My mom came out here, and my dad moved out here (to Utah County) a while ago. He hasn’t been able to see me score yet. He said he was crying and he said that everyone was crying when I scored. – Nick Kurtz
PROVO — BYU wide receiver Nick Kurtz picked a perfect night, and a perfect time, to score his first two career touchdowns.
In Friday night's 38-24 victory over Cincinnati at LaVell Edwards Stadium, Kurtz hauled in a 19-yard TD pass from quarterback Tanner Mangum in the third quarter to tie the score at 17 apiece, and his second TD was a 53-yarder in the fourth quarter that gave the Cougars (5-2) their first lead of the game, 31-24.
The San Diego native finished with six catches for 119 yards — and he did it in front of his mom, dad, brother and uncle.
“My mom came out here, and my dad moved out here (to Utah County) a while ago. He hasn’t been able to see me score yet. He said he was crying and he said that everyone was crying when I scored,” Kurtz said. “It was just so cool. I knew my family was here and they got to see it. That’s what makes it special. I know they were even happier than I was. It was great.”
“It’s really fun to see a player play like that in front of his family,” said coach Bronco Mendenhall.
Kurtz was a major catalyst in the Cougars’ second-half comeback.
His first touchdown as a BYU receiver required a high degree of difficulty as he twisted his body, caught the pass and got one foot inbounds against man coverage in the end zone.
“I actually thought it was a formation where I wasn’t supposed to be in. So I was getting to run off to the sideline and they told me to stay in,” Kurtz said. “I was like, ‘Okay, let’s do this.’ I ran a fade (route) and (Mangum) put it in a perfect spot, kind of back-shoulder, and I went up and my foot landed on the ground and we got a touchdown.”
"That first (touchdown) was an amazing catch," Mangum said.
As for Kurtz’s second TD, it might have been the easiest one he’ll ever have. Kurtz found himself all alone at the 5-yard line.
“While I was running my route I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m so open.’ I saw the ball sailing, and I laughed, I was like, ‘Wow, I am really wide open right now,’” Kurtz said. “It just sailed in, and I made sure I caught it with my hands and not my body. Then I ran into the end zone and saw the fans going crazy. It was super-cool.”
When Mangum saw Kurtz running free, “I almost didn’t believe my eyes,” he said. “I almost wasn’t sure that he was that open … I wanted to put it out there and let him go get it. It was pretty fun.”
That touchdown matched his career-long (he also had a 53-yarder against Nebraska) and it was part of a 21-point fourth quarter for BYU.
Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville explained what caused the defensive breakdown.
"They ran a switch route. We had two guys on one and none on him,” he said. “For some reason, we just had physical and mental lapses like that in the fourth quarter."
Kurtz, a junior college transfer who was sidelined last season due to a foot injury, burst onto the scene in the season-opener at Nebraska, catching five passes for 123 yards. Over the next five games, he had only 12 receptions for 112 yards.
Against the Bearcats, the 6-foot-5, 205-pound junior came up big again.
“It was awesome. I was waiting for a game like that,” Kurtz said. “It doesn’t come around too often, and when it does, it feels great. I love this team. We played so good. Every time it comes down to the fourth quarter, there’s something about us where we go lights out. It was so exciting. You got to see a lot of different guys make plays.”
BYU’s receiving corps struggled early in the game with dropped passes, but Kurtz, Mitch Mathews (three catches, 54 yards) and Devon Blackmon (three catches, 32 yards) made key contributions.
“In the first half, you have to put (the incompletions) on me. I wasn’t as accurate as I needed to be,” said Mangum. “The receivers played great. They were doing awesome all night, making big catches, fourth-down plays, catching touchdowns. It’s the same story every game. No matter where I look on the field, I know I’ve got guys that can make plays. It’s huge privilege to be able to have such great receivers out there with me. It makes my job very easy. It showed again that I trust them.”
EMAIL: jeffc@deseretnews.com