Much was made Saturday night about how the BYU Cougars defense finally gave up a touchdown for the first time this season with 8:11 remaining in the fourth quarter against the East Carolina Pirates.
Entering Saturday night, the Cougars had given up just three points over two games, and their average of surrendering just 1.5 points per contest was best in the nation.
Even after giving up 13 points to the Pirates in a 21-point victory though, BYU is still tied with one other team for the top spot in the country in points allowed per game at 5.3.
That other team? The No. 1-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.
While the Cougars have beaten Portland State (69-0), Stanford (27-3) and East Carolina (34-13), the Buckeyes have beaten Texas (14-7), Grambling (70-0) and Ohio (37-9).
One caveat with this statistic is that both BYU and Ohio State have only played three games so far this season, while many teams have played four. The Cougars’ first bye of the season came during the week of September 13, while the Buckeyes didn’t play on Saturday.
Penn State is just behind BYU and Ohio State, as it is giving up an average of 5.7 points through three games. Texas (7.8) and Indiana (8.3) round out the top five. Those final two teams have both played four games so far.
Elsewhere among defensive statistics, the Cougars are second in the country in yards given up per game at 205.3, behind only Minnesota and just ahead of Indiana.
They are also second in rushing defense, having given up only 133 yards on the ground (Minnesota is the only team ahead). It is true that BYU’s opponents have combined to attempt the fifth-fewest carries of any team’s opponents, but the Cougars are tops in the nation in fewest rushing yards given up per attempt at just 1.6.
BYU is also one of only four teams in the country that has yet to give up a passing touchdown, as East Carolina’s came on the ground. The other three teams in that company are Arizona, Nebraska and Oregon.