BYU Wins Defensive Slugfest on the Road at SMU

Casey Lundquist | Sep 6, 2024

Sep 6, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the Southern Methodist Mustangs and Brigham Young Cougars as they face off on the line during the first half at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

It wasn't pretty, but Kalani Sitake won't complain about leaving the state of Texas with a win. On Friday night, BYU traveled to Dallas as a double-digit underdog and took down the SMU Mustangs. The BYU defense put together a gutsy performance, keeping SMU out of the endzone the entire game.

FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS | BYU vs SMU pic.twitter.com/6OvWrbtQtb

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 7, 2024

SMU started junior Preston Stone. On the first drive of the game, SMU went backwards. Jack Kelly sacked Stone and the Mustangs lost nine yards before punting on 4th & 19.

The BYU offense made a critical mistake to start. A would-be run play was not executed correctly, and Jake Retzlaff tried to make something out of nothing by running it himself (more on that in a moment). Retzlaff fumbled near midfield and the Mustangs recovered in BYU territory.

The BYU defense responded, forcing the Mustangs backwards again. The Mustangs lost nine yards on the second drive and defensive tackle Blake Mangelson got a sack. The Mustangs were forced to punt again. The defensive line was making Stone miserable.

On the ensuing drive, the BYU offense put together its best drive of the game. An 8 play, 75-yard drive was capped off with a 19-yard touchdown pass from Jake Retzlaff to Mata'ava Ta'ase. The Cougars took a 7-0 lead and looked like they were in a rythm on both sides of the ball.

Then the game changed late in the first quarter when starting running back LJ Martin left the game with what appeared to be an ankle injury. From that point on, BYU's offense struggled. The next four BYU drives were as follows:

1. 3 plays, -12 yards - Punt
2. 3 plays, 6 yards - Punt
3. 3 plays, 4 yards - Punt
4. 4 plays, 7 yards - Turnover on Downs

Meanwhile, BYU's defense kept the Mustangs out of the endzone. SMU started to move the football when Kevin Jennings came in at quarterback.

The Mustangs kicked three consecutive field goals to take a 9-7 lead.

BYU's offense showed life at the end of the half, going 38 yards and setting up a 54-yard field goal for Will Ferrin. Ferrin's attempt had the distance, but missed wide right and SMU took a 9-7 lead into the halftime locker room.

In the second half, a spectacular effort from Darius Lassiter quickly got BYU in SMU territory. Lassiter took a pass from Jake Retzlaff and weaved his way through defenders for a 57-yard gain. On the very next play, Retzlaff got hit in the pocket. Instead of taking the sack, Retzlaff tried to get rid of it as the pocket collapsed around him. The ball popped into the air and SMU captain Kobe Wilson intercepted it and returned it to the BYU 35.

BYU's defense stood tall again, holding SMU to a field goal and keeping it within one score at 12-7.

The two teams exchanged punts before BYU went on a 7 play, 61-yard touchdown drive. On 4th & 2, BYU called Enoch Nawahine's number. Nawahine got the first down and more, scoring from nine yards out. A succesful two-point conversion gave BYU a 15-12 lead.

On the next drive, SMU put together one of its best drives of the night and got themselves in scoring territory. The Mustangs were marching down the field until senior cornerback Marque Collins stepped in front of a Kevin Jennings pass and intercepted it inside the 5 yard-line.

BYU took over and disaster struck when Brashard Smith stepped in front of a Jake Retzlaff screen pass and nearly returned it for a touchdown. Smith took the ball down the BYU 3.

The BYU defense held strong again. SMU running back Brashard Smith inexplicably tried to lateral at the end of a run, fumbling just before his knee hit the turf. BYU defensive back Jakob Robinson recovered the fumble and BYU took over at its own 8 yard-line.

A few minutes later, SMU got the ball back and drove only 17 yards to setup the game-tying field goal with six minutes remaining.

The BYU offense got the ball back and quickly got to midfield. On 4th &1 inside their own territory, the Cougars opted to go on fourth down with the game on the line. It was a decision that ultimately made the difference. Retzlaff read the defense and tossed the option pitch to Miles Davis who beat the defense to sideline and picked up 37 yards. That run put BYU at the SMU 15.

The Cougars were forced to kick a field goal to take an 18-15 lead with 1:58 remaining.

For one last time, the BYU defense took the field again. This time, the defense left no doubt. The Mustangs gained no yards on four downs, giving the ball back to BYU and allowing the Cougars to kneel out the rest of the clock.

In five redzone trips, SMU scored only six points against the BYU defense. It wasn't pretty for the BYU offense, but redzone efficiency was the difference in the game.

In three redzone trips, BYU scored three times: two touchdowns and a field goal.

BYU ended up outgaining SMU 336 to 221. The Cougars move to 2-0 on the season as they travel to Laramie to take on the Wyoming Cowboys next week.