BYU football force feeds Kansas State a blowout loss

Well that escalated quickly.

When this football game between the BYU Cougars and Kansas State kicked off in the shadow of the majestic Wasatch Mountains, not one player, coach, or delusional fan could have possibly imagined what was about to happen on the field. In fact, no one could have predicted the outcome of this game even as the halftime break entered into view.

In a football game that saw experts predicting a certain Kansas State road win, the BYU defense stole the show--and a score--in a dominant Cougar victory. Somebody go drug test Kirk Herbstreit.

Kinda One-Sided Isn't It?

The first half of this contest was tremendously boring unless slow, methodical offense and field goals are your thing. K-State's sophomore QB, Avery Johnson, led his offense into BYU territory during the Wildcats' first two offensive series, capping each possession off with a field goal to strike the first blow into BYU's body. The Cougars then answered with 3 points of their own on the following possession to cut KSU's lead to a total of 6-3.

At that moment, football became art. Up to this point, Johnson was handling BYU's hostile environment well, despite the best efforts of the fans who packed into LaVell's house. Running the ball effectively and organizing the offensive gameplan, the mobile QB seemed in control of the game and momentum was still up for grabs in the final minute of the second frame.

And that's exactly when BYU snatched that momentum and (literally) ran. A K-State fumble led to a Cougar scoop-and-score, giving Sitake's squad the first touchdown of the night. Less than a minute of game time later, a Tyler Batty interception converted into another 7 points. With under a minute left, K-State decided to stop the bleeding and kneel to end the half, suddenly behind 17-6.

Bedlam broke loose in LaVell Edwards Stadium, and the crowd noise instantly became an undeniable factor. Johnson threw an early interception to Harrison Taggart in the opening series of the second half, which BYU once again converted into 7 points. The scoreboard read 24-6 in favor of the home Cougs.

Kansas State started another offensive series with deflated morale that sank their progress into a punting situation. Defeated, the Wildcats booted the ball to the awaiting return man, Parker Kingston, who muffed the initial reception. A rumble of hope for the dormant K-State sideline?

In this game? No way! Retreating to his own goal line and scooping up the live ball, Kingston bolted from sideline to sideline inside the BYU 5 yard line, dodging and high-stepping through K-State defenders before turning upfield and carrying the rock into the endzone for a score. In a play that should have been a special teams nightmare, the Cougars delivered yet another touchdown. 31-6 BYU was the score.

If you ask Kingston, I'm sure he'd tell you that was a play worth losing his lunch over.

Taking a shocking turn, BYU turned an upset bid into a beatdown. It was almost reminiscent of the Space Jam showdown between the Tune Squad and the Monstars, as the latter ran up the score at such a severe rate, that the scoreboard stopped counting numerically and simply read: "Kinda one-sided, isn't it?"

The Hope that Kills You

In the town of Richmond, England, the fictional AFC Richmond fanbase had experienced so much disappointment that the following motto echoed through the minds of everyone involved with the team: "It's the hope that kills you".

Entering this football game, I expected a "never a doubt" kind of BYU loss, where Kansas State took the lead early, and BYU never clawed back within arm's reach of the scoring deficit. Without hope for a win, I closed myself out of the possibility of disappointment, and I was content watching the Cougars keep the game competitive.

When BYU's scoring explosion went off, I was through the roof with excitement, but the familiar sense of dread washed over me--I've been burnt before. Last season's collapse in Stillwater, Oklahoma, 2018's horrific choke job in Salt Lake City, and many other painful memories took over. I realized that I had hope, and it's the hope that leaves you vulnerable to the fall. It's the hope that kills you.

But a miracle occurred in Provo, Utah. The Cougars held strong and even added to their lead with a Tyler Allgeier-inspired touchdown run on 3rd-and-10 that featured Sione Moa breaking through the helpless arm tackles of a defeated K-State defense. The Cougars held on and held a commanding lead as the final whistle blew.

BYU's defense stole the spotlight tonight, and while Retzlaff enjoyed a very solid outing and special teams held up their end of the bargain, it was Jay Hill's unit that established themselves as the dominant force in this Big 12 clash. K-State ran a physical, bruising run-first defense, and Quarterback Avery Johnson broke a few big runs, but the Cougar defense kept a power conference opponent out of the end zone for the second time this season.

BYU has made its case for a Top-25 ranking for the first time since 2022, despite holding only two AP votes for the past two weeks. Kansas State is a strong football team, and that inspired plenty of confidence in their fans--so much that one fan vowed to shove a burrito into his dark places if his Wildcats fell to the Cougars. With a pair of high-quality wins under their belt, it's time for the Cougars to be displayed for the college football world.

We should have seen this coming, though. The Cougar Tails demanded this result.

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