At gut-check time, Y. prevails

ALBUQUERQUE — Bronco Mendenhall's ability to sell his speeches got immensely easier for today's first BYU practice in preparation for Saturday's homecoming game with Colorado State.

Mendenhall has been preaching the importance of taking one play at a time and finishing at the end.

That is exactly what the Cougars (2-3, 1-2) did Saturday in a 27-24 win over New Mexico (3-3, 1-2) in University Stadium, scoring 14 points down the stretch while holding the Lobos scoreless in the final 18 minutes.

In a dramatic , gut-wrenching battle between a pair of old rivals who were searching to end two-game losing streaks, BYU endured; the Lobos stumbled.

Using a blend of the run and pass on offense and adjusting defensively to stop Lobo quarterback Kole McKamey's option runs in crunch time, the Cougars recovered a fumble and executed a pair of long drives to register the fourth-straight win over UNM in Albuquerque dating back to 1997.

A key? Composure.

"I think it's who they are," Mendenhall said. "I'm fortunate to be the coach of this football team. To have young men with this kind of character, we've been through a lot already and they've been resilient. They overcame adversity to the end and (they) kept believing in themselves and their coaches. I am proud of them and their performance."

"I asked the players to take it one play at a time until the game was over, knowing that it wasn't going to be easy," Mendenhall said.

"We knew they would make some plays and that we would make some plays. I just asked them to play four quarters as hard as they could and they did and I'm proud of them."

The BYU win over the Lobos marked the return of senior linebacker Paul Walkenhorst and middle linebacker Cameron Jensen, whom teammates call "The General."

The duo delivered, leading the defense. Jensen had 9 solo tackles and assisted on 4. Walkenhorst had 5 solos and 6 assists. Their leadership seemed to give the Cougar defenders confidence as the game wore on.

UNM threw a different wrinkle at BYU and Mendehall's defense.

The Lobos put McKamey in the shotgun, made star running back Dontrell Moore the lead blocker, brought receiver Travis Brown in motion to the backfield to receive an option pitch from McKamey. Brown gained 59 yards on 6 carries and scored New Mexico's first touchdown. Out of that formation, Brown averaged almost 10 yards a carry.