SAN DIEGO -- San Diego State's Lynell Hamilton racked up 161 yards rushing with two touchdowns, leading San Diego State to a 31-10 win over BYU on Saturday. With the win, the Aztecs improve to 2-3, 1-1 on the season, while the Cougars fall to 1-3, 0-2.
"I give San Diego State credit," BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "San Diego State performed well and outperformed us in every phase of the game, from beginning to end. I give their coaches and their players credit. They were the better team tonight."
A week after posting 50 points and 614 yards, the Cougars found it difficult to move the ball against the Aztecs. SDSU held the Cougars to just 305 total yards on the night, including only 44 yards rushing and 261 yards passing.
"San Diego State's defensive staff did a nice job," Mendenhall said about the Aztecs' defense. "There was a mixture in coverage and looks."
SDSU head coach Tom Craft said his team was prepared and focused for the Cougars.
"I've got to give our guys credit for their focus," Craft said. "It's not an easy thing to have somebody sit in the shotgun and throw 40 to 50 passes like they did. It really takes a lot of energy, and we never let our focus down. We wanted to keep everything in front of us in the passing game, which we did, and punish the receivers."
The Cougars' leading receiver, Todd Watkins, had just one reception for nine yards.
"The Aztecs did a nice job of keeping Todd off balance," Mendenhall said. "They were rolling up the corner on him for the majority of the game. In terms of the entire scheme, I know they made a clear effort to make sure he was out of the game, and their plan worked."
Tight end Jonny Harline led the Cougars' with 123 yards on seven receptions, while Fahu Tahi had a team-high eight receptions for 80 yards. Quarterback John Beck was 25-of-49 for 261 yards, while Tahi also led the running game with just 33 yards rushing and one touchdown.
After a scoreless first quarter, the Aztecs struck first with 8:57 remaining in the first quarter when Kevin O'Connell scored on a six-yard run. O'Connell's touchdown run caped a 13-play drive that covered 80 yards.
On the Aztecs' next drive, O'Connell found receiver Jeff Webb for a 50-yard completion, setting up a SDSU field goal four plays later. The Aztecs extended their lead to 10-0 after Garrett Palmer split the up-rights on a 30-yard field goal, capping a five-play, 54-yard drive.
With 4:51 left in the second quarter, Bryan Kehl recovered an SDSU fumble at the Aztec's 40-yard line. Seven plays later, the Cougars ended their scoring drought when Jared McLaughlin nailed a 33-yard field goal with 2:49 remaining in the second quarter.
San Diego State extended its lead to 17-3 after Lynell Hamilton scored on a one-yard run with :37 remaining in the first half. The touchdown run capped a 15-play, 76-yard drive.
In the second half, the Aztecs picked up where they left off, capitalizing on a John Beck fumble at the Cougars' 32-yard line. San Diego State drove 7 plays in 2:36 to take a 24-3 lead on Brandon Bornes 4-yard touchdown run.
Faced with a first-and-30 from the BYU 34-yard line, the Cougars managed to get the offense rolling. Fahu Tahi scored on a one-yard run with 13:12 left in the fourth quarter to cap an 11-play, 61-yard drive. The touchdown was set up after Beck found tight end Jonny Harline for a 35-yard reception on fourth-and-nine from the SDSU 42-yard line.
San Diego State answered on the following drive. Hamilton, who broke loose for a 53-yard run during the drive, scored on a six-yard run with 11:12 remaining in the game to give the Aztecs a commanding 31-10 lead.
The loss marked the first time since Nov. 5, 1988 that the Cougars have lost to the Aztecs in San Diego, ending a streak of six straight games.
The Cougars will travel to Albuquerque next weekend to take on New Mexico, while San Diego State will travel to UNLV.
Box Score (Final)
Brigham Young vs San Diego State (Sep 30, 2005 at San Diego, Calif.)
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
Brigham Young....... 0 3 0 7 - 10 Record: (1-3,0-2)
San Diego State..... 0 17 7 7 - 31 Record: (2-3,1-1)
Scoring Summary:
2nd 08:57 SD - O'CONNELL, Kevi 6 yd run (PALMER, Garrett kick), 13-80 5:55, BYU 0 - SD 7
05:54 SD - PALMER, Garrett 30 yd field goal, 5-54 1:49, BYU 0 - SD 10
02:49 BYU - MCLAUGHLIN, Jar 33 yd field goal, 7-24 2:02, BYU 3 - SD 10
00:37 SD - HAMILTON, Lynel 1 yd run (PALMER, Garrett kick), 15-76 2:12, BYU 3 - SD 17
3rd 10:39 SD - BORNES, Brandon 4 yd run (PALMER, Garrett kick), 7-32 2:36, BYU 3 - SD 24
4th 13:12 BYU - TAHI, Naufahu 1 yd run (MCLAUGHLIN, Jar kick), 11-61 4:02, BYU 10 - SD 24
11:12 SD - HAMILTON, Lynel 6 yd run (PALMER, Garrett kick), 7-90 2:00, BYU 10 - SD 31
BYU SD
FIRST DOWNS................... 15 26
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 19-44 55-265
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 261 243
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 49-25-2 31-21-0
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 68-305 86-508
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 1-7
Punt Returns-Yards............ 0-0 2-1
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 5-131 3-50
Interception Returns-Yards.... 0-0 2-29
Punts (Number-Avg)............ 6-40.5 4-32.8
Fumbles-Lost.................. 1-1 2-1
Penalties-Yards............... 6-51 3-26
Possession Time............... 24:47 35:13
Third-Down Conversions........ 5 of 16 14 of 20
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 1 of 2 0 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 2-3 5-5
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 1-5 3-19
RUSHING: Brigham Young-TAHI, Naufahu 5-33; BROWN, Curtis 6-25; MEIKLE,
Nathan 1-2; BECK, John 7-minus 16. San Diego State-HAMILTON, Lynel 30-161;
BORNES, Brandon 18-77; O'CONNELL, Kevi 7-27.
PASSING: Brigham Young-BECK, John 25-49-2-261. San Diego State-O'CONNELL,
Kevi 21-31-0-243.
RECEIVING: Brigham Young-TAHI, Naufahu 8-80; HARLINE, Jonny 7-123; BROWN,
Curtis 6-32; MEIKLE, Nathan 2-11; WATKINS, Todd 1-9; REED, Michael 1-6. San
Diego State-WEBB, Jeff 13-129; SWAIN, Brett 3-74; SCHILENS, Chaze 2-26;
EDWARDS, Marcus 1-13; BORNES, Brandon 1-7; HAMILTON, Lynel 1-minus 6.
INTERCEPTIONS: Brigham Young-None. San Diego State-DEMPS, Marcus 1-28; MAZE,
Terrell 1-1.
FUMBLES: Brigham Young-BECK, John 1-1. San Diego State-O'CONNELL, Kevi 1-0;
TEAM 1-1.
Stadium: Qualcomm Stadium Attendance: 41680
Kickoff time: 7:07 pm End of Game: 10:33 Total elapsed time: 3:26
Officials: Referee: Terry Leyden; Umpire: Gary Crum; Linesman: Bob Bahne;
Line judge: Gary McNanna; Back judge: Craig Battaglia; Field judge: Judson Howard;
Side judge: Ken Lucido;
Temperature: 71 Wind: 6nw Weather: Clear, mild
SACKS (UA-A): Brigham Young-MADDUX, Justin 1-0. San Diego State-DEMPS,
Marcus 1-0; BAILES, Johatha 1-0; KAHUI, Kurt 1-0.
TACKLES (UA-A): Brigham Young-STAFFIERI, Mark 9-3; WHITE, Spencer 6-3;
ROBINSON, Justi 7-0; WAGNER, Aaron 5-2; SOELBERG, Natha 4-2; BILLS, K.C.
4-2; SITAKE, T.J. 1-4; MARQUARDT, Dani 4-0; GABRIEL, Dustin 3-1;
LUETTGERODT, Ju 2-2; MADDUX, Justin 3-0; KEHL, Bryan 2-1; GOOCH, Quinn 2-1;
TAFUNA, David 2-0; STACEY, Andrew 2-0; HODGKISS, Corby 2-0; MIYAHIRA, Cole
1-0; FEULA, Vince 1-0; KEELE, Eddie 1-0; WATKINS, Todd 1-0; LOVELY, Gary
1-0; NEHRING, Richar 0-1; BECK, John 0-1. San Diego State-ALLEN, Russell
6-4; GRIGSBY, Reggie 5-1; MARTIN, Joe 3-3; KEIAHO, Freddy 3-2; MAZE, Terrell
3-1; BAKER, Donny 3-0; KAHUI, Kurt 2-1; BAILES, Johatha 2-0; DEMPS, Marcus
2-0; MCKAY, T.J. 2-0; APPLEWHITE, Ant 2-0; OSBORN, Nick 1-1; BARBIER, Matt
1-1; SCHANTZ, Andrew 1-0; STURM, Brett 0-1; ARMSTRONG, Gera 0-1.