BYU Remains Undefeated With Dominating Win Over Air Force

Two weeks ago it was Luke Staley's rushing attack. Last week it was Brandon Doman and his late-game heroics. And tonight's Cougar hero ... Doug Jolley.

The senior tight end led the No. 13 Cougars to a 63-33 victory over Air Force, pushing BYU's record to a perfect 7-0 mark for the first time since the 1984 National Championship season. With just six games remaining, the Cougars are the first MWC to become eligible for a post-season bowl bid and are assured of their 28th consecutive non-losing season.

Entering the game with only eight catches for 117 yards, Jolley finished with 10 catches, 177 yards and three touchdowns -- all career highs. The 177 yards broke the Mountain West Conference record for receiving yards in a game.

"It was kind of crazy how open I was during the game," Jolley said. "Doman did a great job finding me and the offensive line did a great job protecting (Doman)."

The Cougars didn't take long to seize control of the game. BYU scored on its first possession, an 18-yard touchdown strike to Jolley. On the ensuing kickoff, Aaron Edmonds recovered his own on-side kick and the Cougars drove the ball down the field again and scored on a two-yard Staley rush.

"The surprise on-side kick that they tried after the first touchdown was the thing that really shocked our team tonight and it took us a little while to get over it," Air Force head coach Fisher DeBerry said.

The Cougars dominated the Falcons in the first half, taking a 42-13 lead into the locker room. BYU pushed the lead to 63-13 after three quarters. The Cougars scored 21 points in each of the first three quarters. Air Force put up 20 points in the fourth quarter to make the game seem closer than it really was.

"I'm excited to win, now we have to get ready for San Diego State," BYU head coach Gary Crowton said. "We've got six games left and a lot can happen."

Last week's hero was not to be forgotten. The Domanator followed up the dramatic come-from-behind win at New Mexico with another solid performance, earning himself an early exit from the game. He finished the game 20-32 for a season-high 338 yards and four touchdowns before leaving the game after only two offensive possessions in the second half.

Staley rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns and also left the game at the same time as Doman, finishing with the night with 167 all-purpose yards. Staley's two touchdowns moved him into sole possession of second place on the career touchdown's list at BYU with 34. The junior back needs just seven TDs to eclipse the BYU career touchdown record.

"Luke Staley is an outstanding back," DeBerry said. "He has extremely good acceleration, which I anticipated coming into the game."

The Cougars go on the road to face a tough test at San Diego State next Saturday. Watching previously undefeated teams like Oregon and Fresno State lose this weekend only gave Crowton further reason to never let the team take a break.

"We're not going to take anyone lightly," Crowton said. "We're going to do the best we can week in and week out."

THE STREAK CONTINUES

With 11:12 remaining in the first quarter, Doug Jolley caught a touchdown pass from Brandon Doman. The touchdown extended BYU's NCAA record to 331 games without being shutout.

LUKE STALEY NOTES

ò With two touchdowns in the game, Staley has 34 touchdowns in his career and is in sole possession of second place on the all-time BYU touchdowns' list. He only needs six more to tie him with Jamal Willis for first on the list.

ò 14 touchdowns on the season puts him within two of the season record of 16 held by Waymon Hamilton in the 1981 season.

ò Left the game after two drives in the second half.

ò With 134 yards on 14 attempts, he had his fifth career 100-yard rushing performance, third of the season.

THE DOMANATOR

ò 20-32, 338 yards, four touchdowns, one rushing touchdown.

ò Four touchdown passes, tied with the Utah State game for most in one game this season.

ò No interceptions in the game once again.

ò The four touchdown passes marked the fifth time this season Doman has thrown for at least 5 touchdown passes.

ò 338 yards highest total of the season.

ò Left the game after two drives in the second half.

RED ZONE

The Cougars continued their exceptional play in the Red Zone. They capitalized on every possession inside the 20-yard line, finishing the game 9-9 with all nine possessions producing touchdowns. On the season, BYU now has scored 37-39 times in the Red Zone.

THREE'S A CHARM

The Cougars excelled on third down during the contest with Air Force. At the half, BYU was 5-6 on third down and only punted once. BYU failed to convert on only four chances on third down throughout the game.

FOR HE'S A JOLLEY GOOD FELLOW

Doug Jolley had a career day. He finished the game with 10 receptions, 177 yards, 3 touchdowns and a season-long 38-yard grab. In the first drive, he caught a 38-yard pass for a first down his longest catch of the season. Later in the drive, he caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Doman. He also made two grabs on the Cougars' second drive, owning the first quarter. Jolley already had over 100 yards receiving in the second quarter. He had another touchdown in the first half and ended up with seven receptions and 142 yards by the half. He got his third touchdown grab of the game when Doman connected for and 18-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Coming into the game, Jolley had eight catches and 117 yards receiving. The 177 yards receiving broke the Mountain West Conference record for receiving yards in a game. The previous record was held by Michael Johnson of UNLV.

TAKING A PAGE OUT OF THE AGGIES' PLAYBOOK

Aaron Edmonds recovered his own onsides kick in the first half. The kick looked just like the Utah State game when the Aggies caught the Cougars off guard to begin the second half. The recovery gave the Cougars the ball immediately after their first touchdown.

HIGH-SCORING COUGARS

The 21-point first quarter outburst matches the Cougars' highest total in the first quarter this season. BYU also scored 21 points in the first quarter against Tulane. This game the Cougars took a 14-point lead into the second quarter, while in the Tulane game the Cougars were tied with the Green Wave. The Cougars followed up the first with another 21 points in the second quarter. In that game, BYU also scored 28 points in the second quarter. Only the Tulane game had more points for the Cougars, when BYU had 49 at the half. Yet again, the Cougars had 21 points in the third quarter. The 63 points by the fourth quarter matched BYU's output in three quarters in the Tulane game.

DIVERSE SCORING

The first four scores for BYU were by different players. Jolley got the first TD, Staley the second, Doman the third and Mahe the fourth.

KELLEY INTERCEPTION

Isaac Kelley had his first interception of his career at 3:23 of the third quarter.

PETERSON TOUCHDOWN

Paul Peterson had his first career touchdown at the 2:09 mark of the third quarter.

63 POINTS

With 63 points, the Cougars scored the most points ever by one team in a Mountain West Conference game. It also marks the second-highest total of the season. BYU scored 70 in the Tulane game to mark the season high. The Cougars' 63 points is the most points ever allowed by the Air Force.

HOME SWEET HOME

The Cougars have scored more than 50 points in every game they have played at LaVell Edwards Stadium this season. They scored 70 against Tulane, 52 against Nevada, 54 against Utah State and 63 against Air Force.

IT'S A GIRL

Congratulations to defensive lineman Brandon Stephens and his wife Sallie. Sallie gave birth to Maggie Michelle last night at 10:30 p.m. Maggie weighed four lbs. and eight ounces and measured in at 18 inches long.

Box Score (FINAL)
  Score by Quarters     1  2  3  4   Score
  -----------------    -- -- -- --   -----
  Air Force...........  7  6  0 20  - 33       Record: (4-2,2-1)
  Brigham Young....... 21 21 21  0  - 63       Record: (7-0,3-0)
 Scoring Summary:
  1st 11:12 BYU - JOLLEY, Doug 18 yd pass from DOMAN, Brandon (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  5-75 1:41, AFA 0 - BYU 7
      08:52 BYU - STALEY, Luke 2 yd run (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  6-54 2:20, AFA 0 - BYU 14
      06:45 AFA - BOYEA, Keith 36 yd run (WALTERS, Brooks kick),
                  5-82 2:07, AFA 7 - BYU 14
      04:42 BYU - DOMAN, Brandon 7 yd run (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  6-58 2:03, AFA 7 - BYU 21
  2nd 08:45 BYU - MAHE, Reno 14 yd pass from DOMAN, Brandon (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  10-78 3:16, AFA 7 - BYU 28
      05:29 BYU - STALEY, Luke 5 yd run (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  7-78 2:09, AFA 7 - BYU 35
      02:05 AFA - FLEMMING, Ryan 12 yd pass from BOYEA, Keith (WALTERS, B kick failed),
                  10-80 3:24, AFA 13 - BYU 35
      00:56 BYU - JOLLEY, Doug 18 yd pass from DOMAN, Brandon (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  4-69 1:09, AFA 13 - BYU 42
  3rd 10:11 BYU - JOLLEY, Doug 18 yd pass from DOMAN, Brandon (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  6-67 0:46, AFA 13 - BYU 49
      04:56 BYU - RIGELL, Mike 7 yd pass from PETERSON, Charl (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  10-61 3:48, AFA 13 - BYU 56
      02:09 BYU - PETERSON, Paul 2 yd run (PAYNE, Matt kick),
                  3-11 1:14, AFA 13 - BYU 63
  4th 13:45 AFA - HARRIDGE, Chanc 3 yd run (WALTERS, Brooks kick),
                  8-82 3:24, AFA 20 - BYU 63
      02:04 AFA - BROWN, Brandon 5 yd run (WALTERS, Brooks kick failed),
                  9-74 3:44, AFA 26 - BYU 63
      00:41 AFA - BUTLER, Anthony 46 yd run (WALTERS, Brooks kick),
                  1-46 0:11, AFA 33 - BYU 63
                                      AFA      BYU
  FIRST DOWNS...................       21       29
  RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............   52-334   37-203
  PASSING YDS (NET).............      168      408
  Passes Att-Comp-Int...........  22-12-1  43-27-0
  TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS.....   74-502   80-611
  Fumble Returns-Yards..........      0-0      0-0
  Punt Returns-Yards............     2-12      3-5
  Kickoff Returns-Yards.........     3-51     2-53
  Interception Returns-Yards....      0-0     1-14
  Punts (Number-Avg)............   5-46.8   4-40.0
  Fumbles-Lost..................      1-0      1-0
  Penalties-Yards...............     5-37     4-29
  Possession Time...............    31:29    28:31
  Sacks By: Number-Yards........      1-4      1-8
  RUSHING: Air Force-BUTLER, Anthony 8-120; BOYEA, Keith 14-61; HARRIDGE,
  Chanc 10-44; PALMER, Leotis 7-44; LESLIE, Todd 6-30; BURNS, James 3-14;
  BROWN, Brandon 2-10; SCHIEFFER, Jose 1-9; CLARK, Don 1-2. Brigham
  Young-STALEY, Luke 14-134; PETERSON, Paul 7-23; MAHE, Reno 1-13; STEARNS,
  Ned 6-12; DOMAN, Brandon 4-12; PETERSON, Charl 1-6; STEVENS, Chris 2-4;
  MORTENSEN, Todd 2-minus 1.
  PASSING: Air Force-BOYEA, Keith 10-18-0-108; HARRIDGE, Chanc 2-4-1-60.
  Brigham Young-DOMAN, Brandon 20-32-0-338; PETERSON, Charl 7-11-0-70.
  RECEIVING: Air Force-FLEMMING, Ryan 6-98; LABASCO, Brian 3-46; AMEZEGA,
  Ricky 1-20; BURNS, James 1-5; CLARK, Don 1-minus 1. Brigham Young-JOLLEY,
  Doug 10-177; NEAD, Spencer 4-49; MAHE, Reno 3-52; STALEY, Luke 3-33; REID,
  Gabriel 2-33; ORD, Andrew 1-33; HALLADAY, Soren 1-11; PETERSON, Paul 1-9;
  RIGELL, Mike 1-7; KUKAHIKO, Jason 1-4.
  SACKS (UA-A): Air Force-MEINROD, Sam 1-0. Brigham Young-MARQUARDT, Mich 1-0.
  TACKLES (UA-A): Air Force-CRAWLEY, Wes 5-3; HANES, Adam 5-2; RULE, Andy 4-3;
  SCHLEGEL, Antho 6-0; MEINROD, Sam 3-3; BUELOW, Joel 4-1; MAYO, Paul 4-0;
  WRIGHT, Adrian 1-3; MARSH, Mark 1-2; PENDRY, Justin 1-2; ARTHUR, Jamie 1-2;
  GRADDY, Marchel 2-0; JOHNSON, Zach 1-1; HIGHTOWER, Trev 1-1; DUNCAN, Larry
  0-2; HICKS, Jon 1-0; AKINYEMI, Charl 1-0; PROBERT, Dan 1-0; BROWN, Brandon
  1-0; HARRIDGE, Chanc 1-0; COLEMAN, Monty 1-0; MCCRANEY, Matt 0-1. Brigham
  Young-KELLEY, Isaac 5-4; HEANEY, Brandon 6-1; WALKENHORST, Pa 2-5; ENA,
  Justin 4-2; WRIGHT, Bill 4-2; GILFORD, Jernar 4-1; DENNEY, Ryan 3-1;
  BOCKWOLDT, Colb 3-1; ELLIOTT, Kurt 2-2; KEISEL, Brett 3-0; FRANCISCO, Aaro
  1-1; STEPHENS, Brand 1-1; PHILLIPS, Danny 1-0; FARRIS, Alex 1-0; AIONO,
  Aissac 1-0; BURBIDGE, Jon 1-0; LAFITTE, Michae 1-0; MARQUARDT, Mich 1-0;
  ALBA, Micah 1-0; MADARIETA, Levi 1-0; MAUGA, Ammon 1-0; SUMKO, Mike 1-0;
  COWART, Jeff 0-1; POPPINGA, Brady 0-1; MEIBOS, Jared 0-1.
  INTERCEPTIONS: Air Force-None. Brigham Young-KELLEY, Isaac 1-14.
  FUMBLES: Air Force-BLEW, Bryan 1-0. Brigham Young-PETERSON, Paul 1-0.
  Stadium: Edwards Stadium       Attendance: 62382
  Kickoff time: 3:50 pm   End of Game: 7:11      Total elapsed time: 3:21
  Officials: Referee: Rivera, Ken; Umpire: Cory, Al; Linesman: Ratner, Mark;
  Line judge: Hansen, Jeff; Back judge: Battaglia, Crai; Field judge: Novak, Scott;
  Side judge: Wilson, Greg;
  Temperature: 72        Wind: N 2-5  Weather: Clear/Sunny