4 takeaways from Arizona's heartbreaking 28-17 loss at BYU in Week 2
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Brent Brennan and the Arizona Wildcats once again took a tough loss to the BYU Cougars, falling 28-17 in Provo on Saturday afternoon.
Arizona (1-1, 0-1) has now lost to BYU in three straight seasons, and this one really stings after the Wildcats dominated the first half before being held scoreless in the second.
Noah Fifita and Arizona could not have gotten off to a better start, putting together a 12 play, 75-yard opening drive that took nearly six minutes and ended with Fifta scampering 11 yards into the end zone - after he completed 6-7 passes for 52 yards in the air.
Arizona ultimately went into halftime with a 17-14 lead, having dominated time of possession and overall looking like a team that should be up by two scores or more.
That lack of a big lead ultimately did Arizona in, as they gave up a 75-yard touchdown drive to BYU to begin the third quarter - relinquishing the lead for the last time in the contest.
An inability to generate much yardage on the ground, combined with an injury to sophomore wide receiver Gio Richardson after the first quarter, left Fifita scrambling far too often against this stout BYU defense - and sends the Wildcats home with the first loss of the Big 12 season.
Below is a look at four key takeaways from Arizona's 28-17 loss in Provo to BYU:
Arizona contained BYU's run game...in the first half
Arizona held BYU to just 41 yards on the ground in the first half, executing what felt like the most critical aspect of the defensive game plan. Cougars star back LJ Martin gained 25 yards on just four carries in the half, but BYU made sure to rectify that right away in the third quarter - giving him the ball on three of the first four plays which resulted in 20 rushing yards and put Arizona squarely on their heels.
Ultimately BYU was able to use Martin to control the pace in the second half, where he wore down Arizona's defense - including a big first down run under two minutes that ultimately put the game on ice. He finished with 20 carries and 98 rushing yards - good for 4.9 yards per carry - and was a major differencemaker down the stretch.
Missed fourth down ultimately doomed Arizona
With 8:24 left in the fourth quarter, Arizona had the ball on fourth and four down 21-17 on the BYU 21-yard line.
Fifita dropped back and flipped a short pass to Rodney Gallagher III, who was taken down seemingly right on the first down marker. After initially granting Arizona the first down, an official review reversed the call and gave the ball to BYU - a huge momentum swing that Arizona ultimately never recovered from.
The Cougars were in the end zone three plays later thanks to a 61-yard completion to freshman Legend Glasker, and after Fifita was stuffed on the ensuing drive Arizona was essentially cooked.
Arizona had to go for it on this fourth down, and had they got it this may have been an entirely different story, but it felt like the game was over as soon as that call was (correctly) reversed.
Bear Bachmeier outplayed Noah Fifita in the second half
Fifita looked great in the first half - completing 16 of 20 passes for 141 yards, one touchdown, and one interception along with six carries for 48 yards and a TD on the ground.
However, BYU's defense improved dramatically in the second half, and the lack of Gio Richardson really hampered Arizona's ability to move the chains over the final 30 minutes of action. Fifita finished 23-31 for 230 yards, with just the one touchdown and interception.
Meanwhile Bachmeier was outstanding through the air and on the ground, completing 16 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns, while carrying the ball six times for 37 yards and a TD as well. It's clear Danny Gonzales' game plan was to force Bachmeier to throw the ball, and it was also clear Arizona doesn't have the elite, NFL-caliber secondary they did last year.
BYU took advantage, ultimately handing the Wildcats another loss in Provo.
Arizona native Kyler Kasper killed the 'Cats
Arizona went hard after Gilbert, AZ native Kyler Kasper when he starred at Williams Field high school, but ultimately the 6'5 wideout chose to spurn his local team and instead begin his college career at Oregon.
When injuries limited Kasper in Eugene he entered the transfer portal and again spurned the Wildcats, taking his talent to BYU. As if that wasn't bad enough, Kasper had a massive game against his hometown program on Saturday, hauling in four receptions for 51 yards and a pair of touchdowns - the first two of his career in what is his fifth collegiate season.
Talk about adding insult to injury.
Arizona will look to get back in the win column in Week 3, hosting Northern Illinois at Casino Del Sol Stadium on Saturday, Sep. 19 at 7:30 PM MT.
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