No. 12 Cougars bounce back with 44-13 win over TCU

PROVO, Utah – The No. 12 BYU Cougars moved to 9-1 this season with a 44-13 win over TCU Saturday night at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

BYU’s 44 points are the most any team has scored against TCU this season, and the 13 TCU points are the fewest the Horned Frogs have scored this season. The Cougars held the Horned Frogs to 298 yards of offense. They were averaging 426 coming into the game.

The Cougars scored on their first seven possessions of the night, maintaining a comfortable cushion for almost the entire game, led by Bear Bachmeier’s 296 passing yards, and LJ Martin’s 88 rushing yards. Parker Kingston and Carsen Ryan led all receivers with 80 and 79 yards, respectively.

“I liked the way they bounced back after last week," BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said. "I felt a different sense of urgency from them all week long. I am glad that it all worked out. TCU is a really good team. I think it was just a matter of us putting it all together in all three phases. I thought it worked out nicely, and it felt good, the way I have been asking us to play this whole time. It is my job to get us to play this way every game, but I am glad it showed up now, especially in November, where we can try to build some momentum off it.”

Powered by 344 total yards and a season-high 21 first downs in the first half alone, BYU’s offense was in control all game. The last time the Cougars recorded that many first downs in the first half was on Oct. 30, 2021 vs. Virginia.

The time-of-possession battle was won by BYU 36:05 to 23:55.

Bachmeier recorded two touchdowns in the game, one passing and one rushing, marking the seventh time this season he has scored both a passing and rushing touchdown. The freshman quarterback was 23-of-33 passing and rushed for 59 yards. Additionally, Bachmeier surpassed 2,000 passing yards this season.

The BYU defense was led by Isaiah Glasker and Max Alford, who recorded six tackles apiece. Faletau Satuala and Tanner Wall each intercepted a pass in the game, and Wall was able to return his interception for the first pick-six of his career.

First Quarter

The Horned Frogs won the toss and elected to receive the ball in the second half. On the kickoff, Tiger Bachmeier returned it and set BYU up at the 21-yard line. Through two-straight carries, Martin moved the chains. After two short gains, on third-and-seven from the BYU 36, Bear Bachmeier went over the middle to Kingston who made the catch and scampered for a 30-yard pickup. A no-gain play and an incomplete pass brought up third-and-10, where Bear Bachmeier went long to try and hit Kingston in the end zone, but the junior was unable to make the diving catch. BYU settled for a 52-yard field goal from Will Ferrin to push the Cougars ahead 3-0. The Cougars have scored first in all five home games this season.

A touchback placed TCU at its own 25 on its first drive. On second-and-10, Horned Frog quarterback Josh Hoover got the first down with a 15-yard completion. On the next play, Keanu Tanuvasa stopped TCU running back Trent Battle at the line of scrimmage, but Hoover shot 19 yards downfield to Joseph Manjack IV to get another first down. From BYU’s 41-yard line, the Cougar defense held Hoover to back-to-back incomplete passes, bringing up third-and-10. On the snap, Tausili Akana and John Taumoepeau co-sacked Hoover for a loss of two, forcing the Horned Frogs to punt with 8:44 to go.

Led by Bear Bachmeier, Kingston and Martin, the Cougars powered a 10-play, 91-yard touchdown drive that spanned 6:02. The freshman quarterback collected two consecutive first downs with a 15-yard completion to Jojo Phillips, followed by 13 yards on the ground. Two TCU stops pinned BYU at its own 48, where Bear Bachmeier passed to Martin for a gain of 12. Another pair of Martin carries set Kingston up for nine yards on the ground, bringing the ball to the Horned Frog 19-yard line. Bear Bachmeier added eight yards, and on the following play, Kingston darted into the end zone with a rushing touchdown, and with Ferrin’s extra point, the Cougars extended their lead to 10-0.

Battle gained six yards on first-and-10 for TCU, but BYU’s defense would not allow them any further, recording back-to-back stops, including a tackle-for-loss by Tausili Akana, to force another TCU punt.

Kingston fair caught the punt at the 25-yard line. Martin recorded two more runs to move the chains before first quarter time would expire.

Second Quarter

Coming out of the break, Bear Bachmeier and Martin sustained the first-down rhythm. On the opening play of the quarter, Martin marched into Horned Frog territory, reaching their 49. On first down, Bear Bachmeier hit Martin with a four-yard pass, and he added 14 yards on top of that. On third-and-eight, Bear Bachmeier intended to hit Kingston, but a pass interference penalty was called on TCU, pushing the Cougars to the 14-yard line. On the ensuing play, a holding penalty was called on BYU, returning the ball to the previous spot. A Bear Bachmeier run and short pass to Enoch Nawahine over the middle brought up third-and-13, and the Murrieta Valley, Calif. product scored on a 17-yard touchdown run for his 10th rushing touchdown of the season. Ferrin made his 107th consecutive extra point, pushing BYU to a 17-point advantage with 10:16 remaining in the half.

Tanuvasa sacked Hoover for a loss of five on first down. Hoover delivered to receiver Jeremy Payne on the next play, gaining 17 yards. On second-and-four, Hoover hit Eric McAlister who made the catch and charged toward the endzone until he was tackled at the BYU 10 by Tayvion Beasley. Three stops from the BYU defense held TCU to a 22-yard field goal, updating the score to 17-3 with 7:17 on the clock.

After a touchback, Bear Bachmeier built on his passing numbers with three-straight completions to push the Cougars into the end zone again. A 21-yard Kingston catch and another 11 from Chase Roberts moved the ball to the TCU 43. Bear Bachmeier then threw a short pass over the middle to Ryan, who burst upfield for 43 yards into the end zone. Alongside Ferrin’s extra point, the Cougars went up 24-3 over the Horned Frogs after a drive that lasted just over one minute.

TCU replied with a 10-play, 62-yard touchdown drive. A short carry and a holding penalty had the Horned Frogs back at their own 18 for second-and-17, but Hoover recorded a 23-yard pass up the middle for the first down. Two more long carries followed, moving the ball up to the Cougar 22-yard line. Payne got seven yards on first down, but Alford and Jonathan Kabeya each recorded stops to force a fourth-and-one. On the play, running back Jon Denman found an opening and rushed 13 yards into the end zone to trim some of the Cougar lead. With its extra point, TCU’s offense made the game 24-10 with 1:14 remaining.

Bear Bachmeier and his receivers kept their momentum in the final minute of the half. Kingston and Roberts each made catches to help reach Horned Frog territory with 37 seconds left. Two-straight incompletions forced a third-and-10, but Bear Bachmeier found Roberts for another 13 yards. After a Bear Bachmeier-Phillips 18-yard connection, the Cougars would run out of time for another snap for the offense, but set Ferrin up for his second field goal attempt of the night, this one being 35 yards. The kick was good, advancing the Cougar lead to 27-10 going into the locker room.

Third Quarter

TCU introduced a rush-heavy offense out of halftime. On third-and-four at the Horned Frog 42-yard line, Hoover found McAlister for a 20-yard gain before he was tackled by Satuala. Two plays later, Hoover had another big completion, this one being 15 yards to the Cougar 19. An incomplete pass and a small gain brought up third-and-seven, where Jordan Dwyer attempted a catch near the line to gain but couldn’t hold onto the catch, forcing TCU to attempt a field goal. Kicker Nate McCashland’s kick was good, cutting the deficit to 14 with 10:13 on the clock.

Martin opened BYU’s first drive of the half with three-straight carries that totaled 24 yards. Bear Bachmeier and Enoch Nawahine combined for eight yards on the ground, forcing third-and-two at TCU’s 43. On the play, Bear Bachmeier’s attempt for Roberts fell incomplete. The offense stayed on the field and the freshman found Roberts for a gain of 12 to move the chains. On the following play, Bear Bachmeier hit Ryan for another 18 yards to the 13-yard line. The Cougar offense was unable to engineer a dominant play after that point, so Ferrin and company came out for another field goal, this time 29 yards, advancing the BYU lead to 30-13.

A touchback set the Horned Frogs up at their 25. Payne rushed up the middle for five yards on second-and-10. On the third-down play, Hoover’s pass was picked off by Satuala at TCU’s 44, the sophomore’s third interception this season.

With a short field, Bear Bachmeier and Martin recorded runs of three yards each, which set up a third-and-four. Bear Bachmeier attempted a pass to Roberts, and a pass interference penalty was called on TCU, pushing the Cougars 15 yards closer to the endzone. On second-and-10, Bachmeier found Ryan to add 16 yards. Martin then moved the ball up to the two-yard line before the third quarter came to an end.

Fourth Quarter

After two Martin end zone attempts, the first for a loss of one and the second for a gain of two, the junior would dash up the middle into the end zone on fourth down, pushing the Cougar lead to 37-13 alongside Ferrin’s extra point.

Highlighted by Akana’s and Mory Bamba’s tackles, the Cougar defense powered a three-and-out for TCU with 12:16 remaining.

The Horned Frog defense answered with a three-and-out of their own, forcing BYU’s first punt of the game. Fuller Shurtz’s 41-yard punt pinned TCU at its 16.

Powered by Evan Johnson, Jay Hill’s defense returned the favor with another three-and-out. Palmer recorded a four-yard carry, and on second-and-six, Johnson dropped Hoover seven yards behind the line to notch his first-career sack. Hoover’s pass on third-and-13 fell incomplete, forcing TCU to punt again with 9:14 to go.

Two short carries from Bear Bachmeier and Martin brought up third-and-four. Bear Bachmeier found his brother Tiger Bachmeier for a gain of five to get the first down, but TCU’s defense would not let the Cougars advance much further, resulting in another BYU punt.

On the punt, Shurtz fumbled the snap and the Horned Frogs recovered at the Cougar 43-yard line. After a one-yard pickup from Denman, Hoover’s pass was tipped and intercepted by Wall, who took it 44 yards to the endzone for his first career pick-six. Ferrin’s extra point was good, pushing BYU to a 31-point advantage with 4:09 remaining. 

Denman was a major factor in the Horned Frogs’ final drive as he recorded four-straight carries totaling 32 yards and moving up to the BYU 43 before the two minute timeout. After the timeout, on first down, a pass interference penalty was called on the Cougars, which pushed TCU up to the 24-yard line. Hoover and Palmer combined for nine yards to bring up fourth-and-one. Back-to-back false starts on the offense pushed the Horned Frogs back to fourth-and-11 where Nusi Taumoepeau sacked Hoover for a loss of six, resulting in a turnover on downs, essentially ending the game.

McCae Hillstead entered the game as quarterback to kneel the game out for BYU, closing the game in a dominant 44-13 win over Horned Frogs.

Up Next

The Cougars travel to Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 22 to take on the Cincinnati Bearcats at Nippert Stadium. Live play-by-play with Greg Wrubell will be available on BYU Radio, with broadcast information and kickoff time to be announced tomorrow.