Obviously, nobody likes losing this many games in a row. We’ve just got to erase it and start a new season over right now. – BYU coach Kalani Sitake
PROVO — In his postgame comments late Friday night, BYU coach Kalani Sitake talked about creating a clean slate to the season.
That makes a lot of sense in the wake of the Cougars’ worst start (1-5) in 44 years and their first single-season five-game losing streak in 47 years.
“Obviously, nobody likes losing this many games in a row,” Sitake said. “We’ve just got to erase it and start a new season over right now.”
The end of BYU’s 24-7 loss to Boise State seemed like a new beginning of sorts as freshman quarterback Joe Critchlow burned his redshirt when he entered the game with 2:17 remaining in place of a hobbled Tanner Mangum.
Critchlow completed 2 of 4 passes for 8 yards.
“We were just trying to find some momentum and get some positive yards,” Sitake explained about Critchlow’s brief appearance. “Tanner was limping around a little bit and we wanted to see what Joe could do. At that point, we wanted to get a spark going.”
Does this mean the workload for Critchlow will increase moving forward? Could he get his first career start when the Cougars visit Mississippi State next Saturday?
Could Critchlow, a native of Franklin, Tennessee, who was recruited by Southeastern Conference programs like Vanderbilt and Georgia, get his first start against an SEC opponent?
With Mangum still hampered by an ankle injury, Beau Hoge’s status unknown after suffering an injury at Utah State and Koy Detmer Jr.’s struggles at Utah State, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Critchlow could get another shot to show what he can do.
When asked about Critchlow last week, offensive coordinator Ty Detmer said, “He’s in the early stages. He’s a sharp kid. He did some good things in camp but it’s been a little while now as far as having reps during the season. He hasn’t had many. He’s run the scout team some. Recall is coming back a little bit.”
What did Mangum think about Critchlow entering the game?
“Coach Detmer told me that we’re just trying to protect and keep the ankle healthy,” he said. “Obviously it’s frustrating knowing that you didn’t come out with the victory. He did a good job. He did what he could.”
It appears Sitake is prepared to go back to the drawing board and evaluate all aspects of his team.
“We have to look at everything and see who are going to be our guys going into the next game with,” Sitake said. “The focus is going to be improving right now. I just want to go to work and get it fixed.”
Offensively, BYU managed only one touchdown, on its opening drive, and got shut out the rest of the way.
“Consistency is the issue. When we start off hot and it tempers down, it’s not good," Sitake said. "We’ve got to find a way to keep that momentum and keep it rolling. We started fast and the goal now is to sustain it and finish strong, and we haven’t been able to do that on offense.”
The Cougars converted on 5 of 14 third-down conversion attempts and gained 238 yards of total offense. Mangum completed 18 of 33 passes for 164 yards and two interceptions against the Broncos.
Running back Ula Tolutau gained 38 yards on nine carries, with a touchdown, while tight end Matt Bushman caught seven passes for 65 yards.
BSU adjusted its defense against Bushman, who had five of his receptions in the first half. Tolutau was limited in his carries despite averaging 4.2 yards per attempt.
"We need an identity — something we can hang our hat on — I think his name is Ula Tolutau,” Sitake said.
While the offense has been sputtering all season, the defense and special teams have had their issues, too.
Boise State converted on 8 of 15 third downs and ran for 158 yards.
“They ran a lot of their shallow cross stuff. They would bring two across and kind of set a pick, and then they would send it back on the wheel and bring the receiver over from the other side,” linebacker Adam Pulsipher said of Boise State’s offense. “They got us on that a couple times. We should have expanded a little more on those plays, or fought over a block. We need to fix the little things. I think third down is where we need to pin our ears back and make big plays. You saw us do it a few times, but we need to do it a little more.”
The Cougar defense played without two injured starters — linebackers Butch Pau’u and Matt Hadley.
Meanwhile, BYU's nightmarish season continues.
“I think it’s a broken record now,” Sitake said. “You can pretty much take the same thing that was said last week and do it again. Obviously, it’s a frustrating loss. We have some things we have to look at, review and evaluate.”