BOISE, Idaho — THIS DAY IN SPORTS…November 3, 2018, five years ago today:
Another Boise State-BYU game goes to the wire, as Tyson Maeva and Scale Igiehon sack Cougars true freshman quarterback Zach Wilson at the Broncos’ four-yard line on the final play of the game to preserve a 21-16 win. Boise State roared out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead but bogged down after that, needing the high-level red zone effort of its defense and seven sacks of Wilson to hold off BYU. The Broncos improved to 5-0 all-time versus the Cougars on the blue turf, but—in addition to this five-point margin—three of the other games were decided by one point.
There was drama in the red zone all night, so it was fitting that the game ended where it did. The Broncos’ performance in the red zone was the difference in the game. BYU made five trips inside the Boise State 20-yard line and came away with just one touchdown and two field goals. The key was the push-back the Cougars got once they made their deepest infiltrations. In the first half, after reaching the Broncos’ seven, five and 13-yard lines, they lost two, 21 and 28 yards. And the final visit was the capper. After BYU converted the fourth down to get to the two, there would be no more forward progress.
There was one extra BYU entry into the Boise State red zone. It didn’t officially count as one, but it doesn’t get any more red zone than the end zone, where Tyler Horton recovered a fumble on what looked like was going to be a Cougars touchdown. It was the defensive play of the night. BYU nearly manufactured a three-play, 75-yard TD drive. The third play was a double-pass from the Boise State 40, with Neil Pau’u going deep to tight end Matt Bushman. After making the catch and barreling toward paydirt, Bushman was stripped by Horton, who scrambled after the bouncing the ball in the end zone.
It had been less than a year that Wilson had decommitted from Boise State and opted for BYU. You could tell that night what the Broncos saw in him—and the type of ability that had the New York Jets drafting him No. 2 overall in 2021 (despite what’s happened since then). Wilson had a knack for keeping plays alive, never more evident than in the fourth quarter, when on a second-and-15 he was just about to be taken down for a 10-yard sack, wriggled free, and ran 23 yards for a first down. Wilson gained 90 yards on the ground but lost 54 on the Broncos’ seven sacks for a net of 36. His passing numbers were solid: 18-of-27 for 252 yards.
If you’re bummed about the 8 p.m. start for the New Mexico game a week from Saturday, you can reminisce now about the good ol’ ESPN days. That Boise State-BYU game started at 8:25 on ESPN2 and ended eight minutes before midnight. It began with 35,421 fans in the stands and finished with maybe 24,000. But it was noted at the time that those who stuck around made enough noise for 35,000 on the final play of the game.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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