Puka Nacua Makes One of the Best Catches in BYU History to Beat Boise State
With 1:52 remaining in the fourth quarter, BYU faced a 4th & Goal from the Boise State six yard-line. The Cougars, who trailed 28-24, had failed to take advantage of multiple redzone opportunities earlier in the game. With the game on the line, BYU offensive coordinator put the game in the hands of his two best players: Puka Nacua and Jaren Hall.
Hall threw a fade to the corner of the endzone to Nacua. With a Boise State cornerback draped all over him (missed PI notwithstanding), Nacua grabbed the ball out of the air with one hand. After a few bobbles, Nacua got control of the ball just before falling out of bounds. The referee stood two or three yards away from play when he ruled the catch a touchdown.
Credit: BYU Photo
Credit: BYU Photo
Nacua's catch was reviewed and the call on the field was upheld: touchdown. BYU took a 31-28 lead and the defense got a stop on the following possession to seal the victory.
Somehow, someway, Nacua was able to get his foot down while falling to the ground. Between the situation, the degree of difficult, and the impact on the game, Puka Nacua's touchdown catch was one of the best catches in BYU history.
Where does Nacua's catch rank in BYU history?
There have been many amazing catches in the history of the BYU football program. Nacua's catch will now be in the same category with the best of all time.
Johnny Harline's one-handed catch over Eric Weddle in 2006 was one of the best catches in BYU history. Nacua's catch was oddly reminiscent of Harline in 2006 (start the video at 1:25).
Speaking of catches against Utah, there was Austin Collie on 4th & 18 and Andrew George's touchdown in overtime in 2009. Those catches were made in more critical situations but lesser degrees of difficulty.
Perhaps no catches were more critical in BYU history than K.O. Kealaluhi's game-winning touchdown catch against Kansas State in 1996 and Kelly Smith's game-winning catch against Michigan in 1984.
And who can forget Mitch Matthew's catch against Nebraska in 2015 on a Hail Mary from Tanner Mangum.
Then the following week, BYU wide receiver Mitchell Juergens had a game-winning catch against Boise State on another Hail Mary from Tanner Mangum.
In terms of degree of difficulty, Nacua's catch ranks behind only Mitch Matthews in 2015 and Johnny Harline in 2006, at least in the opinion of this author. The situation was remarkable as well - it was the kind of situation that kids draw up in the backyard.
BYU's 4-5 record coming into this game, however, takes away from this catch a little bit, at least from a national perspective. It also changes the way it will be viewed in BYU history. It's impossible to stack it against K.O. Kealaluhi's catch in 1996, for example. Regardless, Nacua made a top-10 catch in BYU history tonight and it's one BYU fans should enjoy. Especially after suffering through a winless October.
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