Taysom Hill (4) and the Cougars held off a Houston comeback attempt. (Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports)
PROVO, Utah — A quick start had BYU thinking it was going to blow out a third consecutive opponent. An assortment of mental errors gave Houston new life just before halftime and opened the door to a much closer game.
In the end, No. 25 BYU used a powerful ground game to outlast Houston 33-25 in a sloppy, penalty-filled game Thursday night. BYU quarterback Taysom Hill rushed for 160 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries, and running back Jamaal Williams added 139 yards and two TDs on 28 carries.
As a team, BYU (3-0) totaled 323 rushing yards on 62 carries, an average of 5.2 yards per attempt.
“We started out great,” Williams said. “We just came off the gas a little bit. We weren’t used to getting up so quickly in the first half. Defense always holds up. It’s just our offense. We can’t get off the gas.”
Hill also threw for 200 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions on 21-of-34 passing to help the BYU hang on after Houston (1-2) rallied from a 23-0 deficit. BYU opened a season with three consecutive wins for the first time since 2008.
“I said this all week when I was in Houston, Texas, (Hill) doesn’t get the credit for whatever reason, nationally, that I think he deserves for what he’s done in his career and for what he’s done in the three games they’ve played this season,” Houston coach Tony Levine said.
Houston quarterback John O’Korn proved equally impressive in a losing effort. O’Korn threw for 307 yards and three touchdowns on 30-of-52 passing. The visitors were held to minus-1 yard rushing in the second half, however, and finished with just 10 yards on the ground — the lowest total by a BYU opponent since 2012.
“We were ready for it,” BYU linebacker Zac Stout said. “We knew if you throw that many times and have that many good receivers, eventually you’re going to make a play.”
The teams combined for 848 yards of total offense.
For a while, it appeared BYU would overwhelm Houston as it did to Connecticut and Texas. BYU jumped out to a big lead early in the second quarter behind strong play on both sides of the ball.
Stout made a big defensive play to open up the scoring. Coming off a blitz, Stout charged toward Houston running back Ryan Jackson in the end zone and dropped him behind the goal line for a safety.
BYU went up 9-0 on its ensuing possession when wide receiver Jordan Leslie evaded defenders on a 35-yard catch and run to set up 12-yard sprint into the end zone by Williams.
Hill scored his first touchdown on a 5-yard scamper later in the quarter to cap a drive on which the junior ripped off a 14-yard run and completed three consecutive passes to push BYU deep into Houston territory.
Houston’s hole grew bigger in the second quarter after Hill hit wide receiver Mitch Mathews for a 5-yard touchdown, putting BYU ahead 23-0.
Kicker Kyle Bullard finally put Houston on the board on a 29-yard field goal with 3:12 left before halftime.
Then two costly turnovers changed the complexion of the game.
Houston defensive tackle Joey Mbu snagged a deflected pass at the BYU 29 to set up a 7-yard touchdown pass from O’Korn to wide receiver Deontay Greenberry with 1:17 remaining in the half. Bullard missed the extra-point attempt.
Houston then made it a one possession game going into the locker room. Defensive back Adrian McDonald stripped the ball from Mitchell Juergens after the wide receiver caught a 38-yard pass from Hill.
With three seconds left, Houston wide receiver Daniel Spencer caught a 45-yard, Hail Mary pass at the goal line, bringing the visitors within 23-15 going into halftime. Again, Bullard missed the point-after try.
“Our guys didn’t panic,” Levine said. “No one in our program did. One of the biggest takeaways was how well we took care of the ball and our defense creating turnovers.”
BYU stiffened defensively in the third quarter. BYU allowed just 27 yards of total offense in the quarter, and it helped settle the home team.
The BYU offense responded with a 26-yard field goal from kicker Trevor Samson and a 2-yard TD run from Williams to extend the lead to 33-15 early in the fourth quarter.
Houston made one last push in the final quarter. O’Korn found Greenberry for a 15-yard pass to cut it to 33-22. Bullard added a 36-yard field goal to make it 33-25 with 7:18 left.
BYU forced a punt on Houston’s last possession with 2:24 remaining and ran out the clock behind Hill and Williams.
“I’m glad that we continued to battle, continued to fight,” BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “We had some offensive momentum in the first half, and we moved it when we needed to. Overall, it was a hard-fought win. There’s plenty to work on, but a lot of things that I was pleased with.”
NOTES: BYU traditionally struggles in the third game of the season under coach Bronco Mendenhall. The team posted a 1-8 record in those third games before Thursday’s win. … BYU held an opponent to fewer than 100 yards rushing for the third consecutive week. … Deontay Greenberry became the 11th Houston receiver to reach 2,000 career receiving yards. … In memory of 9/11, both BYU and Houston incorporated the American flag into the team logos on their helmets.
