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PROVO — The BYU football team moved within one win of returning to a bowl game with a 35-16 win over struggling UMass (4-7) Saturday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
That should be the key takeaway from a game in which quarterback Zach Wilson threw for 167 yards and two touchdowns, ran for 53 more, and led an offense that rolled up 221 yards on the ground for BYU (5-5).
But here are two other thoughts on the Cougars’ resounding victory over the Minutemen.
Poor starts continue at BYU
There had to be some casualty with a team starting a true freshman quarterback and ranked among the youngest teams in the nation, with freshmen littered across the offensive line, backfield and at wide receiver, as well.
Aside from the 7-6 loss to Northern Illinois at home, a big casualty appears to be the first quarter.
After BYU’s 10-7 first quarter in the cavernous Gillette Stadium, the Cougars' opening stanza with Wilson at quarterback have left plenty to be desired.
The Cougars scored just three points in the first half against the Huskies, dropped a 0-14 first quarter a week ago in a 21-16 loss to Boise State, and spotted UMass a 10-0 lead before waking up Saturday.
"We’ve been in that position before, and not had it work out," BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. "I think our guys just buckled down. We tried to remind our guys to just do their job; we’ve said the same things over and over again, and I guess they got sick of not performing well."
But there was no panic with the Cougars — and with injuries mounting late in the season, they quickly flipped a switch. Wilson’s career-long run sprang a touchdown strike to Talon Shumway — his first of two on the day — and running back Matt Hadley (69 yards, one touchdown) and the offensive line did the rest.
"I think we are finding our identity as an offense," said Wilson, who made his fourth career start. "That fumble to start, the stalled drives, I don’t think it brought anybody down. It was good to rebound from that."
UMass: the cure for the common offense
Does anybody remember the old Alka Seltzer ad with the catchy jingle and a promise to instantly cure indigestion?
Well, the Cougars had a case of offensive indigestion leading up to Saturday’s road game — and UMass was the relief.
The Minutemen entered Saturday averaging 41.4 points-against per game entering the contest, and like the Cougars, desperately needed a win to maintain any hope of the six-win bowl-eligibility mark.
BYU combined for just one red-zone touchdown in its two previous losses to Northern Illinois and Boise State.
But the offensive woes were a thing of the past, as the Cougars overcame their slow start and rolled up 35 unanswered points to take a commanding lead in the fourth quarter.
It helped having a lockdown defense as well. UMass had 98 yards of offense on the opening two drives, but piled up just 187 the rest of the game.
“We just had to regroup and let everybody know that it’s a long game,” said linebacker Sione Takitaki, who had a career-high 14 tackles and two tackles for loss. “We started really slow, but we got each other up and told each let’s go.”
One win away
Rivalries, home games and unrealistic expectations aside, the most pre-eminent goal of the BYU football program entering the 2018 season should have been to get back to bowl eligibility.
The 6-6 mark has been derided by some in college football circles, but it represents a chance to play one more game and send the senior class out on a high note.
It also represents an extra month of practice for young teams — which the Cougars certainly are.
With two games remaining, BYU is one win from becoming bowl-eligible after missing out on the 2017 postseason with a 4-9 record. The Cougars can clinch the mark Saturday at home against a struggling New Mexico State (3-7), a fellow FBS independent whose only wins have come against UTEP, Liberty and FCS Alcorn State.
They’ll want to wrap up a trip to the postseason next week, too, with a season-ending rivalry road trip to Rice-Eccles Stadium awaiting on the back end.
So BYU still has everything for which to play with two games remaining.
“It means a lot to go to a bowl game,” Takitaki said. “Last year we didn’t get to go, and so this year means a lot to go and to try to win.”
