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What National Analysts are Saying after BYU's Dominant Victory over Boise State

National Analysts talk BYU's win over Boise State, Zach Wilson Heisman consideration, and a lot more.
Casey Lundquist|
What National Analysts are Saying after BYU's Dominant Victory over Boise State
What National Analysts are Saying after BYU's Dominant Victory over Boise State

No. 9 BYU traveled to no. 21 Boise State and walked away with a dominant 51-17 victory over Broncos - it was the first victory over Boise State on the blue turf in program history. Here is a summary of what national analysts are saying about the Cougars after BYU's impressive performance:

Sports Illustrated Top 10

7. BYU (7–0)

Last game: beat Boise State 51–17
Next game: Nov. 21 vs. North Alabama

In what was billed as one of their toughest tests, the Cougars further justified their rankings in our Top 10 and kept alive the faint hope of advancing into the College Football Playoff. QB Zach Wilson shredded the Broncos on the blue turf, piling up 359 yards on just 21 completions.

ESPN's 'Heisman Five'

4. BYU QB Zach Wilson

"Wilson has been every bit as good as the rest of this list, but it is hard to know how his numbers would compare if he was playing in the ACC or SEC. But Boise State is no pushover, and Wilson still averaged 13.3 yards per pass. There is plenty of precedent for a QB outside the Power 5 to make it to New York, but the odds of one winning it are pretty much nil."

ESPN College Football Playoff Picks

BYU was picked by two of ESPN's analysts to go to the College Football Playoff. The Cougars were the only team outside of Ohio State, Alabama, Notre Dame, and Clemson to receive votes. Below are all the picks after week ten:

Andrea Adelson: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Kyle Bonagura: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Bill Connelly: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. BYU
Heather Dinich: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
David M. Hale: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Sam Khan Jr.: 1. Alabama, 2. Notre Dame, 3. Ohio State, 4. Clemson
Chris Low: 1. Alabama, 2. Notre Dame, 3. Ohio State, 4. Clemson
Harry Lyles Jr.: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Ryan McGee: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. BYU
Adam Rittenberg: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Clemson, 4. Notre Dame
Alex Scarborough: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Mark Schlabach: 1. Alabama, 2. Notre Dame, 3. Ohio State, 4. Clemson
Tom VanHaaren: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson
Dave Wilson: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Clemson

ESPN Top 25 Takeaways

"A dominant win against a ranked opponent is exactly what BYU needed to validate its top-10 ranking. The Cougars have looked the part all year, however, their soft schedule has served as a consistent disclaimer when comparing them against the nation's other top teams. That schedule still figures to be a significant hurdle for potential College Football Playoff consideration as BYU will be heavy favorites in their final two games against North Alabama and San Diego State.

For Boise State, considering BYU was playing its eighth game of the year and the Broncos only their third, this game always figured to be a difficult one. And that was before the Broncos were forced to rely on their third-string quarterback. Even though it was a lopsided defeat, Boise State still gets to return to conference play next week undefeated and deserves to be considered the favorite until further notice." -- Bonagura

ESPN College Football Power Rankings

6. BYU Cougars (8-0)

"The Cougars took their biggest step yet toward an unbeaten regular season Friday with a 51-17 demolition of Boise State on the road. BYU is 8-0 for the first time since 2001 and making a more convincing argument each week that it should at least be considered for a College Football Playoff spot, especially if teams in the Power 5 conferences beat up on one another. Quarterback Zach Wilson passed for 359 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, and the Cougars have scored more than 40 points in seven of their eight games this season."

Yahoo! Sports Race for the 4th Seed

BYU (8-0): The Cougars destroyed Boise State on Friday night and have a legitimate claim to being playoff-worthy. But is BYU going to be a victim of its own pandemic-induced schedule? BYU had six games against Power Five opponents on its original schedule. All of those games disappeared when conferences went to conference-only schedules because of COVID-19.

As BYU scrambled to fill out a schedule it couldn’t find very good opponents. Boise was supposed to be its BYU’s biggest test. But the Broncos ended up playing most of the game with its No. 3 and No. 4 QBs.

If BYU finishes the season at 10-0, it should be in line for a New Year’s Six bowl at worst. But the committee has been a stickler for schedule strength in its relatively brief existence. And it’s hard not to see it dinging BYU’s schedule unless it makes a COVID-19 exception. 

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Casey Lundquist
CASEY LUNDQUIST

Casey Lundquist is the publisher and lead editor of Cougs Daily. He has covered BYU athletics for the last four years. During that time, he has published over 2,000 stories that have reached more than three million people.

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