The following notes are from BYU's 35-27 loss at Utah on Saturday night.
ATTENDANCE: 46,017
TEAM FLAGS: Matt Hadley, Merrill Taliauli, Adam Pulsipher, Ului Lapuaho, Lorenzo Fauatea
ALUMNI FLAGS: Daniel Sorensen, Kai Nacua, Devin Mahina, Reno Mahe
TEAM NOTES.
First quarter lead
The last time BYU led after one quarter was 2010 when BYU had a 3-0 lead. The 2006 game was the last time BYU led (14-0) by more than 3 points after the first quarter. BYU lost the 2010 game 17-16 but won the 2006 game 33-31.
Halftime leads
BYU is 14-2 when leading at halftime under Kalani Sitake. Coach Sitake teams are 5-1 when leading at half by 14 or more points. Since 2005, BYU is 51-2 when leading by 14 or more points at halftime.
Big lead
The last time BYU led Utah by 20 or more points at any time was in 1996. BYU won 37-17.
Chunk plays
BYU had nine plays of 10 yards or more in the first half, including three of 20 yards or more and one of 30 yards or more (31-yard run by Zach Wilson). Utah was No. 28 entering the game in fewest plays of 10 yards or more allowed.
PLAYER NOTES
Zach Wilson
In the first half, Wilson was 11 of 16 for 137 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 57 yards on seven carries. His 137 passing yards and two touchdowns set a new first-half career high. He finished 20 of 29 for 204 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also had 14 carries for 73 yards. His 143.92 efficiency rating was the highest by a BYU quarterback against Utah since John Beck's 169.07 in 2006.
Corbin Kaufusi
Despite expecting to sit this game out with injury, the 6-foot-9 senior gutted it out and was a factor. He had four tackles in the first half and finished with seven.
Matt Hadley
Hadley ran for two touchdowns in the game, his second multi-touchdown game of his career. He finished with 21 carries for 64 yards and two touchdowns.
NOTABLE CAREER HIGHS and FIRSTS
First blocked kick: Khyiris Tonga
Sack: Merrill Taliauli
BYU Quotes
BYU head coach Kalani Sitake
On the play of his team
“I’m really proud of the way our guys played. We brought a lot of energy. We played extremely hard but we just couldn’t finish the deal. I’m really proud of the way our guys played. In all three phases of the game, we just made too many mistakes, especially against a great team like that, like Utah has. That’s why they won the Pac-12 South and that’s why they have a chance to win the Pac-12 next week. We can’t make those mistakes and expect to walk away with a win. Although, I’m pretty proud of the way that we played. We had a lot of energy. Even towards the end our guys just kept believing and kept trying to make plays. Give credit to Utah for the way they came back and won that game. As frustrating as it is, I believe that we have some really good players. My job is to make sure that we give our best for 60 minutes.”
“I believe that our team is really close, and this just made us a closer team. We just have to keep working on it. As hard as it is right now with the outcome of this game, my job is to think positive and build on this, and we get another shot at Utah next year. We play them in the first game. We’ll be ready for that”
On what made the difference in the game in Utah’s comeback
“We knew that they were going to try to establish the run, try to get something going that way. But you can’t have a pick six. The turnover cost us, and really cost us with that one. But you can’t point it at one person. We have a lot of young guys who made some great plays. Zach (Wilson) made some great plays. But they made a great play and jumped the ball. That’s a great defense. We did some good things and had some god drives and we were able to get some scoring. We knew this is a team that was going to make a comeback. But we just needed to find a way to end it, and we couldn’t do that. I don’t want to say that we failed to do this and we failed to do that. Utah is a great team. We just made too many mistakes.”
On how his team can deal with a loss like this
“It hurts and it’s supposed to hurt, and that’s OK. We have another game to prepare for. We’re going to learn as much as we can from this. I think it’s supposed to hurt. Luckily, we get this game early again next year. It’s unfortunate for the seniors. We really wanted this for them. We feel bad for the players and for our fans. But they have to wait less than a year. And most importantly, we have to build for the next game and get ready for the bowl game. It’s important to the program, and it’s important to our youth and our depth.”
On his team’s conservative play calling in the fourth quarter
“We felt really good with our defense and the way we were playing. I’m not sure if it was all conservative because they stopped us. They made a good defensive stand and stopped us. It’s not like we just quit throwing the ball and all that stuff. We just tried to be smart with the ball. We had some bad punts. When it’s a close game, it comes down to the little things and guys making plays. In all three phases, we just didn’t make enough.”