No. 22 BYU beats Louisiana Tech 45-14

PROVO, Utah – Quarterback Zach Wilson’s nearly perfect game gave No. 22 BYU a 45-14 edge against Louisiana Tech in a Friday night matchup at LaVell Edwards Stadium.  

Wilson went 24 for 26 with 325 passing yards and two touchdowns while adding 43 rushing yards on eight attempts and three touchdowns. His 92.3 completion percentage was just shy of his perfect 18 of 18 game in 2018 and gives him the top two marks in school history (minimum 15 attempts). It marked the first time in his career with five total touchdowns. 

Wideouts Gunner Romney and Dax Milne split the charge both catching seven passes apiece while Romney totaled 101 yards and Milne had 89 yards.

Tyler Allgeier led the team on the ground with 10 rushing attempts for 93 yards and one touchdown.

Troy Warner and Max Tooley both recorded interceptions for the BYU defense and freshman Tyler Batty totaled three sacks on the night. 

BYU racked up 513 total yards to LA Tech’s 313. Through the air, BYU connected for 325 passing yards and two touchdowns averaging 13.5 yards per reception. On the ground, the Cougars scored four touchdowns at 188 yards while the BYU’s defense held the Bulldogs to only 74 rushing yard and no touchdowns.

Box Score
Photo Gallery
Postgame Notes

First Quarter Review

On its first drive of the game, a 16-yard pass to Gunner Romney followed immediately by a 39-yard pass to Dax Milne got the Cougars into the red zone. Wilson then ran the ball nine yards into the end zone to put BYU 7-0 with just over 10 minutes left in the quarter.

However, LA Tech quickly answered back with a 66-yard touchdown of their own to tie the game at 7-7 with just under six minutes left in the quarter. Warner gave the ball back to the Cougars, leaping over a Bulldogs wideout to grab his first career interception and gave the ball back to the BYU offense. 

• Troy Warner grabbed his first career interception
• Zach Wilson scored his third rushing touchdown of the season to tie his career-best rushing scores in a season.

Second Quarter Review

In the second quarter, BYU barreled through LA Tech’s defense on short gains getting to the Bulldogs 22-yard line. In a crowded end zone, Wilson threw a ball downfield to Carter Wheat. Covered by two LA Tech defenders, Wheat jumped into the air and grabbed the ball over the two defenders to give the Cougars their second touchdown of the game. BYU took the lead 14-7 with 10:34 left in the half.

The Cougars followed it up with another touchdown as Gunner Romney grabbed a 22-yard pass moving BYU to the one-yard line. Allegier made his way into the end zone with a one-yard rush for his first touchdown of the game making the score 21-7 at the 5:07 mark.

A 37-second, 80-yard drive from the Cougars capped off the second quarter for BYU.  The Cougars put another seven points on the board as Romney backstepped into the end zone after grabbing a 22-yard reception from Wilson. The Cougars went into the locker room with a 28-7 edge after the PAT from Jake Oldroyd. 

• Carter Wheat recorded his first career touchdown on his second career pass
• Zach Wilson scored his 28th and 29th career passing touchdown
• Tyler Allgeier recorded his third rushing touchdown of the year

Third Quarter Review

To match their first-half momentum, the Cougars put another touchdown on the board to open up the second quarter. Five big yardage plays brought BYU down the field. An 18-yard pass to Masen Wake, followed by a 23-yard grab from Neil Pau’u and a 10-yard pass to Isaac Rex put BYU at the Bulldogs' 32-yard line. Running back Allgeier moved the ball 30 yards downfield before Wilson ran the ball one-yard into the end zone for another six points as the Cougars went up 35-7. Oldroyd then added a 45-yard field goal with just over seven minutes left in the quarter to make the score 38-7.

• Gunner Romney grabbed a career-high seven passes for 101 yards through the third quarter.
• Zach Wilson recorded his second rushing touchdown of the game for four this season and 9th of his career
• Freshman Tyler Batty grabbed two sacks in the second half for the second and third sacks of his career. 

Fourth Quarter Review

Wilson ran in his third rushing touchdown of the night to start the fourth quarter. A 21-yard catch from Romney, followed by an eight-yard reception from Milne set Wilson up for a 14-yard run into the end zone and the Cougars added to their score making it 45-7. The Bulldogs tacked on a touchdown with just under five minutes in the game with a four-yard bring the score to 45-14.

A pick from Max Tooley with 58 seconds left on the clock gave the ball to the BYU offense and the Cougars took a knee to close the game with a 45-14 win.

• Tyler Batty recorded his third sack on the game
• Max Tooley grabbed his second career interception and first on the 2020 season

BYU continues its home game slate with a game against UTSA on Saturday, Oct. 10. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. MT on ESPN2.