Cougars Suffer Second Stinging Loss

ATLANTA -- The Cougars felt the sting of the Yellow Jackets Saturday as Georgia Tech defeated BYU before a sold-out crowd at Bobby Dodd Stadium by a score of 28-19.

Both teams were coming off painful losses suffered last week as Clemson defeated Georgia Tech and Nevada upset BYU.

"I felt like we worked hard," BYU head coach Gary Crowton said. "We didn't give up. We made a good game out of it. It's a tough loss."

Quarterback Bret Engemann had a tough time getting things going in the first half of play. He was 11-of-18 for 92 yards, but he was sacked twice, threw two interceptions and fumbled in just the first quarter.

BYU head coach Gary Crowton turned the Cougar offense over to Lance Pendleton after the first drive of the second quarter. Pendleton finished the game 17-of-39 for 274 yards passing, 44 yards rushing on 12 carries. Pendleton was responsible for two TDs for the game, including one touchdown toss and one run.

"Bret made some mistakes, and at that time, I thought it was necessary to make some changes," Crowton said. "I'm not sure who will be our starter against Utah State. I will have to go look at the film, and make some decisions. Sometimes it's not always one guy's fault. I don't want to make any rash decisions. We will sit down, look at the situation closely, and make some decisions from there."

The Cougars again used a wide variety of receivers throwing to 10 different players in the game. Wide receiver Reno Mahe led all receivers with five receptions for 67 yards.

The Yellow Jackets and Cougars both suffered serious injuries to their star running backs during the game. Marcus Whalen carried the ball four times for 13 yards and caught five passes for a total of 39 yards before leaving the game with a groin injury the second quarter.

"When we lost Marcus, it really hurt us," Crowton said. "That hurt our game-plan situation, but I thought we kept fighting and now we just need to move forward. Marcus is one of the guys you want to go to during the game. Early in the game we threw a lot to him. I felt like that was working and keeping them off-balance, because he has the ability to take it the distance and open things up."

Georgia Tech running back Tony Hollings dominated the ground game carrying the ball 36 times for 189 yards and three touchdowns. Hollings, who leads the nation in points per game at 16, went down in the fourth quarter with a knee injury and did not return.

Yellow Jacket quarterback A.J. Suggs recorded 117 yards on 11-of-26 passing while leading the Yellow Jackets to a 3-1 record on the season.

However, not everything went smoothly for Suggs as the Cougar defense came out fired up and shut down the Yellow Jackets offense in the first quarter of play.

BYU linebacker Mike Tanner grabbed the first interception of his career in the second quarter that led to a Matt Payne field goal and gave the Cougars their first score of the game.

Cornerback Brandon Heaney recorded two interceptions of his own off of Suggs who was picked off three times in the game. Suggs had only thrown one interception in the first two games of the season.

Things started out rough for the Cougars. Engemann was sacked on the seventh play of the game. Only two plays later an interception by Georgia Tech's Jeremy Muyres ended the Cougar drive.

The Cougars second offensive drive didn't fair much better as Engemann fumbled the ball on the 50-yard line, and gave the Yellow Jackets another shot to take an early lead.

The Cougar defense answered the call by shutting down the Yellow Jackets on their first three offensive possessions, but another interception thrown by Engemann would give the Yellow Jackets the field position they would need to score the first touchdown of the game.

After two pass-interference calls on BYU down at the goal line, Hollings scored on a one-yard run in the second quarter to put the Yellow Jackets up 7-0.

Payne, who is now 3-5 on field goals for the season, put the Cougars on the scoreboard on their following possession with a 49-yard field goal.

On the next offensive drive, Crowton went with quarterback Lance Pendleton. He drove the Cougars 59 yards in nine plays and finished it off by taking the ball in himself from one yard out to give BYU the lead, 10-7, going into half time.

On their first possession of the half, Georgia Tech drove 62 yards in 10 plays capped by a one-yard run by freshman Ajenivi Eziemefe to give the Yellow Jackets the lead 14-10.

BYU went up 19-14 after a 39-yard Payne field goal and a 17-yard touchdown play from Pendleton to Mahe. The Cougars then attempted a two-point conversion, but the screen pass to Mahe was stopped behind the line of scrimmage.

The Cougars would not score again as the Yellow Jackets would record two more touchdowns by Hollings.

Pendleton and the Cougars had one last chance to score but Pendleton threw his only interception of the game in the closing minutes of the game, ensuring a Yellow Jacket victory.

The Cougars will have a bye this week and give themselves a chance to rest, heal and prepare to get things going against Utah State, Oct. 4 in Logan, Utah, at Romney Stadium at 7 p.m. (MDT).

GAME NOTES

SLOW START

BYU's offense was stopped on their first five possessions of the game. BYU fumbled, was intercepted twice, and was forced to punt twice before the team got on the scoreboard with a Matt Payne field goal in the second quarter.

DEFEENSIVE STOPPER

Sophomore defensive end Brady Poppinga recorded one sack in the game. Poppinga now has five sacks on the year, including seven tackles for a loss.

INTERCEPTIONS

Junior linebacker Mike Tanner intercepted his first career pass and returned it fifteen yards. The interception led to the Cougars first score of the game, a 48-yard field goal by Matt Payne. Junior cornerback Brandon Heaney was credited with two interceptions. Heaney is the second Cougar to record two interceptions in a single game this season (Kip Nielsen vs. Hawaii).

BLOCK THAT PUNT

Sophomore Jon Burbidge blocked a Georgia Tech punt midway through the second quarter. The blocked punt was the first for a Cougar since Ryan Denney blocked a punt against Colorado State on Nov. 2, 2000.

TEAM DEFENSE

Going back to the Nevada game, BYU's defense held their opponents scoreless for three straight quarters before Georgia Tech scored a touchdowwn in the second quarter of Saturday's game. Entering Saturday's game, the Cougars were allowing 436.7 yards per game. In Saturday's contest BYU held Georgia Tech to just 327 yards. The Yellow Jackets had averaged 393 yards and 31.7 points per game entering Saturday's contest.

RECORD STREAK

With Matt Payne's 48-yard field goal against Georgia Tech, BYU extended its NCAA record streak to 342 games without being shutout. BYU was last shutout during the 1975 season (Sept. 27, 1975 vs. Arizona State.) The Cougars don't have a single person that was alive the last time BYU was shutout.

SUBSTITUTIONS

BYU backup quarterback Lance Pendleton came into the game at the 9:13 mark of the second quarter against Georgia Tech. Pendleton scored BYU's first touchdown of the game on a 2-yard run. Pendleton finished the game 17-39 with 182 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Starter Bret Engemann was 11-for-18 with two interceptions.

INJURED

Marcus Whalen, the sixth leading rusher in the nation with a 138.7 yard-per-game average, left the game in the first half with a pulled groin and did not return to play. Whalen had four carries for 13 yards before leaving the game. Georgia Tech's leading rusher Tony Hollings left the game with 3:29 remaining in the fourth quarter with knee injury. Georgia Tech officials say Hollings will have an MRI on Monday.

CATCHY NUMBERS

Ten different receivers caught the ball for BYU against Georgia Tech. Curtis Brown led all receivers with five catches. Reno Mahe had four catches and one touchdown, his first touchdown reception of the season.

RECORD DAY

Georgia Tech running back Tony Hollings, who ranked fifth in the nation in rushing coming into the BYU game, ran for a career-high 189 yards and three touchdowns on thirty-six carries.

ENOUGH YELLOW

BYU finished the game with only seven penalties for 31 yards. The previous three games, BYU had been flagged 37 times for 325 yards.

Box Score (FINAL)
  Score by Quarters     1  2  3  4   Score
  -----------------    -- -- -- --   -----
  Brigham Young.......  0 10  9  0  - 19       Record: (2-2)
  Georgia Tech........  0  7  7 14  - 28       Record: (3-1)
  Scoring Summary:
  2nd 14:52 GT - Hollings, T. 1 yd run (Manget, L. kick), 8-52 2:49, BYU 0 - GT 7
      10:22 BYU - PAYNE, Matt 48 yd field goal, 4-3 1:13, BYU 3 - GT 7
      05:14 BYU - PENDLETON, Lanc 2 yd run (PAYNE, Matt kick), 9-57 3:59, BYU 10 - GT 7
  3rd 10:55 GT - Eziemefe, A. 1 yd run (Manget, L. kick), 10-67 4:05, BYU 10 - GT 14
      06:52 BYU - PAYNE, Matt 39 yd field goal, 12-58 4:03, BYU 13 - GT 14
      02:55 BYU - MAHE, Reno 17 yd pass from PENDLETON, Lanc (PENDLETON, Lanc pass 
            failed), 6-49 1:38, BYU 19 - GT 14
  4th 13:08 GT - Hollings, T. 2 yd run (Manget, L. kick), 12-73 4:47, BYU 19 - GT 21
      05:03 GT - Hollings, T. 2 yd run (Manget, L. kick), 9-54 3:38, BYU 19 - GT 28
                                      BYU       GT
  FIRST DOWNS...................       21       19
  RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............    27-79   50-210
  PASSING YDS (NET).............      274      117
  Passes Att-Comp-Int...........  57-28-3  26-11-3
  TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS.....   84-353   76-327
  Fumble Returns-Yards..........      0-0      1-2
  Punt Returns-Yards............     3-24     2-24
  Kickoff Returns-Yards.........      0-0    4-113
  Interception Returns-Yards....     3-21      3-0
  Punts (Number-Avg)............   4-36.2   8-45.6
  Fumbles-Lost..................      3-1      1-0
  Penalties-Yards...............     7-31     6-49
  Possession Time...............    29:12    30:48
  Sacks By: Number-Yards........     2-16     4-28
  RUSHING: Brigham Young-PENDLETON, Lanc 12-44; BROWN, Curtis 8-32; WHALEN,
  Marcus 4-13; ENGEMANN, Bret 3-minus 10. Georgia Tech-Hollings, T. 36-189;
  Eziemefe, A. 9-25; Glover, W. 1-5; Smith, J. 1-5; Suggs, A.J. 3-minus 14.
  PASSING: Brigham Young-PENDLETON, Lanc 17-39-1-182; ENGEMANN, Bret
  11-18-2-92. Georgia Tech-Suggs, A.J. 11-26-3-117.
  RECEIVING: Brigham Young-MAHE, Reno 5-67; WHALEN, Marcus 5-39; BROWN, Curtis
  5-26; CHRISTENSEN, To 3-59; ORD, Andrew 3-29; NEAD, Spencer 3-21; WILKERSON,
  Rod 1-16; DEANS, Logan 1-11; REID, Gabriel 1-5; CHRISTENSEN, Da 1-1. Georgia
  Tech-Glover, W. 4-26; Watkins, K. 3-55; Heller, W. 2-18; Hollings, T. 1-12;
  Smith, J. 1-6.
  INTERCEPTIONS: Brigham Young-HEANEY, Brandon 2-6; TANNER, Mike 1-15. Georgia
  Tech-Muyres, J. 2-0; Collins, C. 1-0.
  FUMBLES: Brigham Young-WHALEN, Marcus 1-0; ENGEMANN, Bret 1-1; NEAD, Spencer
  1-0. Georgia Tech-Watkins, K. 1-0.
  SACKS (UA-A): Brigham Young-GUNDERSON, Ryan 0-1; DENNEY, John 0-1; POPPINGA,
  Brady 1-0. Georgia Tech-Henderson, E. 2-0; Houston, R. 1-0; Hargrove, T.
  1-0.
  TACKLES (UA-A): Brigham Young-POPPINGA, Brady 4-5; FRANCISCO, Aaro 2-7;
  WALKENHORST, Pa 2-7; HEANEY, Brandon 3-5; BOCKWOLDT, Colb 2-6; WRIGHT, Bill
  2-5; GUNDERSON, Ryan 0-6; MADARIETA, Levi 3-2; GILFORD, Jernar 2-3; DENNEY,
  John 2-2; YOUNG, Scott 1-3; PILI, Ifo 0-4; BRANDON, Joshua 2-0; KEHL, Bryan
  2-0; NIELSEN, Kip 1-1; MARQUARDT, Dani 0-2; DIPADOVA, Nick 1-0; MADSEN,
  Michael 1-0; MEIBOS, Jared 1-0; ANDERSON, Justi 0-1; COWART, Jeff 0-1.
  Georgia Tech-Collins, C. 5-4; Houston, R. 3-5; Muyres, J. 4-3; Smith, D.
  3-4; Wimbush, R. 3-4; Hargrove, T. 3-4; Fox, K. 3-3; Cox, J. 3-3; Henderson,
  E. 2-3; Parker, T. 2-3; Hester, M. 1-1; Hollings, T. 1-1; Etheridge, M. 1-0;
  Malone, A. 1-0; Brown, A. 0-1; Economos, A. 0-1; Johnson, G. 0-1; Watkins,
  K. 0-1.
  Stadium: Bobby Dodd Stadium    Attendance: 43719
  Kickoff time: 3:37      End of Game: 7:10      Total elapsed time: 3:33
  Officials: Referee: Ken Flaherty; Umpire: Scott Teifer; Linesman: Pete Gautreau;
  Line judge: Jeff Hansen; Back judge: Andy Castanola; Field judge: Bill Agopian;
  Side judge: Craig Clark; Scorer: Mike Cullin;
  Temperature: 81 deg.   Wind: SSE 7     Weather: Cloudy

Fresh off a humbling loss to Nevada on Saturday, the Cougars (2-1) will take to the road for the second straight week, traveling to Georgia Tech on Saturday, Sept. 21. The game, which will be played at Tech's Bobby Dodd Stadium, is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. (EDT). The trip will mark only the Cougars' second trip to the state of Georgia, as well as the first-ever game against Georgia Tech. BYU last traveled to Georgia during the 1982 season, falling to the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens, 17-14. The Yellow Jackets will complete the home-and-home arrangement by traveling to Provo during the 2003 season.

BROADCAST PLANS

Saturday's game will be broadcast live to a regional television audience on ABC, beginning at 3:30 p.m. (EDT). Tim Brandt will call the action, with Ed Cunningham lending color analysis. Sam Ryan-Herbst will report from the sidelines. The game will be broadcast locally on KTVX, Ch. 4. The game will also be broadcast to ABC affiliates in areas of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, New Mexico, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina. For additional coverage information, fans should consult www.abcsports.com. Fans can also tune to KSL 1160-AM with Greg Wrubell calling the action and Marc Lyons lending expert analysis. Bill Riley will report from the sidelines.

TRAVEL INFORMATION

The Cougars will depart Salt Lake City on Friday, Sept. 20 at 11:30 a.m. (MDT), arriving in Atlanta at approximately 5 p.m. (EDT). While in Atlanta, the team will stay at the Marriott Marquis. BYU will return to Provo via Champion Air immediately following the game.

BYU vs. THE ACC

Saturday's game will mark only the fifth game against a current Atlantic Coast Conference team. In previous meetings against teams from the ACC, BYU has posted a 1-3 record, including a 38-35 come-from-behind, overtime victory at Virginia in 2000. The Cougars lost to the Cavaliers in 1999 in Provo, and have twice fallen to Florida State (1991, 2000).

SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH

Like the Cougars, Georgia Tech will enter Saturday's game with a 2-1 record, losing its first game of the season last Saturday at Clemson, 24-19. After opening the season with a dominating home victory over Vanderbilt, the Yellow Jackets picked up a second straight win at UConn. Tony Hollings, who ranks fifth in the nation in rushing with 148.0 yards per game, has racked up 444 yards and eight touchdowns in his first the games after moving from the Tech secondary last spring. Behind Hollings and quarterback A.J. Suggs, the Yellow Jackets are averaging 31.7 points per game. Suggs has completed 69 percent of his passes this season, connecting on 36-of-58 attempts for 469 yards. Defensively, Georgia Tech is allowing just 13.7 points and 281.7 yards per game. The Yellow Jackets will look to All-American defensive end Greg Gathers, and linebackers Recardo Wimbush, Daryl Smith and free safety Jeremy Muyres to stop the BYU offense.

NATIONAL RANKING SHORT LIVED

Following the Cougars' 35-32 victory over Hawaii on Sept. 6, BYU climbed from among the unranked to No. 24 in last week's USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll. After a 31-28 loss at Nevada, the Cougars fell from the top-25. BYU has been ranked in the top-20 or top-25 polls in 23 of the last 27 seasons. The only years in which BYU has never been ranked during the season (since 1976) were 1978, 1987, 1998 and 2000. Last season BYU broke into the top-25 on Sept. 9, following a 44-16 win at Cal. The Cougars climbed as high as No. 7 in the USA Today/Coaches' Poll and No. 8 in the AP Top-25 poll.

GEORGIA TECH (GEORGIA) CONNECTION

BYU head coach Gary Crowton served as the co-offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech under head coach Bill Lewis during the 1994 season. Crowton was at Georgia Tech for only one season before taking over as the offensive coordinator at Louisiana Tech in 1995. BYU strength and conditioning coach, Jay Omer, served for eight seasons (1993-2000) as the Director of Player Development at Georgia Tech. Omer was named the Strength and Conditioning Professional of the Year for the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1997. As a teammate of Deion Sanders, BYU assistant coach Brian Mitchell played cornerback for the Atlanta Falcons from 1991-1993. Sophomore defensive back Micah Alba is from Marietta, Ga. Stretching it ... quarterback Bret Engemann and linebacker Mike tanner served an LDS Church mission to Boston, Mass. While in Boston, Engemann served under the direction of former Atlanta Brave's All-Star Dale Murphy. Defensive lineman Ryan Gunderson and receiver Pat Williams both served Church missions in Georgia.

TOO MUCH YELLOW

In the first three games of the season, the Cougars have been flagged a league-leading 37 times for 325 yards, including 13 times for 140 yards in Saturday's loss at Nevada. The Cougars are averaging 12.3 penalties for 108.3 yards per game. The school record for most yards penalized during a single season came during the 1980 campaign when the Cougars were flagged for 1,319 yards over 12 games.

WHAT A PAYNE

BYU kicker Matt Payne has been pulling double duty this season, serving as the Cougars' punter and kicker. Admitting he likes to punt more than kick, Payne unloaded for a total of 402 yards on seven punts in the Cougars' 31-28 loss at Nevada. Against the Wolfpack, Payne averaged a season-high 57.4 yards per punt. During the game, Payne was credited with a career-long 72 yard punt, surpassing his previous long by eight yards. Currently, Payne leads the Mountain West Conference and ranks second in the nation with a 50.06 per-game average. Payne leads the nation in net punting, averaging 47.41 yards per punt. In the kicking department, Payne is 1-for-3 on field goal attempts. He has not attempted a field goal in the Cougars' last two games. On PATs, Payne is 12-of-15 on the season.

HOME SWEET HOME

With a perfect 6-0 record in Provo last season, the Cougars have recorded 12 undefeated home season since the 1967 campaign. In fact, since the stadium was expanded to 65,000, the Cougars have posted eight different seasons without losing a game in Provo. The 2001 perfect home season marked the first since 1998.

HIT THE ROAD

Saturday's game will mark the second straight road game for the Cougars. Since hitting the road on Saturday, Sept. 14 (at Nevada), the Cougars will not return to the friendly confines of LaVell Edwards Stadium until Saturday, Oct. 19. During that stretch the Cougars play at Nevada, Georgia Tech, Utah State and Air Force. After an Oct. 19 home game against UNLV, the Cougars will take to the road yet again for a league game at Colorado State. Over a span of seven weeks, BYU will play just one home game.

THE STREAK IS STILL ALIVE ... 341 GAMES AND COUNTING

With Rod Wilkerson's 31-yard touchdown reception (from Bret Engemann) in the second quarter (vs. nevada), BYU extended its NCAA record streak to 341 games without being shutout. BYU was last shutout during the 1975 season (Sept. 27, 1975 vs. Arizona State.) The Cougars don't have a single person on their 2002 roster that was alive the last time BYU was shut out.

DRIVIN' THE DISTANCE

On Aug. 29, the Cougars drove 99 yards (vs. Syracuse) to set a BYU record for the longest scoring drive in school history. The drive, which lasted nine plays and took 2:59, was highlighted by a 58-yard run by sophomore running back Marcus Whalen. Against the Orangemen, the Cougars racked up drives of 99, 92, 80, 73 and 71 yards. Against Hawaii, the Cougars posted long-distance drives of 65, 80 and a game-high 95-yard, go-ahead touchdown drive in the third quarter. At Nevada, BYU posted its third 90-yard drive of the season, recording a 92-yard scoring march in just five plays. During the 2001 season, BYU produced 20 different 80-yard drives. In the first game of the 2002 season, the Cougars produced two 90-yard scoring drives, equaling last year's entire season total.

A WHALE OF A TALE

After redshirting the 2001 season, sophomore running back Marcus Whalen is doing his best to answer the question, "How will BYU deal with the loss of Doak Walker Award winner Luke Staley?" In the season-opener (vs. Syracuse), Whalen turned in 140 yards on 19 carries, averaging 7.4 yards per carry. Whalen was credited with a career-high 58-yard run to the goal line, then punched it in on the next play for his first TD of the season. Against Hawaii, Whalen was credited with a career-high 30 carries, racking up 141 yards and two more touchdowns. In the third game of the season, Whalen turned in 135 yards on only 14 carries, averaging 9.6 yards per carry. During the first quarter, Whalen broke loose for what appeared to be a 92-yard touchdown run, but was returned to the 21 yardline after a illegal block was called on the Cougars. Whalen was officially credited with a career-long 71 yard run. On the season, Whalen leads the MWC (ranks sixth nationally) with a 138.7 yards-per-game average, and ranks sixth in overall scoring, averaging 8.0 points per game. On pace to record over 1,664 yards on the season, Whalen would eclipse Staley's single-season rushing record of 1,596 yards. Saturday's game (at Nevada) marked Whalen's third 100-yard performance, which ranks 11th on BYU's all-time 100-yard rushing games list.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN

Of all the members of the BYU roster, 70 players have served a full-time, two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (63.3 percent). Over 60 percent of those returned-missionaries, 60 percent speak a foreign language, including 23 players who speak Spanish as a second language. 96 players on this year's roster are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (87.3 percent). Interestingly, 43 different players are married (40.9 percent). Of the 43 married players, there are eight couples with children and five couples expecting children in the near future.Reserve offensive lineman Nake Mali leads the group with two children, while receiver Reno Mahe has a son and is expecting a daughter in November. The average of the Cougars' 22 starters is 22 years old.

PAPER OR PLASTIC

In the first game of the 2002 season (vs. Syracuse), the Cougars allowed just one sack, while producing three sacks against the Syracuse offense for a combined loss of 13 yards. Against Hawaii, the Cougars failed to produce a sack against the Warriors' run-n-shoot offense. Offensively, the physical offensive line allowed just one sack. In the Cougars' 31-28 loss at Reno, BYU produced a season-high five sacks. Sophomore Brady Poppinga lead the team with two sacks for a combined loss of 11 yards. The Cougars allowed just two sacks on the afternoon. Last season, the BYU offense gave up 24 sacks, averaging 1.8 sacks per game. Defensively, BYU recorded 25 sacks, averaging 1.9 sacks per game.This season, the Cougars are averaging 2.7 sacks per game, while allowing only 1.3 sacks per contest.

ENGEMANN BY THE NUMBERS

Nearly two years after being sidelined with a shoulder injury, junior quarterback Bret Engemann made his return to the field in the Cougars' season-opener against Syracuse. In his first start since Sept. 30, 2000, Engemann led BYU to a season-opening victory, recording three touchdown completions and running for another in the Cougars' 42-21 victory over Syracuse. Engemann completed a career-high 35-of-54 (.648) attempts for 386 yards, marking the second 300-yard game of his career. In his come-back performance against the Orangemen, Engemann was responsible for four touchdowns on the evening, including a career-high three TD completions and a three-yard run. The 6-foot-5 Provo, Utah, native started things off with an 11-for-15 (.733) performance in the first quarter, racking up 111 yards and a six-yard touchdown strike to Andrew Ord. In the second quarter, Engemann racked up another 105 yards, 10 more completions, and a two-yard pass to Toby Christensen to put the Cougars up 14-7. During the second quarter, he also engineered a school-record 99-yard scoring drive to give BYU a 21-7 lead with 4:53 remaining in the first half. After the half, Engemann kept up his blistering assault on the Syracuse defense, posting 12 more completions on 15 attempts (.800) for 80 more yards. After the Orangemen had tied the score at 21-21, Engemann led the Cougars on a 10-play, 92-yard drive and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a three-yard run. On the night, Engemann produced scoring drives of 99, 92, 80, 73 and 71 yards. Against Hawaii, Engemann racked up 26 yards on 21-of-46 attempts, including a touchdown pass to Toby Christensen. Trailing by 10 in the final minutes of the second quarter, Engemann got the Cougars on the board with an 11-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a 19-yard strike to Toby Christensen in the endzone. In the third game of the season, Engemann ran into a tough Nevada defense. Engemann completed just 6-of-16 attempts before turning things over to reserve QB Lance Pendleton in the second half. During the first half, Engemann found Andrew Ord for a 31-yard touchdown pass, marking his fifth TD pass of the season. Over three games, Engemann is 62-of-116 (.534) with just two interceptions.

MARGIN OF VICTORY

Throughout the 2001 season, the Cougars tallied 608 points, averaging a nation's best 46.8 points per game. BYU allowed 396 points, giving up an average 30.5 points per contest. Overall, the Cougars registered a +16.3-point margin of victory. The Cougars won four games on the season by 30 or more points, including a season-high 45-point win over Nevada on Sept. 1. The 2002 season got off to a similar start, with the Cougars posting 42 points on Syracuse. BYU outdistanced the Orangemen by 21 points. In the second game of the season, (vs. Hawaii), the Cougars held on for a three-point victory. The margin narrowed to just +7 after falling to Nevada, 31-28. In 2002, the Cougars have outscored their opponents by an average 35-28.