Estimated read time: 8-9 minutes
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PROVO — BYU’s home-opener didn't turn out like they had hoped. The Cougars went in with confidence as they took on a struggling UCLA team, but once again the offense couldn’t get rolling and left the defense on the field for much too long.
BYU’s defense played well against QB Josh Rosen and the Bruins for the most part, but the offense didn’t really do much to help them out.
Spoiler, they didn’t get it.
It was hard to get too excited about the defense when the offense was so stagnant. Taysom Hill had a tough time finding receivers, receivers had a tough time catching the ball, and the offensive line couldn’t seem to keep UCLA out of the backfield.
As the offense struggled to get anything going, some fans were wondering if it was time to give Tanner Mangum a go at the QB spot.
That never happened, and BYU managed to only score one TD for nearly four quarters. Not saying that’s all on Hill, but the offense overall was pretty abysmal. The first TD they scored was aided, however, by some UCLA penalties deep into their own territory.
BYU did manage to scare again late in the fourth quarter. With just over two minutes left in the game, the Cougars took the field and did what they do when they are down with limited time, they scored a touchdown.
The problem? They needed two scores.
While the game was disappointing and aggravating, there was at least one bright spot, Butch Pau’u.
The linebacker was in on 19 tackles and had 2.5 tackles for loss. If you don’t know who Pau’u is, you should start paying attention, because not only is he a great player, but the kid hits people like a freight train.
Even some former Utes couldn’t help but chime in on Pau’u.
Truth is, I could go on and on with mentions of Pau’u, and I will.
Yes, I wrote that one, but it’s the best representation I could find.
At the end of the day, it was a rough go for the Cougars and not a great way to begin their season at home. Not only that, they now take an ugly loss on a cross-country road trip to Redskins Stadium to take on West Virginia next Saturday.
Even if BYU can’t score any points, let’s just hope we can at the very least get more of this.
John Clyde has been writing about movies, news, sports and pretty much anything awesome for more than five years. He is the co-host of the Flix Junkies podcast and will always entertain you with his stories.
