BYU's chance to counter floundered with two short runs and a pair of incomplete passes. The final throw by quarterback John Beck fluttered to the ground with receiver Michael Reed making an unsuccessful dive to catch it in the end zone.

"To feel confident and have the momentum shift in your favor and not win is a huge sway of emotions," Beck said after completing 27-of-47 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns. "I believed all the way we were going to win because I believe in our guys."

Trailing by 21 points in the second half, BYU mounted a rally that eventually tied the score by the end of regulation. The Cougars clawed back into contention with a pair of touchdown runs by Curtis Brown. His first trip across the goal line came from five yards out after bouncing off a couple of Ute defenders. The second was a 64-yard run just over one minute later.

With its lead cut to 24-17, Utah fired back with an improbable drive downfield. The Utes fended off five penalties before Ratliff teamed with Brian Hernandez on a 45-yard touchdown pass.

The score, along with a 44-yard field goal by Beardall early in the final quarter, proved critical.

BYU gnawed at the deficit—producing a 13-yard TD pass from Beck to Todd Watkins before Beardall's kick and two more scores after it. A 28-yard scoring strike from Beck to Matt Allen preceded a game-tying 27-yard field goal by McLaughlin down the stretch.

"We did not execute with precision or composure in the first half," Mendenhall said. "The second half was a different rhythm and it showed."

The contrast, thereof, added drama to a game filled with intriguing story lines.

Ratliff made an immediate impact in his first start for the Utes. The junior college transfer's first two drives ended with touchdown passes. He wound up throwing four by game's end.

"I can't say enough about that kid. What a gutsy performance," Whittingham said. "He ran the offense like he'd been doing it all year long."

Ratliff completed 17-of-32 passes for 240 yards. He also rushed for 112 yards and a score.

Most importantly, the Utes had no turnovers.

"Winning the turnover margin was huge," said Whittingham.

BYU had the game's lone miscue late in the second quarter when Evans stripped the ball away from running back Fahu Tahi. Evans scooped it up, ran 30 yards and set up a score for the Utes—a four-yard touchdown run by Ratliff.

The play capped all scoring in the first half as Utah held a 24-3 advantage.

The Utes got off to a quick start. They took a 14-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the game after Ratliff connected on scoring strikes of three yards to Brian Hernandez and 15 yards to Chad Jacobsen.

BYU's lone score in the half came on a 31-yard field goal by Jared McLaughlin with 19 seconds to go in the first quarter. Midway through the second, Beardall matched it with a 35-yard kick to set a new school-record with his 12th consecutive make.

The 17-3 score remained intact until the touchdown following the turnover.

"We didn't have much to help prepare for Ratliff and had to make adjustments in the beginning once we found he was a scrambling threat," Mendenhall said.

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E-mail: dirk@desnews.com