BYU Cougars football: Sloppy victory
Cougars roll past Beavers despite many mistakes
Published: Saturday, Oct. 15, 2011 9:43 p.m. MDT
CORVALLIS, Ore. — Over and over again, BYU's defense gave the offense chances to put the game against Oregon State out of reach.
Instead, in a battle between two mistake-prone teams, the Beavers somehow kept it relatively close until the final quarter.
While the Cougar defense forced four turnovers, the offense squandered several scoring opportunities. But the offense was good enough to roll up a season-high 499 yards total offense and score more points in a game than they had all season in a 38-28 triumph over OSU Saturday afternoon at Reser Stadium.
"I'm proud of our football team to go on the road and get a win," said coach Bronco Mendenhall. "We certainly had our share of miscues that kept the game competitive."
BYU, which has now won four consecutive games, improved to 5-2 on the season while OSU dropped to 1-5.
The Cougars rushed for a season-high 282 yards and wide receiver Cody Hoffman caught a career-high nine passes for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown.
"We're starting to show what kind of offense we can be, and it's exciting," said left tackle Matt Reynolds.
For much of the game, BYU was firmly in control, even if the score didn't always reflect that.
"Our team is gaining momentum and making progress, but we're not at the point to where we could end up (winning) 45-17 or something like that," Mendenhall said. "There's progress being made, but not enough yet to have the consistency. In the meantime, I like the wins that are coming."
Late in the third quarter, BYU was outgaining OSU in total yardage, 377-166, but led by only 10 points, 24-14. Then, the Beavers scored on a 59-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 24-21 — despite the fact OSU had turned the ball over on its three previous possessions. Two of those turnovers were in Beaver territory.
But the Cougars scored only three points off those turnovers.
"When (the defense) kept getting those turnovers, it was frustrating not coming away with touchdowns," said quarterback Riley Nelson, who completed 17-of-27 passes for 217 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, and rushed 12 times for 87 yards. "We feel like we left some points out there."
On one of those drives, running back Michael Alisa ran 30 yards for a touchdown, but it was negated by a holding penalty.
"That was very frustrating," Nelson said.
Another frustrating moment: when Nelson threw an interception to OSU's Jordan Poyer that he returned 51 yards for a touchdown late in the first half to tie the score, 14-14.
But to start the second half, BYU made a statement by promptly marching 80 yards for a score. The drive was capped by a 12-yard touchdown pass from Nelson to Hoffman. BYU seized a 21-14 advantage, and never trailed again.
All three of those OSU turnovers in the third quarter involved Cougar linebacker Brandon Ogletree, who recorded an interception, on a tipped pass by defensive lineman Matt Putnam, and two forced fumbles.
"I decided I had to do something and get the ball out," Ogletree said. "For us, we look for every opportunity we can to give those guys on offense the ball, especially when they're moving the ball the way they are lately. It's fun to watch."
Mendenhall loved seeing Ogletree's inspired play.
"At one point, his helmet came off after he caused a fumble and he had blood coming down out of both of his nostrils and he's smiling," he said. "It looks like Halloween. He said, 'Man, this is fun.' That's a middle linebacker."
Leading by a slim 24-21 margin early in the fourth quarter, the Cougars knew what they had to do to put the game away.
"We couldn't settle for a field goal," Nelson said.
So the junior QB threw two touchdown passes in the final quarter — a 12-yarder to JD Falslev at the 10:39 mark and an eight-yarder to tight end Kaneakua Friel with 3:37 remaining — that finally sealed the victory. BYU led 38-21 before OSU scored a TD with 23 seconds left.
The Cougars relied heavily on their newfound ground attack, led by Nelson (12 carries, 87 yards) and Michael Alisa (20 carries, 84 yards and a touchdown).
"It was impressive being able to run," Nelson said. "We stuck with it. I was proud of the way our guys battled. When you know you can run the ball like that, it takes a lot of pressure off everything else. It also opens up the playbook for play-action and down-the-field throws."
OSU lamented its mistakes on offense.
"The thing that really killed us was our turnovers," said Beaver running back Malcolm Agnew. "It kills our momentum, first of all. The turnovers turned the whole tide the other way."
"We certainly had enough opportunities to have 38 points in that game," said OSU coach Mike Riley. "That's what's disappointing."
BYU hosts Idaho State next Saturday (1 p.m., MT, BYUtv).
email: jeffc@desnews.com
Cougars roll past Beavers despite many mistakes
Published: Saturday, Oct. 15, 2011 9:43 p.m. MDT
CORVALLIS, Ore. — Over and over again, BYU's defense gave the offense chances to put the game against Oregon State out of reach.
Instead, in a battle between two mistake-prone teams, the Beavers somehow kept it relatively close until the final quarter.
While the Cougar defense forced four turnovers, the offense squandered several scoring opportunities. But the offense was good enough to roll up a season-high 499 yards total offense and score more points in a game than they had all season in a 38-28 triumph over OSU Saturday afternoon at Reser Stadium.
"I'm proud of our football team to go on the road and get a win," said coach Bronco Mendenhall. "We certainly had our share of miscues that kept the game competitive."
BYU, which has now won four consecutive games, improved to 5-2 on the season while OSU dropped to 1-5.
The Cougars rushed for a season-high 282 yards and wide receiver Cody Hoffman caught a career-high nine passes for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown.
"We're starting to show what kind of offense we can be, and it's exciting," said left tackle Matt Reynolds.
For much of the game, BYU was firmly in control, even if the score didn't always reflect that.
"Our team is gaining momentum and making progress, but we're not at the point to where we could end up (winning) 45-17 or something like that," Mendenhall said. "There's progress being made, but not enough yet to have the consistency. In the meantime, I like the wins that are coming."
Late in the third quarter, BYU was outgaining OSU in total yardage, 377-166, but led by only 10 points, 24-14. Then, the Beavers scored on a 59-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 24-21 — despite the fact OSU had turned the ball over on its three previous possessions. Two of those turnovers were in Beaver territory.
But the Cougars scored only three points off those turnovers.
"When (the defense) kept getting those turnovers, it was frustrating not coming away with touchdowns," said quarterback Riley Nelson, who completed 17-of-27 passes for 217 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, and rushed 12 times for 87 yards. "We feel like we left some points out there."
On one of those drives, running back Michael Alisa ran 30 yards for a touchdown, but it was negated by a holding penalty.
"That was very frustrating," Nelson said.
Another frustrating moment: when Nelson threw an interception to OSU's Jordan Poyer that he returned 51 yards for a touchdown late in the first half to tie the score, 14-14.
But to start the second half, BYU made a statement by promptly marching 80 yards for a score. The drive was capped by a 12-yard touchdown pass from Nelson to Hoffman. BYU seized a 21-14 advantage, and never trailed again.
All three of those OSU turnovers in the third quarter involved Cougar linebacker Brandon Ogletree, who recorded an interception, on a tipped pass by defensive lineman Matt Putnam, and two forced fumbles.
"I decided I had to do something and get the ball out," Ogletree said. "For us, we look for every opportunity we can to give those guys on offense the ball, especially when they're moving the ball the way they are lately. It's fun to watch."
Mendenhall loved seeing Ogletree's inspired play.
"At one point, his helmet came off after he caused a fumble and he had blood coming down out of both of his nostrils and he's smiling," he said. "It looks like Halloween. He said, 'Man, this is fun.' That's a middle linebacker."
Leading by a slim 24-21 margin early in the fourth quarter, the Cougars knew what they had to do to put the game away.
"We couldn't settle for a field goal," Nelson said.
So the junior QB threw two touchdown passes in the final quarter — a 12-yarder to JD Falslev at the 10:39 mark and an eight-yarder to tight end Kaneakua Friel with 3:37 remaining — that finally sealed the victory. BYU led 38-21 before OSU scored a TD with 23 seconds left.
The Cougars relied heavily on their newfound ground attack, led by Nelson (12 carries, 87 yards) and Michael Alisa (20 carries, 84 yards and a touchdown).
"It was impressive being able to run," Nelson said. "We stuck with it. I was proud of the way our guys battled. When you know you can run the ball like that, it takes a lot of pressure off everything else. It also opens up the playbook for play-action and down-the-field throws."
OSU lamented its mistakes on offense.
"The thing that really killed us was our turnovers," said Beaver running back Malcolm Agnew. "It kills our momentum, first of all. The turnovers turned the whole tide the other way."
"We certainly had enough opportunities to have 38 points in that game," said OSU coach Mike Riley. "That's what's disappointing."
BYU hosts Idaho State next Saturday (1 p.m., MT, BYUtv).
email: jeffc@desnews.com
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