BYU falls (Photo by BYU Athletics)
With the deck stacked against them, BYU is likely out of playoff contention with their second loss to Texas Tech
Texas Tech 34, BYU 7
In the first quarter, Texas Tech got the opening kickoff and moved the ball on BYU but had to punt. BYU got the fair catch and started their first possession at their own 10-yard line. A Chase Roberts reception and a Bear Bachmeier run gave BYU a couple of first downs. BYU would attack Tech in ways they didn’t in Lubbock in November, slashing at the Red Raiders all over the field, including a Parker Kingston pass to Carsen Ryan. They converted three third downs, and LJ Martin finished the drive off with a 10-yard touchdown run.
That was a good early sign, since BYU was 52-9 under Coach Sitake when scoring first, and came into the game on a 21-game winning streak when they got on the board first. BYU struggled on defense, allowing two third-down conversions by Texas Tech that put the Red Raiders in the Red Zone. The BYU loves to play there, and their eighth-ranked Red Zone defense held Texas Tech to a field goal. That was the 14th time BYU forced an opponent to settle for a field goal in the Red Zone this season, and the score was 7-3 after just over a quarter of play.
Second Quarter
Bear Bachmeier was nursing an ankle injury from BYU’s touchdown drive, which put BYU behind early on their second possession. Facing a 3rd and 11, BYU went conservative with a draw play to LJ Martin. BYU went three-and-out. Texas Tech would start another methodical drive, wearing BYU down. Tech got two more third-down conversions, and BYU’s 16th nationally third-down defense was reeling. Texas Tech got away with an offensive pass interference on a touchdown pass that made the score 10-7.
BYU would fail a third and long, and then Sam Vander Haar would run the fake punt, fail, and Texas Tech would take over in BYU territory. If you’re going to go for it there, you should do it with your offense and not your punter. Tech would fizzle and miss a 48-yard field goal. Six plays later, BYU would punt it right back to Texas Tech. They would get to the BYU 22-yard line before they would settle for another field goal attempt. This one would be good, and Texas Tech would take a 13-7 lead at halftime.
Second Half
BYU started the second half with a promising drive, getting to the Texas Tech 29-yard line. The Cougars got conservative and had to settle for a 46-yard field goal, which went wide to the left. Texas Tech would march on a long drive deep into BYU territory, and on 4th and two at the 13 would go for a knock-out punch instead of another field goal. They’d go with a halfback pass. The pass was so far away from the receiver that it was uncatchable even with contact in the end zone, and BYU would hold.
The defense gave a lot to stop Texas Tech there, and the BYU offense couldn’t reward them. That was when the game started to slip away from the Cougars. A terrible interception from the quarterback gave Tech the ball in the Red Zone. They punched it on the first play, made the two-point conversion, and led 21-7. BYU’s offense would play afraid, handing off to Martin up the middle twice before an incompletion on third-and-long gave the ball right back to Texas Tech.
Fourth Quarter
Another strong stand by the tired BYU defense would give BYU the ball back. It was do-or-die time for the Cougars. They needed a touchdown drive or their College Football Playoff hopes would die. They had to do it themselves. But the offense continued to flounder. A play where Bachmeier and Martin were off on the exchange was made worse by a missed block, and the defense forced a fumble, and BYU again put their defense in a terrible spot. Again, they would hold Tech to a field goal.
With the score 24-7, BYU would continue to commit turnovers that essentially ended the game and BYU’s playoff hopes, thanks to a stupid College Football Playoff Committee. BYU would lose five turnovers in the game, and the final score would read 34-7.
What Next?
BYU will get no respect, despite the fact that they’ve struggled only against one of the top four teams in college football. They will probably become the only team in College Football Playoff history to win 11 games, play for their conference championship, and still be left out of the field. Those same clowns at ESPN who say Alabama shouldn’t be penalized for playing in a conference championship game are more than happy to do that to BYU.
It’s a certain fact that if Coach Sitake had taken the job at Penn State, they would have unironically used that against BYU as well, despite the fact that Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin would be staring them in the face. BYU deserves to be in the College Football Playoff. They and Texas Tech would both beat Notre Dame, Miami, Oklahoma, and Vanderbilt. I hope Texas Tech crushes any ESecPN team they play in the playoff.
Next for BYU, it could be the Alamo Bowl again. Hopefully, this time against a non-conference opponent and not against another Big 12 team. I’d love to see them play USC or Texas in a bowl game. A bowl win against an SEC team would be cathartic. Now, BYU has to worry about the opt-outs for a bowl. Players looking to the pros, like LJ Martin, may skip a bowl game to avoid injury. It will be an anti-climactic way for BYU to end a season in which they earned so much more.
