What Happened? BYU vs Utah State

Was anyone besides me expecting a huge blowout tonight as BYU faced Utah State? Based on my Yahoo College Football Pick 'Em stats, it shows that nearly 75% of the country was with me thinking that BYU would roll over Utah State with ease. BYU picked up the 34-14 victory beating the Aggies who are now only 1-4 on the year. Most people expected a more dominating performance from the Cougars. So what happened?

Although the point differential is not what most people expected, this game was still controlled and dominated by the Cougars in almost every way possible. To prove my point, let's take a look at the rushing and passing stats:

BYU:
Passing: 303 yards
Rushing: 103 yards (3.4 yards per rush)

Utah State:
Passing: 193 yards
Rushing: 129 (3.0 yards per rush)

Utah State played one of their better games all year. But the stats alone show BYU's experience and power over Utah State. The Aggies lack of experience showed by coughing up four turnovers and going down 24-0 in the first half. With each of those turnovers, BYU did just what a top 10 ranked team should do, they capitalized and scored.

So that brings up another question. If BYU was so dominating why was the score as close as it was? First off, let me remind most people (especially those BYU fans with their blue goggles on) that a 20 point win over any team, especially on the road, is a pretty convincing win. We've been spoiled to keep blowing people out and having amazing offensive performances. However, for entertainment value, there were two main factors that kept the score as close as it was:

1. Turnovers: BYU's Max Hall threw two interceptions. Coming into tonight game, he had only thrown three interceptions all year. Both throws were simply bad decisions on Halls part. He threw into double and even triple coverage which gave the defense a great opportunity to intercept. If those interceptions wouldn't have been thrown, BYU's score could have easily been increased anywhere from 6-14 points which would have given the point spread that most people were expecting.
2. Penalties: BYU is usually a disciplined team that doesn't make a lot of frustration penalties. Tonight they had 12 penalties for 123 yards. With out some of those frustration penalties, they could have scored at least another touchdown.

There you have it. Sure, the score wasn't what most people expected, however, it was still a very convincing road win. If the Cougars would have limited their turnovers and penalties the game would have been a big scoring blow out. It just goes to show that even the # 8 ranked team in the nation has a lot of work to do to be considered one of the best.