Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO — The math is pretty simple: If BYU scores 30 points or more, they win games. That's been the case in their last 4 games, scoring 30 or more.
With 38 points against the Georgia Tech "Ramblin' Wreck," it proved to be the magical number again. That didn't mean it wasn't an interesting ride to the 38 points. The Cougars had one of its most productive halves of football this season, racking up more than 350 yards in the first two quarters. Taysom Hill had one of his most productive, most accurate evenings of his career, going 19 of 27 for 244 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.
Forget the fact that the offense was completely unproductive in the final two quarters. Forget the 9 yards of offense in the third quarter. Forget the lack of any run game in the final two frames. The play calling might have made a fan bonkers, but in the end, Robert Anae put in the slow motion offense. It was the antithesis of "Go Fast, Go Hard," running only 69 plays all game long.
The Cougars held up most of the game, seeing the usual stunning performance from Kyle Van Noy and a return to action from Spencer Hadley, who also recorded a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss. When the offense strung together four three-and-outs in a row, the defense got tired and bent just ever so slightly.
The defense even picked up for the offense by putting up points on a pick-six by Alani Fua that seemed to rejuvenate a sleepy crowd and a slumping Cougar sideline.
Tech kept the BYU defense tired, though almost doubling the Cougars' time of possession thanks to converting 10 of their 20 third down conversions.
Game after game, though, Hill has shown something more than just getting better at passing the ball and keeping defenses on their heels with his feet. His leadership is obviously improving from game to game and that should be more of an indicator as to the direction of the BYU season.
Fans responded to Hadley's return to the defense with enormous celebrations with his additions to the game. The math gets even easier the rest of the season, even as more difficult opponents loom. The more accurate Hill can be, the better chance BYU will have to win.
The defense? Set it and forget it. They will take care of Robert Anae when the Cougars can get to the 30-point plateau.
