The evidence came early.
BYU’s offensive line knocked TCU’s defense around like a bowling ball exploding pins in a late Saturday night 44-13 win over the Horned Frogs at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
It was a statement kind of night for the big guys up front.
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They became graders and pushed. They imposed their will.
The result was the most consistent BYU offensive performance of the year and a much-needed victory for the 9-1, 6-1 No. 12 Cougars.
Offensive line coach TJ Woods and tight ends coach Kevin Gilbride made certain the hogs were hungry, trained and choreographed like rhinos in dancing tights for this one.
It was refreshing. It was needed. It was required after an embarrassing loss to Texas Tech the previous week on national television.
This was a purge.
Planets realigned for BYU football as the clunky offense that stumbled around in Lubbock bull-rushed over TCU’s No. 3-ranked Big 12 defense by scoring on seven straight possessions.
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Head coach Kalani Sitake knew his team needed to rebound, feel some joy again.
In this one, you could see the pain subside and hope flip on like a light switch.
Sitake said he could feel a sense of urgency from his team during the week. Also, the offensive game plan changed. Instead of using seven blockers in max protection, BYU let the tackles worry about blocking for the QB. This sent more receivers into patterns.
“It was just let Bear play,” said Sitake of Bachmeier’s use of his arm. He completed 23 of 33 passes for nearly 300 yards and one touchdown. “We threw it in many different ways and opened the play book.”
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The Cougars are now two wins from making their first appearance in the Big 12 championship game in Arlington, Texas.
BYU has eight quarters to play winning football and they’ll be there. Four of those quarters will take place in Cincinnati, a loser to a surging Arizona team next Saturday.
While guard Weylin Lapuaho went out early in this game, the remainder of the O-line — guard Kyle Starcioc, center Bruce Mitchell, and tackles Isaiah Jetta and Andrew Gentry — simply flexed. TCU’s defense went backwards.
Over and over again.
These big guys are usually the unsung and unrecognized workers on a football team. But anyone who knows the game can attest that a team isn’t going anywhere without them being physical, controlling the line of scrimmage and extending blocks, hopefully to the second level where linebackers and safeties roam on defense.
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Against an otherwise tough TCU defense, BYU gained 447 total yards, 296 of which were through the air, 151 on the ground. The Frog rush defense ranked No. 2 in the league coming in to the game.
Quarterback Bachmeier ran for his 10th touchdown of the season, tying Steve Young, Taysom Hill and Zach Wilson.
Aaron Roderick’s offense had a whopping 28 first downs and averaged 6.2 yards per play while dominating time of possession, 36:05 to 23:53.
This enabled running back LJ Martin to make a comeback in his Big 12 rushing leader year with 88 yards on 21 carries.
The 44 BYU points were the most points allowed by TCU all season long. The worst TCU loss this season was by 13 points. This one was by 31, which included a pick-six by safety Tanner Wall.
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BYU’s offense was deliberate, efficient and kept TCU off balance with a mixture of plays. This included deploying workhorse tight end Carsen Ryan as a weapon.
Ryan scored his second touchdown of the season, a 43-yard touchdown on a catch and run. He had 4 catches for 79 yards, his most productive game of the year.
“I’m really proud of everything Carsen does for us,” said Sitake.
The former UCLA and Utah player said the goal was clear this week.
“Just go out and physically dominate your man every play. We didn’t want to go in next week and watch the film and see ourselves getting dominated. Every play, we want to be dominating,” said Ryan.
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While BYU’s offensive line had one of its best performances of the season, it set the stage for the entire night but more importantly, it set the stage for Martin. The talented running back is a key cog for the Cougar offense because his run yards set up play-action passes.
Martin said coming off an injury at Texas Tech, he was hesitant and his confidence was a factor. On Saturday, he was both determined and confident.
“Just being able to make those plays, get those tough yards, I mean it just kind of makes everything easier when stuff isn’t going your way and you’re still able to make plays out of it — it makes the game a lot easier,” Martin said.
The Cougars are now 1-1 in November, a time the Cougars faltered a year ago.
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The remaining two games — at Cincinnati this week and the finale versus UCF in Provo — loom huge and will determine BYU’s postseason and possible College Football Playoff standing.
This is exactly where Sitake and company want to be — destiny in their own hands.
BYU wants to kill all the tiebreakers that took them out of Arlington a year ago.
