Cougars' High-Scoring Offense To Battle California

BYU (2-0) will hit the road for the first time this season, traveling to Berkeley, Calif., on Saturday, Sept. 8, to take on Pac-10 foe Cal (0-1). Game time is set for 2:30 p.m. (PDT) at Cal's Memorial Stadium (75,0128). Saturday's football game will be broadcast on KSL-TV Channel 5 at 4 p.m. MDT. The game, originally slated to be an 11 p.m. tape-delay on KSL-TV, has been cleared to now be tape-delayed only 30 minutes after its scheduled 3:30 p.m. kick off. Saturday's game will mark the first of three straight road games for the Cougars.

The BYU-Cal Series

Saturday's game will mark only the second meeting between the two schools. The Cougars own a 1-0 record in the series, dating back to Oct. 9, 1999. BYU won the only other meeting, holding off the Golden Bears for a 38-28 victory in Provo. The Cougars and Golden Bears have never met in Berkeley. Saturday's game will also mark the second meeting between Cal head coach Tom Holmoe-a BYU alum- and BYU's Gary Crowton. As the head coach at Louisiana Tech in 1997, Crowton led the Bulldogs to a 41-34 win (in Shreveport, La.) over the Golden Bears in Holmoe's first season at Cal.Crowton went on to a 9-2 season, while Holmoe and the Bears posted a 3-8 mark. The game in Berkeley, Calif., will mark the Cougars' first trip to northern California since playing at San Jose State in 1968-a 25-21 loss to the Spartans. BYU has an all-time 24-48 record against current members of the Pac-10. Of the eight Pac-10 teams BYU has played throughout its history, only Cal (0-1) and Washington State (1-2) have losing records against the Cougars.

Broadcast Plans

Saturday's BYU vs. California football game will be broadcast on KSL-TV Channel 5 at 4 p.m. MDT. The game, originally slated to be an 11 p.m. tape-delay on KSL-TV, has been cleared to now be tape-delayed only 30 minutes after its scheduled 3:30 p.m. kick off. Subscribers to ESPN's GamePlan may also view the game on a pay-per-view basis. The game is not scheduled to be broadcast in the norther California area. KSL's Tom Kirkland will call the action, while former BYU player Blaine Fowler will lend expert analysis. Satellite coordinates for the game are: KU-Band, Telstar 5, Transponder K-24.

Scouting California

Looking to put an end to a streak of four straight non-winning seasons at Cal, head coach Tom Holmoe and the Golden Bears ran into a road block in their season-opener (against Illinois.) The Illini racked up 38 points in the first half, enroute to a 44-17 victory in Berkeley. While the score was a little lop-sided, Cal managed to rack up more first downs (22) and more rushing yards (167) than Illinois, however three sacks, five turnovers and seven penalties proved to be the difference in the 27-point loss. Junior quarterback Kyle Boller completed 17-of-29 attempts for 184 yards for Cal, while running back Joe Igber led the Bears with 116 yards on 21 carries and two rushing touchdowns.

A Look Back . . . BYU 38, Cal 28

With the Cal offense gaining momentum and looking to take the lead, Heshi Robertson's fourth-quarter interception reversed the momentum, sealing a 38-28 Homecoming victory for the Cougars. After an early 21-0 lead over Cal, the Cougars gave up two TDs, in the second half. Senior QB Kevin Feterik logged 414 yards passing on 25-of-41 attempts to lead a strong second-half passing attack, while Cal's Joe Igber had the first 100-yard game of his career with 116 yards on 18 carries, including an 11-yard touchdown run at the end of the first half.

Last Week . . . Cougars Pounce On Wolf Pack

It wasn't 70, but the Cougars certainly didn't have any trouble putting up the points against Nevada on Saturday. BYU's high-octane offense was too much for Nevada to handle, defeating the Wolf Pack 52-7. With 6:02 left in the third quarter, Charlie Peterson kept the ball and ran for a touchdown, capping BYU's scoring at 52. BYU emptied its bench after Peterson's score and only crossed the fifty-yard line once the remainder of the game. The 122 points in the first two games by the Cougars is the most points ever for the first two games of a season. In 1977, BYU had 104 points in the first two games, but the Cougars had already topped that mark by halftime. Nevada came into the game planning for an air attack against the Cougars, but BYU was prepared defensively. While Nevada's offense found little success moving the ball against BYU's defense, the Cougars had their way offensively. Peterson, Brandon Doman and Todd Mortensen all took snaps for the Cougars. Doman left the game for a series in the first half because of a minor shoulder injury, but returned for the rest of the half. He turned over the quarterback duties to Peterson and Mortensen for the second half. Luke Staley and Brian McDonald-Ashford each had two rushing touchdowns, with Staley rushing for team-leading 124 yards and McDonald-Ashford gaining 35 on the ground. Doman managed to pass for 222 yards and one touchdown on 11-21 passing in just under two quarters of play. Peterson was 11-13 with a touchdown and passed for 149 yards, including a season-long 53-yard bomb to Rod Wilkerson. 12 different receivers caught passes for the Cougars and BYU did not throw an interception for the second straight game. Nevada managed only 127 yards passing and 160 yards rushing, with most of the rushing yardage coming from Chance Kretschmer in the fourth quarter with the game well out of reach. Through three quarters the BYU defense held the Wolf Pack scoreless, and allowed just 109 yards passing and just 38 yards rushing (147 total yards), while the offense had racked up 52 points and 548 yards of total offense.

Ultimate Exposure

Dating back to 1980, the Cougars have appeared on national television an average three times per season, including last year's single-season record six national television appearances. Since its first national television appearance in 1974, BYU has posted a 43-28-2 (.603) while playing on national television, including a 22-15 mark on ABC and a 27-16-2 mark on ESPN. Current assistant coach Robbie Bosco led the Cougars to a 20-14 win over Pittsburgh in the first live ESPN College Football broadcast in 1984.

Fast Times at BYU

The Cougars scored a total of 10 touchdowns vs. Tulane, marking the first time since the 1989 season BYU has put 70 points on the board. Six of the Cougars' 10 scoring drives were completed in less than 2:00. BYU closed out the second quarter with four straight scoring drives of :55, :47, :46 and :33. A week later, the Cougars posted seven touchdowns, with five being scored on drives of 1:58 or less. With a touchdown at the 11:59 mark of the first quarter, BYU scored 13 seconds faster than the Tulane game.

THE STREAK IS STILL ALIVE ... 326 Games And Counting

With its 52-7 win over Nevada on Saturday, BYU extended its NCAA record streak to 326 games without being shutout. BYU was last shutout during the 1975 season (Sept. 27, 1975 vs. Arizona State). To put the streak in perspective, there is only one current player on the BYU roster who was alive at that time. Aaron McCubbins was just two days old, born Sept. 25, 1975.

Natural Born Winners

After a magical fourth-quarter, come-from behind victory over Utah, 34-27, to end the 2000 season, BYU posted a 6-6 record, marking the 27th straight season without a losing record for the Cougars. BYU has not had a losing season since posting a 5-6 mark in 1973-former head coach LaVell Edward's second season as head coach. The Cougars' streak of 27 straight seasons ranks 11th all-time at the NCAA Division I-A level and is currently the third longest non-losing streak in the nation. (Nebraska leads with an impressive 39 straight seasons without a losing record.)

Off To A Great Start

With the Cougars' 52-7 win over Nevada, head coach Gary Crowton became the first BYU coach to win the first two games of his career at BYU since G. Ott Romney won his first two games in 1928. Romney went on to post a 3-3-1 record in his first season. After winning the first game of his career, defeating Kansas, 32-9, former head coach LaVell Edwards lost to Utah State in his second game, 42-19. With a 35-point victory over Tulane to kickoff the Gary Crowton era, the Cougars are 6-7 in the opening game of a coach's tenure at BYU. Gary Crowton is the 13th head coach of the BYU football program. (Eddie Kimball served twice as the head coach, including a stint from 1936-1941 and again from 1946-1948.)

LaVell Edwards Stadium

On November 18, 2001, Cougar Stadium was forever changed, honoring the man who built BYU's football tradition from the ground up. LDS Church President, Gordon B. Hinckley announced the historic name change prior to Edwards' final home game (vs. New Mexico). Now known as LaVell Edwards Stadium; Home of the BYU Cougars, the stadium has been home to more than 110 games since it was expanded to 65,000 seats in 1982. BYU has produced a 92-22 record in the Stadium since the 1982 season, including a 37-13 victory over New Mexico in Edwards' final game in the stadium. Fittingly, Edwards retired with a perfect record (1-0) in LaVell Edwards Stadium. Since 1972, BYU has posted an impressive 134-22 (.859) record in Provo. The Cougars have won four straight in Provo, dating back to 2000.

The Crowton File

Gary Crowton, a native of Orem, Utah, takes over a BYU program that has been under the direction of college football's sixth all-time winningest coach, LaVell Edwards. Edwards took over the program in 1972, coaching the Cougars to a 257-101-3 (.716) record. Crowton, 44, comes to BYU with a long and proven list of coaching accomplishments. Prior to serving the past two seasons as the offensive coordinator with the NFL's Chicago Bears, where his offense ranked third in the NFL in passing yardage during the 1999 season, Crowton was head coach at Louisiana Tech from 1996-1998. There he guided the Bulldogs to a 21-13 (.618) record over three seasons, including a 9-2 mark in 1997. Competing as an independent for three straight years, Louisiana Tech recorded wins over the likes of Mississippi State, Cal and Alabama. Using its Crowton-designed, high-powered offense, the program also recorded impressive wins by scoring 50-or-more points against eight different opponents, including games of 60-or-more points in five different games. Crowton's offense ranked third in the nation, both in passing and total offense, while the Bulldogs racked up 12,746 yards passing in three years, an average of 4,249 yards per season. The prolific Tech offense also produced 115 touchdown receptions, averaging 38.3 TDs per season. Under Crowton, Louisiana Tech engineered 22 different 300-yard passing games, including a school-record 10, 300-yard outings during the 1998 season. In 1998, Crowton's final season at Louisiana Tech, the Bulldogs combined for a school-record 4,943 yards passing. Crowton's coaching career actually began in 1982 as a student assistant under Edwards at BYU. While at BYU he worked with current Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren and future NFL Hall of Famer, Steve Young. From BYU, Crowton moved on to Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, where he coached from 1983-86. While at Snow College, Crowton moved from defensive backs coach to offensive coordinator. Under his offensive leadership, the Badgers won the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship in 1985. From Snow College, Crowton moved to Western Illinois for one season, before taking over as the offensive coordinator at New Hampshire. In 1991, Crowton was hired as the quarterbacks coach at Boston College under head coach Tom Coughlin. There he helped develop quarterback Glenn Foley as a candidate for the Heisman Trophy. After three successful seasons with the Eagles, Crowton was hired as the co-offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech, where his offense led the Yellow Jackets to a No. 21 national ranking in his first and only season in Atlanta. In 1995, Crowton was hired as the offensive coordinator at Louisiana Tech, where he would become the head coach the following season. Crowton, who is the first-ever head football coach at BYU to serve an LDS Church mission, is married to the former Maren Peterson of Bountiful, Utah. The couple was married on August 3, 1985. The Crowtons have six children.

In The Trenches

The experienced BYU offensive line, which includes three seniors and two juniors-all of which started last season, weighs in at a beefy 1,479 pounds, averaging 295.8 pounds per man. The O-line will be squaring off against a Cal defensive line (two juniors, one sophomore and one freshman) that tips the scales at an average 272.5 pounds per man. On defense, the Cougars' line (two seniors, a junior and a sophomore) weighs in at 279.5 pounds per man, while the Cal offensive line (two seniors, a junior and two sophomores) average 297 pounds per man. Four of the Cougars' five starting offensive lineman received All-Conference honors last season, including Aaron McCubbins, Dustin Rykert, Jason Scukanec and Ben Archibald. The BYU offensive line has allowed just one sack on the season, while Cal has given up three sacks. The BYU defense has produced six sacks, while the Cal defense has yet to produce a single sack.

Brandon "Doman"ation - The "Doman"ator

In only his fourth career start, senior quarterback Brandon Doman became the first BYU signal caller since John Walsh in 1993 to win his first four games as a starter. Doman led BYU to back-to-back wins to close out the 2000 season and has guided the Cougars to a pair of wins to open the 2001 season. In this year's season-opener, Doman dominated Tulane with 115 yards rushing and 286 yards passing on 25-of-31 attempts, becoming the first BYU signal caller to tally such numbers since Young threw for 351 yards and rushed for 113 yards against Baylor in 1983. All totaled, Doman racked up 401 yards of total offense, marking the second time in his first three starts he has had 400 or more yards in a game. (Against New Mexico last season, Doman had 349 yards passing and 51 yards rushing.) The last quarterback to post 400 yards of total offense was during the 1999 season when Kevn Feterik posted 421 yards against Washington. The Doman-led offense produced 734 yards of total offense against the Green Wave, marking the first time since 1994 (vs. Air Force) the Cougars amassed more than 600 total yards in a game. Doman connected with Spencer Nead (twice) and Gabriel Reid for three touchdown passes, marking the first three-TD performance of his career. Against the Green Wave, Doman completed 25 passes in 31 attempts (.810), including a stretch of eight straight completions to start the game. For his efforts, Doman was named the BCA Classic MVP. Against Nevada, Doman played in only six of the Cougars' eight first-half drives, racking up 222 yards on 11-of-21 attempts, including a 51-yard strike to receiver Mike Rigell. Doman picked up his fourth touchdown completion of the season with 3:55 left in the second quarter, connecting with Reno Mahe for a 20-yard TD. In his first collegiate start at quarterback (Nov. 18, 2000), the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Salt Lake City native, led BYU to a 37-13 win over New Mexico in the Cougars' final home game of the 2000 season. Now 4-0 as a starter, Doman earned the distinction last season as the first BYU QB to rush for over 50 yards and pass for more than 300 yards since Steve Young.

Ramage Set To Retire After 30th Season

Entering his 30th season at BYU, defensive line coach Tom Ramage announced he will retire following the 2001 season. Ramage came to BYU after a successful playing career at Utah State, where he also served as a graduate assistant coach from 1958-60 and the d-line coach from 1962-65. He left USU to serve as the defensive coordinator at Weber State for seven seasons and was named the head coach at Dixie College in 1971. He coached at Dixie for two seasons before coming to BYU under second-year head coach LaVell Edwards. Ramage has coached over 34 players who have gone on to the NFL. The long-time defensive coach celebrated his 66th birthday (Aug. 25) with a 70-35 win over Tulane in the BCA Classic.

Looking Ahead

On Saturday, Sept. 15, the Cougars will travel to SEC country (Starkville, Miss), looking for a little revenge against Mississippi State. The game will mark BYU's first trip to Starkville and only the second meeting between the two schools. In 2000, the Bulldogs handed the Cougars a 44-28 loss in Provo.The game will mark only the fourth game against a current member of the SEC. The Cougars have never defeated a team from the Southeastern Conference (0-3). The game will mark only the second time in BYU history the Cougars have traveled to Mississippi. The Cougars lost at Southern Miss, 42-14, on Nov. 29, 1975. A year later, BYU found redemption after its first-ever loss to a team from Mississippi, defeating Southern Miss, 63-19.

May The Force Be With You

Junior running back Luke Staley recorded his third career 100-yard game against Nevada, posting 124 yards on 10 carries, averaging 12.4 yards per carry. In the Cougars' season-opener against Tulane, Staley racked up 142 yards on just 10 carries to set a BYU single-game record with an average 14.2 yards per carry. The horticulture management major also picked up three TDs, including a career long 65 yard scamper in the first quarter to go along with scoring trots of 29 and two yards. Staley also showed his receiving abilities, recording four receptions for 52 yards. The 6-foot-2, 218-pound speedster also returned the opening kickoff for 18 yards. On the day, Staley tallied 212 all-purpose yards to lead the Cougars to a 70-35 win over Tulane. On the season, Staley is tied with senior running back Brian mcDonald-Ashford with five touchdowns. Staley has produced at least one touchdown in 14 of the 21 games he has played over his career, including multiple-scoring games in eight different outings.

Produced a career-high 167 yards rushing on 28 carries against UNLV in 2000.

Racked up 142 yards and three TDs against Tulane in the 2001 season-opener.

Totaled a team-leading 479 yards rushing as a sophomore.

Totaled 75 yards and three touchdowns against Utah State last season.

Has produced 25 career touchdowns, including 22 rushing TDs.

Earned Freshman All-American honors in 1999, scoring 13 TDs on the season.

Accounted for 806 all-purpose yards as a sophomore.

Set BYU single-game record for most yards per carry, averaging 14.2 (vs. Tulane).

Tallied 124 yards on 10 carries and two TDs against Nevada.

Reno Mahe - The Biggest Little Receiver in the MWC

BYU's Reno Mahe wasted little time making an impression in his return to Edwards Stadium. Mahe, after breaking two bones in his foot in the first week of Fall Camp, led the BYU aerial attack, racking up 96 yards on 12 receptions against Tulane. Mahe's 12 receptions marked the first time a BYU receiver has had 10 (or more) receptions in a single game since the 1997 season. In the first quarter against Tulane, Mahe also racked up a 55-yard run on a reverse to the left sideline. The run marked Mahe's second-longest run as a Cougar. As a freshman (in 1998) Mahe posted a 57-yard run. Mahe's last game as a Cougar was on Dec. 31, 1998 against Tulane in the Liberty Bowl. Against Nevada, Mahe cracked the 100-yard barrier, registering 103 yards on six completions, including a 12-yard touchdown reception from Brandon Doman for his first touchdown as a Cougar since the 1998 season. Last year, Mahe earned Junior College All-America honors after recording 57 receptions for 1,387 yards and 19 touchdowns for Dixie College. As a freshman at BYU (in 1998), Mahe registered 481 yards rushing on 98 carries, scored six rushing touchdowns and one TD reception. Mahe missed the last week of Fall Camp this season after sustaining a pair of hairline fractures in his foot. By the way, his name is pronounced Ma-HEY, as opposed to Ma-HE, which means "underwear."

What a Payne

BYU freshman Matt Payne has successfully picked up where All-MWC performer Owen Pochman left off. In his first collegiate start, the BYU kicker produced 10 PATs to tie the BYU record for most PATs in a single game. (Jason Chaffetz kicked 10 PATs against Utah in 1989.) Payne also tallied four touchbacks and was the benefactor of his own squib quick with just :37 remaining in the first half. His kick ricocheted off a Tulane defender back to the charging Cougar line. Payne was the first to jump on the "live" ball. Against Nevada, Payne had seven PATS to improve his streak to 17 straight PATs. The 6-foot-4, 247-pound native of Ogden, Utah, is a perfect 17-for-17 on point-after attempts on the season and is 1-for-3 in field goal attempts, connecting on a 27-yarder against Nevada.

Paper Or Plastic

After two games, BYU has allowed only one sack on the season-it's lowest total sacks allowed through two games (since sack stats were kept beginning in 1980.) Nevada got to Brandon Doman in the first quarter for the first sack allowed on the season. In the first two game last season, BYU had already given up 10 sacks. During the 2000 season, BYU allowed 36 sacks, averaging 3.0 per game. Last season the BYU offensive line did not allow a sack in back-to-back games, including the Colorado State and New Mexico games. The Cougars allowed just one sack against Wyoming. On the defensive side of the ball, BYU has already sacked its opponent six times, its best total through two games since the 1998 season when the Cougars sacked Alabama and Arizona State six times. In the 2000 season, the Cougars had five sacks after two games. Currently the Cougars rank second in the MWC with an average 3.0 sacks per game. Senior defensive end Ryan Denney ranks third in the league and leads the BYU roster with two sacks, totaling 21 yards on the season.

Pick A Receiver; Any Receiver

Throughout the 2001 season, the Cougars have used 16 different receivers, including a season-high 12 different receivers against Nevada. The BYU receiving corps has accounted for 686 of the Cougars' 1,332 total yards on the season, including a season high 389 yards against Nevada. Reno Mahe ranks second in the Mountain West Conference and leads all BYU receivers with 18 receptions for 199 yards. The Cougars rank sixth in the nation in passing offense, averaging 343.0 yards per game.

Early And Often

BYU has scored 122 points on the season, including 17 touchdowns and just one field goal. The Cougars' 61.0 per-game average leads the nation in scoring offense and is the school's all-time . BYU scored a season-high 10 touchdowns in its season-opener against Tulane and followed that performance with a seven touchdowns against Nevada. The Cougars are averaging one touchdown every 3.5 minutes of play-that's an average of over one point per minute. The Cougars' 61.0 per-game scoring average is the highest scoring output over the first two games of any season in BYU football history. The previous pair of highest-scoring games to open a season occurred in 1977, when the Cougars produced 104 points (39-0 vs. Kansas State and 65-6 vs Utah State).

Tight End Presence

It didn't take long for opponents to get a good look at one of BYU's most potent offensive threats. By halftime (vs. Tulane) BYU's tight ends had accounted for three of the Cougars' six touchdowns, including a pair of touchdown completions to junior Spencer Nead and another to Gabriel Reid. Both tight ends were credited with their first touchdowns as a Cougar. Nead just happened to be in the right place at the right time on his second touchdown reception of the day, snagging a ball that had bounced off Reno Mahe and a Tulane player just seconds earlier. After making the grab, Nead headed for the endzone for a 27-yard touchdown reception. In all, BYU tight ends recorded four receptions (three for touchdowns) for a combined 62 yards on the day. Against Nevada, the Cougars used two different tight ends, including Doug Jolley, who had two receptions for 35 yards and freshman Aissac Aiono, who recorded his first career reception, good for 23 yards. All totaled, BYU tight ends have recorded seven receptions for 120 yards and three touchdowns.

Extra Points

BYU's 35-point win over Tulane marked the largest margin of victory for the Cougars since defeating Utah State, 52-0, to open the 1986 season.

BYU's grand total of 437 yards rushing against Tulane was just 28 yards short of the Cougars' all-time team rushing record of 465 yards (vs. Montana; 1958).

BYU's 49 points in the first half (against Tulane) tied a LaVell Edwards Stadium record for the most points scored in a half, set in the first half against Utah in 1989.

The Cougars' victory over Tulane marked only the fifth time in BYU football history the Cougars have scored 70 or more points in a single game. The all-time single-game scoring record stands at 83 points, tallied against UTEP during the 1980 season.

Against Tulane, the Cougars did not face a fourth down situation until the 10:05 mark in the third quarter. The offense ended up with just four fourth-down situations for the entire game, resulting in one field goal attempt, two punts and a fourth down conversion.

With 734 yards of total offense against Tulane, it marked the first time BYU had more than 600 yards of total offense since 1994's game against Air Force. The Cougars came up short of their total offense record set in 1983 against New Mexico, where the Cougars piled up 777 yards of total offense. The Cougars also fell just short of the single-game rushing record with 437 yards. The record stands at 465 (vs. Montana) in 1958.

The Cougars had five players with over 100 all-purpose yards against Tulane, including Brandon Doman, Luke Staley, Reno Mahe, Brian McDonald and Mike Rigell.

Luke Staley, Brian McDonald and Brandon Doman became the first rushing trio since 1986 to each produce 100 yards rushing in a single game. BYU players Heimuli, Parker and Hansen each ran for 100 yards in the 1986 contest vs. Utah.

The Cougars broke eight Mountain West Conference single-game team and two individual records (vs. Tulane), including total offense, total points, rushing TDs, passing completion percentage, combined points in a quarter, combined points in a half, combined total points, most points in a half, most completions (Mahe, 12) and most PATs (Payne, 10).

On the year, senior punter Aaron Edmonds is averaging 41.4 yards per punt and is 4-for-5 inside the 20. Edmonds did not punt until the :27 mark in the third quarter of the Tulane game, nailing a 50-yarder and pinning the Green Wave back at their six-yard line. His second punt landed at the 14-yard line.

The BYU defense held Nevada scoreless through the first three quarters of Saturday's game. In fact, the defense did not allow the Wolf Pack to pass the BYU 49-yard line until the 9:40 mark in the fourth quarter.