COUGAR TOWN -- For the third consecutive Homecoming game Curtis Brown rushed for more than 140 yards, as BYU (5-2, 3-0) defeated UNLV (1-6, 0-3) 52-7 Saturday afternoon. Brown got 141 of his 148 rushing yards in the first half, pushing him past Jeff Blanc and Lakei Heimuli into second place on BYU's all-time rushing list with 2,717 career yards. The senior running back needs 253 yards to surpass Jamal Willis as the Cougars' all-time rushing yards leader.
"There have been a lot of great players that have come through this program as is attested by the conference championships and the national championship," BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "That's who BYU is and was for a long time and you have to be able to run the ball effectively to make that happen. We're very optimistic about the way our program is moving, and Curtis has a tremendous impact in terms of leadership as well as his production on the field."
With just over five minutes to go in the third quarter, BYU freshman Jan Jorgensen ran back a Rocky Hinds fumble 48 yards to set up BYU's fifth touchdown of the game, a five-yard John Beck-to-Jonny Harline connection -- their second scoring hook-up of the day -- that made the score 35-7.
Four minutes and 28 seconds later, a scrambling Beck found freshman McKay Jacobson in the left corner of the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown reception, putting an early end to Beck's day for the second week in a row. BYU kicker Jared McLaughlin chipped in a 34-yard field goal with 8:12 left to play, and freshman running back Mike Hague broke free for an 87-yard rushing touchdown, his first career touchdown, nearly five minutes later to seal the Cougars' victory.
"I think John just continues to run one of the most high-powered offenses in the country like it's second nature," Mendenhall said. "His goal is a conference championship, and I think he expects each week he goes out there to perform at a very high level and it's been fun to watch."
Beck kept his team undefeated in Mountain West Conference play with an 18-23, 250-yard performance. The senior quarterback also threw for four touchdowns and one interception on his way to surpassing Steve Young for third place on BYU's career total offense list. Beck now has 8,949 career yards of total offense. As a team, BYU racked up 574 yards of total offense while holding UNLV to just 308 yards of total offense and forcing the Rebels into six turnovers (four interceptions, two fumbles).
As they've done nearly all season long, the Cougars wasted little time lighting up the scoreboard, as Beck led the offense on a six-play, 81-yard opening drive that ended in a 48-yard touchdown reception to Harline. The drive took just two-and-a-half minutes, and marked the sixth straight game BYU has scored first on its opponent.
On UNLV's ensuing possession, BYU senior Justin Robinson picked off a pass intended for Rebels wide receiver Aaron Straiten. The interception, Robinson's second of the season, led to another Cougar score, as BYU marched up field on its way to a 14-0 first-quarter lead. This time it was Beck who scored the touchdown on a one-yard run. The score capped an 11-play, 86-yard drive.
The following drive found UNLV once again unable to get its offense going as BYU freshman Ian Dulan forced UNLV quarterback Shane Steichen to fumble. The fumble was recovered by BYU defensive captain Cameron Jensen, and three plays later Brown rumbled into the end zone for a one-yard rushing touchdown of his own.
The Rebels' offense was energized when senior John Guice intercepted a Beck pass in the end zone to start the second quarter. The turnover sparked a 14-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a Hinds to Casey Flair three-yard touchdown reception.
BYU responded by putting together another 80-yard drive (10-plays, 87-yards), which put the Cougars up 28-7. Beck hit Jacobson for the 28-yard touchdown reception, the freshman's first career touchdown. Jacobson finished with three receptions, 54 yards and two touchdowns. The Cougars took the 28-7 lead into halftime thanks in part to a Ben Criddle interception in the end zone with 57 seconds left in the half.
BYU takes its four-game winning streak and undefeated MWC record to Colorado Springs, Colo., where they will face Air Force next Saturday, Oct. 28. Game time is set for 12 noon MDT, and fans can catch the action on VERSUS.
Box Score (Final)
UNLV vs Brigham Young (Oct 21, 2006 at Cougar Town, UT)
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
UNLV................ 0 7 0 0 - 7 Record: (1-6,0-3)
Brigham Young....... 21 7 14 10 - 52 Record: (5-2,3-0)
Scoring Summary:
1st 12:29 BYU - HARLINE 48 yd pass from BECK (MCLAUGHLIN kick), 6-81 2:31
05:32 BYU - BECK 1 yd run (MCLAUGHLIN kick), 11-86 3:56
03:50 BYU - BROWN 1 yd run (MCLAUGHLIN kick), 3-19 1:17
2nd 07:48 LV - FLAIR 3 yd pass from HINDS (AGUAYO kick), 14-80 6:38
02:48 BYU - JACOBSON 28 yd pass from BECK (MCLAUGHLIN kick), 10-87 4:49
3rd 05:08 BYU - HARLINE 5 yd pass from BECK (MCLAUGHLIN, Jar kick), 5-24 2:22
00:40 BYU - JACOBSON 20 yd pass from BECK (MCLAUGHLIN, Jar kick), 6-50 2:22
4th 08:12 BYU - MCLAUGHLIN 34 yd field goal, 9-30 5:35
03:21 BYU - HAGUE 87 yd run (MCLAUGHLIN kick), 1-87 0:40
LV BYU
FIRST DOWNS................... 18 28
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 26-92 41-308
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 216 266
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 38-19-4 25-20-1
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 64-308 66-574
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 1-48
Punt Returns-Yards............ 0-0 3-67
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 7-133 2-38
Interception Returns-Yards.... 1-0 4-10
Punts (Number-Avg)............ 3-48.0 1-25.0
Fumbles-Lost.................. 2-2 1-0
Penalties-Yards............... 7-51 12-114
Possession Time............... 28:31 31:29
Third-Down Conversions........ 3 of 11 6 of 10
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 2 of 3 1 of 1
Red-Zone Scores-Chances....... 1-3 5-6
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 1-4 0-0
RUSHING: UNLV-PEEPLES, David 13-48; STEICHEN, Shane 6-26; JACKSON, Erick 5-15;
SMITH, Ronnie 2-3. Brigham Young-BROWN, Curtis 20-148; HAGUE, Mike 9-123;
SEMANOFF, Joe 4-21; TONGA, Manase 3-19; BECK, John 3-minus 1; TEAM 2-minus 2.
PASSING: UNLV-HINDS, Rocky 16-32-3-205; STEICHEN, Shane 3-6-1-11. Brigham
Young-BECK, John 18-23-1-250; BECK, Jason 2-2-0-16.
RECEIVING: UNLV-WOLFE, Ryan 4-97; FLAIR, Casey 4-41; SMITH, Ronnie 3-28;
FLETCHER, L. 3-10; STRAITEN, Aaron 2-14; ANTHONY, R. 1-19; ANDERSON, Corey 1-5;
JACKSON, Erick 1-2. Brigham Young-JACOBSON, McKay 3-54; MEIKLE, Nathan 3-48;
TONGA, Manase 3-36; REED, Michael 3-29; HARLINE, Jonny 2-53; ALLEN, Matt 2-16;
BROWN, Curtis 2-11; COLLIE, Zac 1-14; COATS, Daniel 1-5.
INTERCEPTIONS: UNLV-GUICE, John 1-0. Brigham Young-STACEY, Andrew 1-6; MIYAHIRA,
Cole 1-4; CRIDDLE, Ben 1-0; ROBINSON, Justi 1-0.
FUMBLES: UNLV-STEICHEN, Shane 1-1; PEEPLES, David 1-1. Brigham Young-MIYAHIRA,
Cole 1-0.
Stadium: Edwards Stadium Attendance: 63341
Kickoff time: 1:06 pm End of Game: 4:21 pm Total elapsed time: 3:15
Officials: Referee: Gerald Wright; Umpire: Kevin Matthews; Linesman: Tim Podraza;
Line judge: George Arredond; Back judge: Terry White; Field judge: Tom Beller;
Side judge: Craig Falkner; Scorer: Media Relations;
Temperature: 45 F Wind: WNW 6 Weather: Partly cloudy
UNLV vs Brigham Young (Oct 21, 2006 at Cougar Town, UT)
SACKS (UA-A): UNLV-BEAUCHAMP, J. 1-0. Brigham Young-None.
TACKLES (UA-A): UNLV-BEAUCHAMP, J. 7-3; STAGGS, Jay 5-2; GUICE, John 3-4; CADE,
Tony 4-1; PATTISON, Matt 3-2; HALES, Jacob 2-2; ASIODU, KC 2-2; FUIMAONO, Starr
3-0; BELL, Beau 2-1; KENION, Nate 1-2; JAMES, Mil'von 1-2; GEATHERS, J. 2-0;
FAGA, Omega 1-1; FORTE, Daryl 1-1; SMITH, Ronnie 1-1; FAGA, Faauo 1-0; MORIARTY,
K. 1-0; GALLAHAR, G. 1-0; FUIMAONO, Howie 1-0; SHACKLEFORD, E. 1-0; SAINT PREUX,
R. 1-0; JOHNSON, M. 1-0; HINDS, Rocky 1-0; STRAITEN, Aaron 1-0; TROTTER, C. 0-1;
TRAVERS JR., R. 0-1. Brigham Young-KEHL, Bryan 3-2; NIXON, David 3-2; DULAN, Ian
3-2; HOOKS, Terrance 2-3; CRIDDLE, Ben 4-0; STAFFIERI, Mark 2-2; GOOCH, Quinn
2-1; POPPINGA, Kelly 2-1; ANDERTON, Judd 1-2; JENSEN, Cameron 0-3; MIYAHIRA,
Cole 2-0; WAGNER, Aaron 2-0; HUTCHINSON, Nat 1-1; PAONGO, Hala 1-1; HODGKISS,
Corby 0-2; HAGUE, Mike 1-0; DENNEY, Brett 1-0; GORDON, Aaron 1-0; MCLAUGHLIN,
Jar 1-0; ROBINSON, Justi 1-0; PRINGLE, Tico 1-0; JORGENSEN, Jan 0-1; FUGA,
Romney 0-1; GABRIEL, Dustin 0-1; TONGA, Matangi 0-1; TAFUNA, David 0-1;
SAULSBERRY, And 0-1; COLLIE, Zac 0-1; DOMAN, Shawn 0-1.