Final: BYU (3-0) 34, Wyoming (0-3) 14
By Chase Horsley
9/15/2024
BYU entered the game as the heavy favorite, having recently defeated Southern Illinois and SMU. In the first quarter, both teams struggled to score. Wyoming went three-and-out on its first possession, while BYU’s initial pass to the end zone was intercepted by Wrock Brown at the 2-yard line. Following the interception, the Cowboys were forced to punt again after another three-and-out.
BYU’s next drive, starting from its own 45-yard line, featured a few mistakes but ultimately converted a crucial fourth down. The Cougars gained the edge with a wide receiver screen pass from Jake Retzlaff to Kenau Hill for a 20-yard touchdown, giving BYU the lead.
In the second quarter, the Cougars scored again with a pass from Retzlaff to Kody Epps for a 3-yard touchdown. BYU led by two touchdowns with no response from the Cowboys. However, Wyoming didn’t give up and answered with a drive ending in a touchdown. On second-and-goal from the 2-yard line, quarterback Evan Svoboda scored, narrowing the Cowboys' deficit to one touchdown.
The final score of the half came from BYU, as the Cougars made a 49-yard field goal by Will Ferrin to take a 17-7 lead at halftime.
In the first half, Svoboda was 7 of 15 passing for 77 yards and added 17 rushing yards and a touchdown. BYU's Retzlaff went 17 of 27 for 197 yards, two touchdowns, and rushed for 34 yards.
At halftime, coach Jay Sawvel spoke with his team and was asked about the message coming out of the locker room.
“Win the third quarter,” Sawvel said. The Cowboys did the opposite, being outscored 17-0. To start the third quarter, Keelan Marion returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.
“A solid unit for us was kickoff coverage,” said Sawvel.
Despite the struggles, that was the first kickoff return the Cowboys have allowed since 2018 against Utah State when Savon Scarver took one 99 yards. On the other hand, BYU scored its first road kickoff return since 1998.
After the kickoff return, all the momentum shifted to the Cougars' sideline, as the Cowboys' next drive ended in a punt, while BYU’s drive culminated in a 37-yard field goal by Ferrin. The Cougars then scored on a 20-yard pass from Retzlaff to Darius Lassiter, making the score 34-7.
In the fourth quarter, Svoboda scored a 2-yard touchdown run, with the extra point by Hoyland making the final score 34-14.
The Cowboys remain fully supportive of Svoboda as their quarterback. Despite the 0-3 start, Coach Sawvel, wide receiver Will Pelisser, and the locker room have the utmost respect for Svoboda.
“Yeah, of course, he’s my quarterback till I’m done here,” said Pelisser. “He’s a constant competitor and really hard on himself, and we have full faith in him.”
The Cowboys will travel to Denton, Texas, to face North Texas on Saturday. The Mean Green, who fell to Texas Tech 66-21, are 2-1 with wins over South Alabama and Stephen F. Austin.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. ET and 5 p.m. MT at DATCU Stadium
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