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PROVO, Utah (AP) - Brigham Young coaches figure a half-Nelson is better than none at all, which is why they yanked starting quarterback Riley Nelson midway through Saturday's 45-13 victory over Weber State when he experienced back spasms.
Play of the GameWith the score at 0-0 Riley Nelson lofted a ball to the area of Cody Hoffman who jumped over a Weber State defender to pull the ball down. Hoffman then walked into the endzone for the first score of the game for BYU.Quotables
"We got exactly what we expected to see from James Lark - efficient QB play. And Taysom (Hill) was full of energy. You saw his athleticism on the QB draws. Both of them commanded the offense and led our guys. We are very deep at that position." -Riley Nelson on his backups.Game Day Coverage
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After all, Saturday's game between two teams just 80 miles apart was really the warm-up for the real instate rivalry next week between BYU and Utah - which the Utes won 54-10 in Provo last season.
"It's a new year. We're a new team," BYU cornerback Preston Hadley said of next week's showdown in Salt Lake City. "I think our team is motivated. Nothing has to be said."
If anything, the Cougars (2-0) showed they are deep at the QB position, with three players combining for five touchdowns Saturday.
Nelson set career highs for a half with 244 yards passing and a touchdown as BYU built a 21-0 lead. He was 10 of 10 for 174 yards on three touchdown drives, and 18 of 29 overall.
"It's nothing," Nelson assured reporters afterward when asked about his back, seemingly more upset with the one interception he threw.
His backups showed they are more than ready if the spasms prove to be more than "nothing."
Senior James Lark threw his first career touchdown pass in the third quarter, and added a 6-yard scoring run in the fourth. And versatile freshman Taysom Hill was only 1 of 3 passing for 18 yards, but he scored twice on short runs, and added a 17-yard scamper.
"We got exactly what we expected to see from James Lark - efficient QB play," Nelson said. "And Taysom was full of energy. You saw his athleticism on the QB draws. Both of them commanded the offense and led our guys. We are very deep at that position."
Just who will start at quarterback next week for Utah remains to be seen. The Utes (1-1) are reeling after seeing their 12-game winning streak against Utah State snapped Friday night in overtime and losing quarterback Jordan Wynn to a left shoulder injury.
Nelson acknowledged BYU players watched Utah's loss from the team hotel Friday night.
"Man, we play good football in the state of Utah," Nelson said. "Both of those teams battled it out. I venture to say our games (against both) will probably be similar to that - knock-down, drag-out, physical ballgames and points will be tough to come by and lots of emotion."
That didn't seem to be the case Saturday, though the Cougars struggled early to get untracked until Nelson found his rhythm.
On the Cougars' third possession, he drove BYU 90 yards, capped by a 37-yard TD pass to 6-foot-4 wide receiver Cody Hoffman, who plucked the ball out of the air over 5-10 cornerback Devin Pugh. Nelson was 5 of 5 for 80 yards on the drive, including a pair of third-down completions to Hoffman and tight end Kaneakua Friel.
BYU bumped its lead to 21-0 on an eight-play, 72-yard drive in the second quarter, capped by Michael Alisa's 8-yard run. Nelson was 4 of 4 for 67 yards on the drive, and had an 11-yard keeper. The big play was a 32-yard pass across the middle to reserve tight end Richard Wilson - his first catch of the season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament last year.
In between, Hill continued to build on his experience. He took the shotgun snap on second-and-goal from the 2 and rolled right, stretching out for the pylon for his second career TD - the first coming on his first pass last week in a win over Washington State.
BYU led 28-0 on Lark's TD pass to Friel before Josh Booker's 1-yard TD run put Weber State on the scoreboard with 4:49 left in the third. Kris Parham closed out the scoring for the Wildcats with another 1-yard run in the final minute. That touchdown was set up by a 39-yard completion from backup quarterback Jordan Adamcyk to Chase Nakamura.
Weber State starter Mike Hoke had already seen enough action by then after completing just 13 of 26 passes for 91 yards. He was sacked six times and fumbled once.
"They don't play a ton of man (coverage)," Weber State coach Jody Sears said. "They play a lot of zone and they're very disciplined in their zones. You couple that with a good, strong pass rush and you're going to get sacks. ... You've got to tip your hat to those guys. They're big up front and they've got some good athletes and good pass rushers."
BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall acknowledged dialing back the game plan after halftime when he began substituting liberally.
Still, Hadley wasn't happy with the third meeting between the schools, and the first in 33 years. BYU had won the first two by an average score of 47-9.
"I don't think we should be satisfied," Hadley said. "Two TDs is too much. A lot of their success was due to mental mistakes."
BYU held a 532-254 advantage in total yards, 307-139 edge in passing, and 225-115 advantage in rushing.
While Nelson's back was BYU's only injury concern, the Cougars got star receiver Hoffman back in action after he left early in last week's win with a bruised left quad.
Hoffman had seven receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown, and his 11-yard catch on BYU's opening series extended his receiving streak to 21 games.
The Cougars now have won six straight dating to last season - their first as an independent.
"Last season really left us hungry, really left us wanting more," running back JD Falslev said. "That's evident of this team."
It won't get easier for the Cougars, with road games at Utah then Boise State, followed by October games at Notre Dame and Georgia Tech. (Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) 9/8/2012 6:24:04 PM (GMT -6:00)
