49. 11/17/84 – BYU gets first ever #1 ranking: #3 BYU – 24, Utah - 14

            When the #3 BYU Cougars (10-0) traveled up I-15 to face their rivals, the Utah Utes (6-4-1), a lot more was at stake than the Beehive boot (awarded to the best football team in the state). Not only were the Cougars trying to clinch their ninth consecutive WAC championship, they had their eyes set on the national title. The Cougars came into the game ranked #3 in the nation, but the top two teams (Nebraska & South Carolina) both fell that day, giving the Cougars a shot at history.

Utah struck first, intercepting a Bosco pass in Cougar territory, then scoring on a 1-yard rush by Molonai Hola. Unfazed, Bosco directed a 90-yard drive that relied on short passes and a couple of powerful rushes by Hema Heimuli. Deep in Utah territory, Bosco dropped back and led WR Adam Haysbert with a 10-yard pass to the right side of the end zone for a game-tying touchdown.

In the second quarter, Bosco tossed up two more interceptions. The first one gave Utah another short field, but after Utah drove to the BYU 8, Utah’s FGA went wide right. The second interception abruptly ended a drive into Utah territory. Although the Utes drove to midfield, they were compelled to punt. The punt was blocked by Thor Salanoa. With 0:48 remaining in the half, Bosco led one more foray into Ute territory. A 40-yard diving catch by WR Glen Kozlowsky landed the Cougars in the Blue Zone. A 16-yard pass to Adam Haysbert placed the ball at the Utah 1 with 2 ticks remaining. Rather than risking it all on a TD attempt, Edwards sent out the FG unit, and Lee Johnson rewarded him with a 19-yard FG that sent BYU to the locker room with a 10-7 lead.

Early in the third, the Cougar Offense took the field with the ball sitting at their own 7. Bosco engineered another drive that was helped along by a 40-yard bomb to Kozlowsky, who managed to snag it despite triple coverage. Bosco’s 19-yard TD pass to a wide-open Kozlowsky in the left side of the end zone almost seemed anti-climatic in comparison. Utah, however, wasn’t ready to concede victory. As the third drew to a close, Mark Stevens connected with Therman Beard for an 11-yard TD, narrowing the score to 17-14, BYU.

A couple of BYU fumbles gave Utah plenty of opportunity to sink their rivals, but the Cougar D rose up to the challenge, forcing a punt and a missed FGA. Undaunted by their miscues, Bosco and company went back on the offensive. The Cougars placed an exclamation point on their win when Robbie Bosco, scrambling right, lobbed the ball to Kelly Smith, who was running parallel to him in the end zone, for a 4-yard TD pass to cap a 66-yard drive. The Utes had two more chances, but failed to put any more points up on the board, and the Cougars returned to Provo with a 24-14 win.

National Championship Display
Legacy Hall


Signed Football presented to Ronald Reagan at the White House
Legacy Hall

It wasn’t a pretty win, but a win is a win. Following the game, the Cougars earned their first ever #1 ranking despite protests by the big name colleges right behind them in the polls. With one game remaining on their regular season schedule, the Cougars soundly defeated their other in-state rivals, Utah State, by a score of 38-13 to finish the regular season as the only undefeated program in Division I. Despite being kept out of a New Year’s bowl game by Holiday Bowl officials who refused to let the WAC champions out of their contracted bowl game, the Cougars’ #1 ranking allowed them to clinch the national championship by beating unranked Michigan in a hard-fought bowl game win in San Diego.

 Game highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7M1pG2iCb8

 

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