Red zone defense was one of few bright spots for Cougars in humbling loss to No. 8 Texas Tech

LUBBOCK, Texas — Previously undefeated BYU was dominated in almost every facet of the game Saturday afternoon in that devastating 29-7 loss to Texas Tech, and head coach Kalani Sitake admitted as much while crediting the Red Raiders countless times in his postgame remarks to reporters.

However, there were a few bright spots, particularly for the BYU defense, that Sitake and defensive players such at Tanner Wall, Raider Damuni and Jack Kelly believe they can build on the remainder of the season.

The Cougars held Texas Tech to 368 total yards, Tech’s second-lowest output of the season (playing without starting quarterback Behren Morton against Arizona State, Texas Tech had just 276 yards in a 26-22 loss against the Sun Devils).

Morton threw for 219 yards and a TD against the Cougars.

Also, BYU sacked Morton four times, all in the first half, which was the Cougars’ second-straight game with four sacks and the first time TTU has given up four sacks in a single game this season as swirling winds made throwing the football downfield difficult for both quarterbacks.

Then there was BYU’s play in the red zone. Tech had to settle for a school-record five field goals and was turned away from scoring a touchdown at the end of the first half when Damuni made an outstanding play.

“Every week, that’s one of our goals, to be good in the red zone. That’s a huge emphasis that we have every week,” Damuni said. “A huge portion of our practice is focused on the red zone. It was not the result we wanted today, but that’s definitely a positive that we can take from the game today.”

If there was a knock on the defense’s performance at Jones AT&T Stadium in front of 60,229 fans, it was that it gave up too many big plays and struggled to get off the field on third down.

Cameron Dickey had a 33-yard run, J’Koby Williams had a 43-yard run and a 25-yard reception, Reggie Virgil had a 39-yard reception and Coy Eakin caught a 37-yard pass that Evan Johnson probably should have intercepted.

BYU’s longest play was a 21-yard reception by Parker Kingston.

“We gave up too many big plays on third down. The first half was back and forth a little bit, but we gave up 13 points,” Sitake said. “We had a good stop at the end of the half there. I thought we were able to get some momentum.

“We even started by forcing a punt the second half but just weren’t able to get the momentum swinging our way, weren’t able to get getting things going on offense.”

That last phrase is an understatement. BYU’s punchless offense, coupled with some conservative play-calling, put a lot of pressure on the defense, and in the fourth quarter it wore out after having given up only 263 yards to that point.

“Defensively, we were in some tough spots. We were able to hold them to field goals on some short fields,” Wall said. “There were a couple big plays that we gave up that we’d love to have back. … So we definitely left some plays out there on the field, but in a game like that, we got to play better complementary football.

“If the offense is struggling to get going a little bit, we have to play great. I didn’t think we played great. I thought we just played good.”

Texas Tech’s defense was great throughout, led by linebacker Jacob Rodriguez and his 14 tackles and two takeaways — an interception and a fumble recovery when BYU freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier tried to make something out of nothing deep in his own territory and threw a backwards pass to no one.

“Continue to love each other and just expect to see these guys (Texas Tech) again here in a couple weeks, if we handle the next few games the right way.”

—  BYU safety Tanner Wall

The Cougars put up just 255 total yards, their lowest output since getting just 241 in a 38-9 win over Kansas State on September 21, 2024.

“Texas Tech made things difficult. Really good team, well-coached, with a lot of great players,” Sitake said. “But we will be back, and we will find a way to improve and play better next week.”

The No. 7 Cougars (5-1, 8-1) will probably tumble out of the top 10 in the College Football Playoff rankings that are scheduled to be released Tuesday night. Losing badly on national television, despite facing the No. 8 team in the rankings on its home field, will do that to a program.

Was it too big of a stage for the Cougars?

“Absolutely not,” Damuni said. “… Definitely not (too) big of a stage for us. We’ve been in games like this before and played well.”

Another strong defensive effort will be needed on Saturday when TCU (3-3, 6-3) visits Provo (8:15 p.m. MST, ESPN). The Horned Frogs are coming off a 20-17 loss at home to Iowa State in a game they dominated in every way except the scoreboard.

Quarterback Josh Hoover threw for 319 yards and TCU put up 30 first downs to 15 for Iowa State, but three turnovers (two interceptions and a lost fumble) doomed the Frogs to their third Big 12 loss.

BYU had a similar offensive effort last year in its first loss of the season, falling at home to Kansas after knocking off Utah in the rivalry game.

Then the Cougars turned around and lost at Arizona State, a loss that kept them from getting into the Big 12 championship game. Wall said they learned some lessons from that and will be better equipped to handle adversity this year.

“Just don’t question the foundation of our brotherhood” was Sitake’s postgame message, according to Wall. “Continue to love each other and just expect to see these guys (Texas Tech) again here in a couple weeks, if we handle the next few games the right way.”

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