The following notes are from No. 14/16 BYU's 28-14 victory over San Diego State on Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020, at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah.
FLAG BEARERS: DB Troy Warner, LB Kavika Fonua, DB Jared Kapisi and OL Kieffer Longson
COIN TOSS: Isaiah Kaufasi, San Diego State won the toss and deferred.
SERIES RESULTS: Thirty-ninth meeting: BYU leads 39-8-1
TEAM NOTES
Tonight’s win is the 10th of the season for the Cougars, the best season for head coach Kalani Sitake. It also marks the first time BYU has won 10 games in a year since 2011 when BYU finished 10-3.
BYU extended its perfect kicking season going 2-for-2 on field goals. The team is 13-for-13 on the season to tie for No. 1 nationally (100%).
BYU held its opponent scoreless in three quarters, a feat it accomplished for the third time this season (Navy, Troy).
BYU scored most points against San Diego State than any other opponent the Aztecs have played all year.
The Cougars have won the last six matchups between these two teams when played at LaVell Edwards Stadium. The last time BYU lost a game in Provo in the series was in 2000.
With 303 yards passing, the Cougars have totaled more than 200 passing yards in 26 straight games to equal a string of 26 consecutive games with mre than 200 yards accomplished by BYU during the 2007-2009 seasons.
At 29 degrees at the time of kickoff, tonight’s game tied the fourth coldest home game for the Cougars on record and the coldest since 2003 against Utah, when it was 19 degrees.
PLAYER NOTES
Zach Wilson
Finishing with 303 yards going 26-35 passing, Wilson passed Taysom Hill for No. 11 in all-time passing yards. He eclipsed the 7,000 career passing yard mark to finish with a total of 7,227. His three passing touchdowns moves him into a tie at No. 10 all-time at BYU in passing TDs with Steve Sarkisian and Kevin Federick with 53. He also moved up on the all-time list of passing completions to 11th with 540, as he moved past Steve Sarkisian and Marc Wilson.
Wilson is the first BYU quarterback to throw at least one touchdown in every game of a season since Max Hall in 2009. The junior has had multiple TD passes in 10 of 11 games this year. It marks the fifth time this season he’s thrown for more than 300 yards in a game.
His 26 pass completions marks a season high and his 35 attempts is equaled his season high this year (Houston).
Lopini Katoa
Katoa led the team in rushing yards with 90, which are a season high for the junior. He also earned his longest run of the season 43 yards and all-purpose yards (137).
Dax Milne
Milne hauled in his 8th career touchdown to put the first points on the board for either team. He totaled 106 receiving yards on 8 catches to record his sixth game with more than 100 yards and his third in a row. Milne moved up to No. 7 all-time among BYU receivers with the most receiving yards in a single season (1,118) passing Eric Drage (1,093).
Isaac Rex
Rex also caught his 9th and 10th career touchdowns tonight, becoming the first tight end since Jonny Harline (2006) to tally 10 or more receiving touchdowns in a season. The freshman All-America candidate entered the game ranked No. 11 in the nation among all player in receiving TDs.
Neil Pau’u
For the second week in a row, Pau’u broke his own career high in receiving yards with 98. He also set a new personal best with 8 catches in a single game. He added 30 yards after the catch on those eight grabs.
Jake Oldroyd
Going a perfect 2-for-2, Oldroyd remains unblemished on the year in field goal kicking. His kicks tonight included a 50-yard field goal to end the first half to put the Cougars up 17-14. The Lou Groza Award semifinalist is only the second BYU kicker with five or more career field goals of 50+ yards. He has three this season.
Notable career highs/career firsts
First career interception: Drew Jensen
Career-high receiving yards: Neil Pau’u (98)
POSTGAME QUOTES
BYU head coach Kalani Sitake:
Opening Statement:
"[It was a] tough game, with freezing cold conditions, and I know that affected both teams. It was tough to deal with, but I think both teams were able to fight through it all. I'm just really proud of our boys for getting the win, our seniors, our team for protecting LaVell's house.”
On San Diego State:
San Diego State is a great team. Their defense is a very physical and active … On offense, I was really impressed with what they did up front. I thought with our size that we were able to stop some points and when it's all said and done that's the name of the game.
On Drew Jensen's interception and the impact of the defense
"I’m so happy for Drew. The kid works hard, and he studies and he gets better every day. We thought that maybe we should have played him a little bit more last week and then gave him some opportunities this week and it showed.”
“I've just been really proud of our whole defense, but the linebacking crew has worked really well together and I'm just proud of the things that they've done … It looked really tough at the beginning, but these guys are showing that they'll keep fighting, and a lot of that is because their assistant coaches and the coordinators and a lot of it's because of the leadership that we have on this team."
On what the team is made of
"These guys are resilient, they're hard workers. I just love the way that they respond to anything that has any type of adversity. The leadership that we saw from those guys, it's really a great thing for me as a coach to see, so I'm thankful that I had these players. I'm thinking that we have a great bunch of leaders and not just the seniors, we have a bunch of leaders on our team.”
On the legacy of the senior class
" I think the lasting impression that they leave on this program is the stuff that they've already done, whether it's their experience, their example or the little things. You have to understand the mentoring that happens on this team, that's just a true brotherhood for these guys and I know a lot of teams have that, too. But I can honestly say that the culture that we have here is built on love.”
BYU senior defensive lineman Zach Dawe:
On the impact forced turnovers and red zone defense played:
“I think that was huge. We were in a tight spot and thinks weren’t going our way. Drew Jensen came in clutch. It was awesome to see Drew jump up and fill his role and make a big play. It was a game changer and momentum changer.”
“I’m super proud of the whole defense. Everyone was rallying and doing their job and sometimes things weren’t going our way, but we were bending but wouldn’t break. Everyone showed effort, especially down on the goal line. Caden Haws stepped up big. Bracken El-Bakri grinded his guts out. All the other players really stepped up in crucial moments and I think that was the difference in the game.”
On how the defense adjusted as the game progressed:
“It was a cold game, and they brought it. They were getting downhill in the run game, so we really needed to get more physical. We made a couple adjustments through the coaches. All the players were on board with mixing up and slanting and doing things that I don’t think San Diego State was ready for.”
BYU junior wide receiver Neil Pau’u:
On what it was like battling in less-than-ideal conditions
“It was a battle … It was for sure a cold game … We knew those possessions we would get would be limited because of the offense they run, so when we had those possessions, we needed to treasure them and continue to roll and do what we know we could do.
On how his role changed without Gunner Romney being available:
“[Wide receivers coach] Fesi [Sitake] put a lot on me and Dax [Milne] knowing that Gunner was out. When the opportunity is there, you need to be able to go out there and take it. It was awesome to be able to be put in that position and be given that opportunity, but we definitely wish Gunner a fast recovery and we’ll love to have him back.
San Diego State quarterback Jordan Brookshire:
On what he felt happened on the drives SDSU couldn’t finish in the second half:
“I think it was the little things—execution on everyone’s part. The offense has to click as a whole, especially on those fourth-down plays. It’s all or nothing—every single piece has to work on the offense, including myself. Those things all combined end up in finishing drives, which we couldn’t do tonight.”