BYU vs. Hawaii: Mo Moments

Tracking the momentum of the Brigham Young Cougars’ game against Hawaii was easy. BYU got it early and it never went back to Hawaii. Just how early did BYU gain momentum? The very first offensive play of the game.


Mo Moment 1
BYU received the opening kickoff and returned the ball to the 23-yard line. On the first play of the game, true freshman Taysom Hill, making his first career start, dropped back to pass. A Hawaii defender came off the corner untouched and was ready to sack Hill. However, Hill saw the defender and dumped the ball off to Zed Mendenhall for a gain of eight yards.

Momentum swing! Hill passed his first test successfully. No doubt that was a confidence booster for Hill and the BYU offense. An incomplete pass and BYU is facing 2nd and 10. A sack would have put BYU in a really bad situation very early. It is also possible that Hill fumbles the ball and Hawaii recovers. By completing that pass, that first play went from being a potential drive killer to a key in BYU scoring a touchdown on the drive.

Mo Moment 2
Although  BYU scored on its first possession, the Cougars were unable to start running away with the game. Midway through the second quarter, it was a 14-0 game. All Hawaii needed was one big play to completely change the feeling of the game. With 6:16 till halftime a big play was made, but it was BYU’s Taysom Hill who made it. Hill raced 68-yards for a touchdown.

Momentum boost! Hill had had success running the ball on Hawaii already (7 rush, 50 yards), but this play cemented the fact that Hawaii had no answer for Hill running the ball. He had also been pretty successful passing the ball to this point. With the score now 20-0, BYU was flying high, but the Hawaii sideline had most of the little remaining air knocked out of them.

Mo Moment 3
The third quarter opened with BYU still holding a 20-0 lead. The Cougars kicked off to the Warriors. On the second play of the drive, Kyle Van Noy came off the right edge on a blitz. He dodged one defender and hit the quarterback as he was preparing to throw the ball. The impact of the hit was so great, the ball went flying backwards. BYU recovered at the two-yard line. Two plays later, BYU scored a touchdown for a 27-0 lead.

Momentum boost! If Hawaii was going to make any kind of move to get back into the game, then it had to be on this drive. The Cougar D set the tone early that the second half wasn’t going to be any different than the first. From here, BYU cruised to the 47-0 final score.

The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootball@gmail.com

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