BYU football crumples in loss to Arizona State – Deseret News

It’s grow to be a well-known chorus for BYU in its main sports activities: Tantalize the trustworthy with flashes of brilliance, then crumple within the clutch.

It’s like clockwork. Strut, then stumble. Allure, then choke. For all of the discuss of applications on the rise and applications to look at, BYU has this uncanny capacity to catch fireplace after which, simply when the sport is on the road, depart its fan base standing on the altar, questioning what might need been.

Saturday’s 28-23 loss to the No. 21 Arizona State Solar Devils was no exception. The Cougars, after reeling off three touchdowns and a area purpose on 4 possessions to climb again from an 18-point deficit, discovered themselves with an opportunity to drag off a type of “bear in mind the place you had been when” moments with two minutes left.

However then, with the set off in hand to a exceptional comeback, quarterback Jake Retzlaff threw an interception at midfield, and with that, No. 14 BYU’s once-promising comeback vanished.

For a program that has seen so many thrilling finishes, you’d assume BYU would have found out learn how to seal the deal by now, but right here they had been once more, left questioning what might need been.

“Two weeks in a row we had an opportunity to win the sport with the ball in our palms. We simply can’t hold placing ourselves in a gap towards these groups. We had been down 5 with two minutes to go and I preferred our probabilities,” stated BYU head coach Kalani Sitake.

The sport had all of the drama of a Hollywood script: The Solar Devils shot out of the gate, taking a 21-3 lead into halftime aided by a recovered onside kick that gave them an additional possession.

For BYU, it was a primary half to overlook. The Cougars had been outmuscled within the trenches, outplayed in practically each section, and at that time, it appeared as if they had been simply biding their time till the inevitable finish.

However then got here the second half.

BYU flipped the script. The Cougars began shifting the ball with authority, scoring 20 factors in a comeback that had followers buzzing. Retzlaff, the hero of untamed finishes towards Oklahoma State and Utah, started to seem like the poised quarterback everybody thought he might be when given time to throw and a little bit of house to breathe.

However BYU’s failure to transform two two-point tries late within the sport was the turning level. Had the Cougars made these, it will’ve been 28-27—establishing the potential for a game-winning area purpose.

As a substitute, they had been left needing a landing, and the interception sealed their destiny.

Make no mistake, this loss didn’t occur within the final two minutes. BYU misplaced this sport within the first half when it was totally dominated. The Cougars had been outgained by ASU 208-114 within the first half and confirmed little signal of life on offense.

At halftime, they’d scored simply two touchdowns of their final 29 possessions. For a staff making an attempt to ascertain itself within the Large 12, that’s a troublesome lesson discovered.

However the comeback was at the least a glimmer of hope, one thing to rally behind in what’s been a season stuffed with dramatic swings. With a win, BYU might’ve, at worst, stayed tied on the high of the Large 12 standings and probably clinched an look within the convention championship sport.

Now, the Cougars discover themselves needing others to assist. With Colorado’s loss to Kansas, the Large 12 is a three-way tie at 6-2 amongst BYU, ASU and Colorado.

Iowa State might make it 4 if it knocks off Utah later Saturday. BYU’s path to Arlington now requires some assist, specifically an Iowa State loss to Kansas State within the Cyclones’ final sport.

Within the grand scheme, it was a sport of missed alternatives. The Cougars confirmed they will compete within the Large 12. They’ve the expertise to play with the massive boys, however when it comes right down to crunch time, the offense has been too erratic — too many scoring droughts, too many instances when the wheels fall off in key moments.

In a league the place you’ll be able to’t afford to blink as soon as, BYU has blinked many instances.

The massive image is that this has been a yr to recollect for the Cougars. They had been picked to complete close to the underside of the Large 12 standings, and but they’ve discovered themselves ranked within the high 10 within the nation and holding their very own within the convention.

They’ve given their followers hope, but it surely’s been a rollercoaster of highs and lows, and now the trail to the Large 12 title sport appears a bit of extra distant.

BYU now has a house finale towards Houston subsequent Saturday at LaVell Edwards Stadium, an opportunity at 10 wins, which again in August appeared unimaginable.