25.9/30/11 - Riley Nelson's Miracle TD drive: BYU – 27, Utah St. - 24

            The BYU Cougars (2-2) hosted the Utah State Aggies (1-2) for their 81st meeting, with a QB controversy brewing. Although sophomore QB Jake Heaps set several BYU freshman QB records in 2010, he failed to live up to the high expectations that had been placed on his young shoulders. Now, four games into the 2011 campaign, the Cougars continued to produce lackluster results. Meanwhile, junior QB Riley Nelson (who transferred to BYU from Utah State following his LDS mission) was waiting for his chance to prove himself. Although the Aggies beat the Cougars in their most recent contest (31-16), the Cougars hadn’t lost at home to the Aggies since 1978 - a string of 15 straight victories.

            Utah State sprinted out of the gate, scoring on the first play from scrimmage on an 80-yard rush by Robert Turbin up the right sideline. On the Cougars’ ensuing possession, Heaps led the Cougars 68 yards to set up a 23-yard FG by Justin Sorensen. When Heaps scored on a 1-yard QB keeper on the Cougars’ next possession, things looked as if they were going his way.

            Midway through the second quarter, the Aggies took the lead with a 78-yard drive that culminated with a 13-yard TD pass from Chuckie Keeton to Eric Moats on a broken play which had Keeton scrambling to avoid the blitz. Meanwhile, the BYU Offense fell into a funk. Finally, they managed a 62-yard drive that ended with a 29-yard FG with less than a minute left in the half, sending the Cougars to the locker room down 14-13.

            On USU’s first drive of the second half, they marched 89 yards, scoring on a 24-yard pass from Keeton to Turbin, who made the catch and turned on the turbo jets to motor his way into the end zone. Meanwhile, BYU’s offense continued to sputter as their first two drives of the half ended punts. Late in the third quarter, trailing Utah State 21-13 at home, Coach Mendenhall pulled QB Jake Heaps in favor of the more charismatic Nelson, hoping to light a fire under the troops. Nelson led the Cougs into Aggie territory, but the drive ended on a missed FGA.

As the fourth quarter commenced, the Aggies were driving again. This drive ended with a 21-yard FG that extended their lead to 24-13. Nelson showed off his mobility as he led the Cougars on a 60-yard drive. On second-and-14, Riley lined up in the shotgun formation, checked his receiver and lofted a perfectly placed pass to Cody Hoffman, who fell into the end zone with a 24-yard TD completion. The score was now 24-20. Michael Smith of USU busted free for a huge 53-yard gain as Utah State tried to answer. Defending their territory, the Cougars forced a fourth down. The Aggies sent out the FG unit, but tried to throw a knockout punch with a fake FG attempt. Fortunately, the Cougar D knocked away the fourth down pass keeping their hopes alive. Unfortunately, J.J. Di Luigi fumbled away their next opportunity at the Utah State 26. The Cougar defense finally succeeded in bringing Keeton down in the backfield, and got the ball back after USU’s punt rolled all the way to the Cougar 4-yard line. With a little over two minutes left to play, Nelson started the drive with a series of short passes and quarterback sneaks before an incomplete pass brought up a second-and-10 from the BYU 34. That's when the miracles started. Nelson took the snap and scrambled backwards to his own 25 before eluding a defender and launching a 40 yard bomb to McKay Jacobson. But there was more to come. *Still down by 4 with 0:11 remaining, Nelson dropped back and fired a pass over the middle. The ball was deflected at the goal line, but miraculously shot up and landed right in the hands of Marcus Mathews who was streaking across the back of the end zone. Touchdown! (#53)

Marcus Mathews - Game-winning TD
Courtesy of BYU Photo

Riley Nelson
Courtesy of BYU Photo

Nelson’s magical 4th quarter won him the starting job, and he didn’t disappoint. Under the direction of their new general, the Cougars went 7-1 down the stretch, finishing the season with a 10-3 record, including a 24-21 win over Tulsa in the Armed Forces Bowl. The Aggies rebounded from their disappointing start, finishing the season with a respectable 7-6 record, including an appearance in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

 Game link: https://www.byutv.org/d12c04ff-1fa8-460d-b314-1843525f5ad2/byu-football-utah-state-vs.-byu-(9-30-11)

*BYU Tv's Top 100 plays in BYU Football TV history (updated 12/12/20 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYzgPw-bQ_c)

 

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