Analysis: No. 7 BYU falls flat in its biggest game in years, loses to No. 8 Texas Tech and its big-time defense

LUBBOCK, Texas — In a place so flat that the eye can see for miles and miles, the No. 7 BYU Cougars fell way short of passing the eye test Saturday afternoon in a 29-7 loss to No. 8 Texas Tech in front of 60,229 sun-drenched and wind-blown fans at Jones AT&T Stadium.

Sure, the Cougars lost by 22 points to the fired-up Red Raiders and their best-in-the-country defense. Other teams have lost to Tech in Lubbock by bigger margins. But it was worse than that. BYU (8-1, 5-1) simply didn’t look the part of a top-10 team, regardless of the opponent, on national television when it entered the game saying it was one of its most important in years, maybe ever.

For starters, had the Red Raiders (9-1, 6-1) been better in the red zone, the final margin would have been higher. BYU’s defense actually acquitted itself fairly well, despite giving up too many big plays.

The Cougars’ offense played poorly, failing to meet the moment with the eyes of the nation upon it. And BYU’s special teams were bad, inept at times, and just didn’t have it from the get-go.

Add it all up, and it was one of the more embarrassing losses in BYU history, given the circumstances.

Head coach Kalani Sitake gave all the credit in the world to the Red Raiders, who proved they belong to be mentioned among the top teams in the country, especially with the defense they can play.

“I mean, they have one of the best teams in the country, and this was a good experience for us to go through,” Sitake said. “We will learn from this, and we will be a better team for it.”

The question now is, how far will the Cougars fall in the College Football Playoff rankings, after rising to No. 7 with their eight-game winning streak? Will they fall past idle and rival Utah, which was No. 13 and lost at home to these same Red Raiders by a count of 34-10?

“We are in control of our own destiny,” said safety Raider Damuni. “We are still in a good spot.”

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Then there was receiver Chase Roberts, one of the lone bright spots for the offense with six catches for 61 yards and a touchdown.

“So we’re gonna meet them again, promise you that, and we’re gonna go beat them,” Roberts said in the postgame news conference after he was asked how BYU can keep one loss from turning into two, like last year after it started 9-0.

Anybody who watched even a quarter of Saturday’s game will probably beg to differ. Texas Tech’s defense was just too tough, too disciplined, and too opportunistic for the Cougars, and freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier in particular.

And it held BYU running back LJ Martin to 35 yards on 10 carries; Martin did catch six passes, but for only 29 yards.

“Yeah, they are a good defense,” Roberts said when asked if it was the best defense the Cougars have faced since a 35-6 loss at Texas in 2023, BYU’s first season in the Big 12. “I felt like we left a lot (of plays) out there. “I felt like we matched up well, and we just needed to make space. … There were some self-inflicted wounds. So, learn, grow from it, honestly.”

While Texas Tech’s defense played lights out, its offense actually didn’t play that well, according to quarterback Behren Morton, who completed 17 of 32 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown, but was not particularly effective in the red zone.

“Offense didn’t play great, defense didn’t play great, but we did enough to put up 29 points,” Morton said.

For perhaps the first time this season, Bachmeier looked out of sorts, confused at times, and a step slow when escaping the pocket. He completed 23 of 38 passes for 188 yards and a touchdown, for a passer rating of 105.5. He was picked off by All-America linebacker Jacob Rodriguez, and threw an ill-advised backwards pass in garbage time that Rodriguez recovered.

“Against one of the best defenses in the country, I think they made things difficult for him,” Sitake said. “But we just can’t blame it on one guy. … I appreciate Bear’s attitude and willingness to learn. We didn’t do enough of the little things to put ourselves in position to get the victory.”

BYU didn’t get on the scoreboard until 7:35 remained in the game, as Bachmeier found Roberts for a 6-yard touchdown after an eight-play, 75-yard drive. The Cougars played with tempo, caught the Red Raiders on their heels a bit, and finally looked like a Power Four offense.

Parker Kingston, whose fumbled punt put BYU in an early hole, made some nice catches on the drive and finished with five catches for 43 yards.

“The muffed punt was a big issue,” Sitake said.

The Cougars scored on the two-point conversion try after Roberts’ TD catch, but the play was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty on Kingston, for setting a pick, essentially, and BYU settled for a long PAT by Will Ferrin. It was that kind of day for the visitors.

The touchdown averted the Cougars getting shut out for the first time since a 27-0 loss to LSU in New Orleans in 2017.

Texas Tech put up 368 yards and held BYU to 255. Until that late TD drive by BYU, the Cougars had ran only three plays in TT territory.

Defensively, BYU was solid until the start of the fourth quarter, when it finally wore down and allowed an 80-yard touchdown drive. In what was billed as a battle between two of the top rushers in the Big 12, Tech’s Cameron Dickey picked up 121 yards and a touchdown, on 23 carries.

“There are a couple of big plays that we gave up that we would love to have back,” said BYU safety Tanner Wall.”

One in particular came late in the first quarter, when BYU cornerback Evan Johnson seemingly had a bead on a Morton throw. The ball sailed a bit out of Johnson’s reach, and into the waiting hands of Tech’s Coy Eakin.

“In a game like that, we have to play better complementary football,” Wall said. “… I didn’t think the defense played great. I thought we just played good.”

As noted, two special teams blunders by BYU early led to a quick field goal from the Red Raiders, and quick 3-0 lead. After Sam Vander Haar’s shanked punt, BYU’s defense got a three-and-out. But Kingston muffed the punt, and the Red Raiders took over at the BYU 17.

Jack Kelly sacked Morton on third down, and Stone Harrington booted a 47-yard field goal.

Another mistake, a false start by tight end Carsen Ryan, thwarted BYU’s second possession. At that point, the Cougars had 44 total yards, the Red Raiders minus-24.

That would change, however, as Texas Tech drove 92 yards for a touchdown with the wind at its back, using 12 plays.

It was the fourth time previously undefeated BYU trailed by double digits on the road this season, having also trailed at Colorado, Iowa State and Arizona. But this time, the Cougars didn’t come close to making a spirited comeback. They had a chance to score in the first half, but Will Ferrin missed a 51-yard field goal.

The Cougars were fortunate to only be trailing 13-0 at the break. Texas Tech got into the red zone four times, but came away with just one touchdown and two field goals.

At the end of the half, the home team got greedy and went for the touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 2, but Raider Damuni broke up a pass in the end zone.

BYU’s defense sacked Morton four times in the first half, but Tech was 4 for 9 on third down and the veteran QB made several big plays to keep drives alive. The Red Raiders finished the half with 187 yards, as Morton was 8 of 16 for 134 through the air.

After hearing Sitake tell them to settle down, curb the mistakes and start playing BYU football in his halftime address, the Cougars still couldn’t generate anything on offense when they really needed it.

Three possessions in the third quarter resulted in two punts and an interception, as Rodriguez picked off Bachmeier’s desperation throw on third-and-6.

Up next for the Cougars is a late-night affair Saturday with TCU.

“It is my job as a head coach to get these guys ready and get them to play at a higher level than what we did today,” Sitake said. “But again, Texas Tech did a great job of executing the fundamentals and all of it. We have a lot of work to do to improve.”