensive line shuffle

    Anticipating a challenging night against BYU’s elite front seven, the Horned Frogs tried to provide a boost by making a switch on the offensive line. Cooper Powers got the start at right guard while Carson Bruno started at right tackle, the first time TCU had used this duo on the right side.

    The change did little to help the Horned Frogs as TCU was overwhelmed by the strength of BYU’s defensive line most of the night. The Cougars sacked Hoover twice in the first half and had a countless number of pressures that forced Hoover to escape the pocket and buy time.

    There was one sequence when BYU nose tackle Keanu Tanuvasa pushed a TCU offensive lineman five yards into the backfield. Those type of plays weren’t uncommon as the Horned Frogs were pushed around all night. Despite some good moments from running back Jeremy Payne, TCU finished with under four yards per carry in yet another conference game.

    The inability to protect Hoover or establish a run game once again proved to be too much to overcome on the road.

    Another slow start

    The Horned Frogs’ offensive struggles in the first quarter continued in Provo as the Horned Frogs found themselves in a 10-0 deficit after the opening quarter. It was the fifth time in the past six games TCU hasn’t scored in the first quarter, and it put the Horned Frogs in a hole they could never pull themselves out of.

    There were issues on both sides of the ball, starting with the offense that punted on its first two drives. Meanwhile, the Cougars’ offense was operating at the highest level it has this season with scores on all five of its first-half possessions. The most brutal touchdown came on the third possession when TCU had BYU in a third-and-long at the Horned Frogs’ 17.

    TCU allowed Bachmeier to run into the end zone untouched on a speed option to fall behind 17-0 at the 10:16 mark in the second quarter. McAlister would finally provide a spark to the TCU offense as his 47-yard reception set up TCU’s first score of the night, a 22-yard field goal from Nate McCashland. But the Horned Frogs immediately allowed another touchdown as BYU went 75 yards in just four plays to retake the lead 24-3.

    The Horned Frogs had a chance to swing the game after a gutsy call on fourth down led to a 13-yard touchdown run by freshman Jon Denman with just 1:14 remaining in the half. The Horned Frogs could’ve gotten the ball back only down two possessions to start the third quarter, but Bachmeier led a masterful two-minute drill with no timeouts to get the Cougars a field goal as BYU led 27-10 at halftime.

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    Steven Johnson

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  • Buffs take on BYU at home, featuring tailgating traditions and high energy

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    BOULDER, Colo. — Excitement was roaming at the University of Colorado Boulder as the Buffs took on Brigham Young University (BYU) Saturday night at Folsom Field.

    Fans of all ages were decked out in black and gold, feeling both confident and committed that their Buffs had a chance of beating BYU, though the night ended in heartbreak for the Buffs. The final score of the game was 24 to 21.

    Buffs superfan Phil Caragol, also known as Buffalo Phil, has been dressing up in Buffs gear since 2010. He said it all started because they weren’t a ‘very good team’ and there were ‘so many sad faces in the stadium.’ Now, 15 years later, he explained what the energy is like during these late-night games and his role in keeping fans going.

    Caleb Foreman

    “These late-night games are killer, starts at 8:15 p.m., so we’re not out of there till like 12:30 a.m. Everbody’s great energized in the first quarter, second quarter, and then halftime comes and the energy level starts sinking. It gets cold and old people leave, so it’s rough. Afternoon game, it’s just much more everybody’s much more engaged,” Caragol said.

    Before the game started, fans gathered for the Buff walk to cheer on the players and hear from the band. Becky Gamble could easily be spotted standing on top of a cooler to get a good view ahead of the game. She explained just how special Folsom Field is and the energy inside of it.

    “This stadium is one of the best in the country, just because it’s small and it’s intimate and you got the flat irons in the backdrop,” said Gamble. “This is a pretty special place.”

    standing on top of cooler.jpg

    Caleb Foreman

    Tailgating was in full force before the kickoff, with kids throwing footballs and fans enjoying their favorite bites to eat. At the BYU Alumni tailgate, booths were set up for attendees to pick up free swag or take pictures in gear.

    Jennifer Wise, chapter chair for the BYU alumni association in Denver, shared her favorite table is the CougsCare project as they were collecting donations for books and phonics games for the Family Learning Center in Boulder.

    “People are donating books and phonics games and toys, things to the center that will help them sort of bridge that gap between Spanish and English and be able to, sort of take advantage of all of the amazing cognitive benefits that bilingualism gives them,” Wise said.

    doonate a book .jpg

    Caleb Foreman

    When interviewing Wise, she said there were 300 items on their Amazon wishlist, and at last check, there were 253 donations. While the CougsCare project started back in 2019, Wise explained this was the first time for this tailgating tradition here in Colorado.

    “It is definitely a distinctively BYU thing to do, so yeah, I love it. It’s fun to be a part of,” Wise said.

    Next up, the Buffs will play Texas Christian University away in Fort Worth, and BYU will play at home against West Virginia.

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    Maggy Wolanske

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