I was scared. I ain’t going to lie. He’s fast, but we got him, man. – Hunter Dimick
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah defenders Hunter Dimick, Sunia Tauteoli and Marcus Williams weren’t about to let BYU quarterback Taysom Hill slip past their grasp.
“No we weren’t. We weren’t,” Tauteoli said after teaming on a game-saving tackle on a two-point conversion attempt with 18 seconds remaining in Saturday’s rivalry game at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
The combined tackle of Hill preserved a 20-19 victory for the Utes in the latest thriller between the teams. Eighteen of the past 23 games have been decided by a touchdown or less.
Tauteoli noted that he and Dimick shook off blockers before joining Williams in getting to Hill about 3 yards from the end zone.
“We knew that he was really a running quarterback and that they really wanted him to go because we didn’t have a lot of interior guys,” Tauteoli said. “So we’re all coming off the edge, so we kind of figured he would leak out.”
Tauteoli wasn’t surprised that BYU coach and former Utah defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake decided to go for two after Hill scored a touchdown on a 7-yard run.
“That’s Kalani, man,” said Tauteoli, who was recruited by Sitake. “I have a lot of respect for the guy.”
Tauteoli added that it felt great to be in on the decisive play.
“I can’t explain the feeling,” he said.
Would you like to watch @utah_football belt out Utah Man after beating BYU?Yeah you would. 🙌 #Pac12FB pic.twitter.com/8ia4O2olBO
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) September 11, 2016
Dimick was also all smiles after Utah’s sixth consecutive win over BYU.
“I was scared. I ain’t going to lie,” Dimick said. “He’s fast, but we got him, man.”
Sitake credited Utah for making a play.
“I love the ball being in Taysom’s hand. He had a couple of options and it just ended up the way that it did,” he said. “But I think Utah just made a great play. I’d do it again.”
Video: A look at the Taysom Hill TD run and the subsequent failed 2-point conversion pic.twitter.com/ly9tI5HhLJ
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) September 11, 2016
In stark contrast to the last meeting between the teams — in the Las Vegas Bowl last December when BYU turned the ball over on its first five possessions in a 35-28 loss — Utah struggled to take care of the ball. The Utes had six miscues, three fumbles and three interceptions in the regular-season restoration of a rivalry that had taken a two-year break. “This rivalry has had so many of these types of games, where it comes down to the last play, last series of games, last possession, what have you. This was no different,” said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham. “We definitely dodged a bullet, turned the ball over six times. You definitely don’t win many football games, turning it over six times. That speaks to our guys' resiliency and toughness to keep hanging in there.”
Things, however, started off more like the Las Vegas Bowl. BYU gave up a pick-six on the first play from scrimmage when Hill was picked off by Tauteoli. The junior returned it 41 yards for a touchdown. Andy Phillips added the extra point to give Utah a 7-0 lead just 16 seconds into the game.
Utah's pick-6 to start the game #BYUvsUtah pic.twitter.com/AfRePtutrf
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) September 11, 2016
That’s when things turned ugly for the Utes. Their next five possessions ended with two fumbles, a punt and then a pair of interceptions.
After forcing BYU to three plays and a punt on the ensuing possession, the Utes turned the ball over on first down when Raelon Singleton fumbled following a reception. Linebacker Francis Bernard jarred the ball loose and safety Kai Nacua recovered it on the Utah 29-yard line.
The Cougars wound up settling for a 43-yard field goal by Jake Oldroyd to make it 7-3 with 9:44 to go in the opening quarter.
Less than five minutes later, BYU closed the gap to 7-6 when Oldroyd added a 42-yard kick. It followed a fumble by Utah’s Joe Williams. Former Ute Harvey Langi forced the turnover and teammate Dayan Lake recovered the ball on the Utah 37.
The Cougars ran eight plays after each of the takeaways, but managed only 15 yards on the two drives — three on the first and 12 on the second.
BYU trailed 7-6 at the end of the first quarter despite running 23 plays and holding Utah to only 10. The Utes had 62 yards of total offense and the Cougars just 57.
Nacua put an end to a promising Utah drive in the second quarter when he intercepted Troy Williams in the end zone. BYU capitalized on the takeaway by marching 80 yards on five plays to takes its first lead. The drive ended with a 37-yard touchdown run by Hill.
Kai Nacua's 2 first-half interceptions, including one in the end zone #BYUvsUtah pic.twitter.com/CDYiKVfwOg
— Brandon Judd (@brandonljudd) September 11, 2016
Trailing 13-7 with just over four minutes to play in the half, Utah responded with a 10-play series that ended with a 21-yard touchdown toss from Williams to Tim Patrick. It came with 17 seconds left in the second quarter.
Both teams lost the ball twice in the third quarter. Tauteoli and Reginald Porter had picks for Utah, while Francis Bernard intercepted a pass for BYU and Michael Davis scooped up a muffed punt.
Before the latter, on back-to-back plays, two Cougars were ejected for targeting penalties — Nacua and cornerback Austin McChesney.
The lone points in the quarter came on a 47-yard field goal by Phillips.
Sustained drives highlighted the final 15 minutes. Utah embarked on a 19-play, 78-yard drive that took 11:21 off the clock before Phillips kicked a 29-yard field goal. BYU then put together a 13-play sequence together that culminated with Hill’s late touchdown to set up the decisive two-point attempt.
Both teams return to action next Saturday night. BYU hosts UCLA, while Utah visits San Jose State.
Email: dirk@deseretnews.com
Twitter: @DirkFacer