PROVO, Utah – No. 21/22 Washington beat BYU 45-19 on Saturday afternoon at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
BYU (2-2) fell behind 21-3 in the first quarter to Washington (3-1). The Huskies finished the game with 477 total yards and four touchdowns on offense while adding a score on both defense and special teams.
Tight end Matt Bushman and receiver Aleva Hifo led the Cougars with six receptions apiece for 89 and 87 yards, respectively. Zach Wilson went 26 of 42 for 272 yards, one interception and connected with Bushman for a touchdown. Running back Emmanuel Esukpa rushed nine times for 49 yards and his first score as a Cougar.
Payton Wilgar led the defense with 10 total tackles while both he and Dayan Ghanwoloku posted a team-high six solo stops. The BYU defense forced two turnovers as Max Tooley recorded his first career interception and Hayden Livingston recovered a fumble.
First Quarter
Opening the game on offense, Husky quarterback Jacob Eason capped off a 75-yard drive with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Richard Newton in the corner of the end zone to give Washington the early lead 7-0 over BYU.
On the Cougar offense’s opening drive, Wilson hit Hifo across the middle of the field for a 19-yard gain moving the ball into Husky territory. Ty’Son Williams dragged a couple of defenders to the Washington 25-yard line on the following play for a gain of 15 yards. The Husky defense held the Cougars to a field goal with Jake Oldroyd drilling a 43-yarder to bring the score to 7-3 with nine minutes left in the quarter.
Capitalizing on back-to-back BYU face mask penalties, Washington put together another 75-yard touchdown drive that ended with Aaron Fuller catching a 17-yard touchdown pass between two defenders for the score to extend the Huskies’ lead to 14-3 with four minutes left in the period.
On the ensuing kickoff, Lopini Katoa returned the ball 48 yards to the 50-yard line. Wilson connected with Bushman for a 23-yard completion moving the ball to the Washington 25-yard line. The Huskies sacked Wilson for a 3-yard loss with the ball coming loose for a fumble. Brandon Wellington scooped up the fumble and returned it 69 yards for a Washington touchdown bringing the score to 21-3 at the end of the quarter.
- Isaiah Herron recorded his first career tackle for loss
- Oldroyd’s 43-yard field goal marked the third consecutive game he has converted from 40 yards out
- Lopini Katoa recorded a career-long 48-yard kickoff return
Second Quarter
The Cougar defense held the Huskies to a field goal to open the second period extending the Huskies’ lead to 24-3. Bushman caught passes of 28-and 23-yards on back-to-back plays, moving the ball to the Washington 24-yard line. Three Husky penalties set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Esukpa. Oldroyd missed the subsequent PAT leading BYU to trail 24-9 with 8:22 remaining in the half.
After the Huskies drove the ball inside the BYU 5-yard line, the Cougar defense stopped the drive forcing a field goal attempt. Wilgar snuffed out a fake field and tackled the kicker four yards short of the end zone to force a turnover on downs. Starting at their own 4-yard line, Wilson completed four passes for first downs to set up a 54-yard field goal attempt. Oldroyd’s kick cleared the crossbar for a career-long make and to close Washington’s lead to 24-12 at the half.
- Esukpa’s touchdown run was his first in a BYU uniform, seventh career total
- Oldroyd’s 54-yard field goal marked the first time BYU had hit a 50-yarder since Oct. 28, 2006, when Jared McLaughlin converted from 53 yards out against Air Force
Third Quarter
BYU opened the half with the ball before the Huskies forced and recovered a fumble at the Washington 48-yard line. Washington converted on that miscue and two more times for scores, taking a 45-12 lead during the third quarter.
In the closing seconds of the period, Tooley intercepted a tipped ball and followed blockers 33 yards to the Washington 7-yard line. The Cougars took advantage of the short field on the following play with Bushman catching a deflected pass from Wilson in the end zone making the score 45-19 heading into the final quarter.
- Max Tooley grabbed his first career interception
- Bushman caught his first touchdown of the season, sixth of his career
Fourth Quarter
On the BYU offense’s first play of the quarter, Esupka scampered for a team-long 23 yards up the middle of the field. Wilson connected with Micah Simon for an 18-yard gain to advance to the Husky 35-yard line. The Cougars failed to convert on fourth down and turned the ball back over to Washington. Both teams failed to score in the fourth quarter as the Huskies secured the win.
- Esukpa recorded a season-long 23-yard run
- Tyler Allgeier recorded his first career forced fumble in his first game as a linebacker
BYU will make its first trip to the Glass Bowl to take on the Toledo Rockets on Saturday, Sept. 28. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. EDT and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+. Radio broadcasts of the game can be heard on BYU Radio Sirius XM 143/89.1 FM and KSL 1160 AM/102.7.