BYU football: Offense returns to life in win, but only for a half

On BYU's initial series of the second half, Nelson drove the Cougars again, but he was picked off again, this time at the Spartan 4-yard line. That marked two Nelson turnovers inside SJSU's 4-yard line.

The Spartans marched 96 yards on 12 plays in 5:28 for a touchdown drive that pulled them to within 10 points, 23-13, with 6:09 remaining in the third quarter.

Then the two teams started trading field goals.

BYU had an 11-play drive that went only 28 yards and took 5:32 off the clock, resulting in a 40-yard field goal by Justin Sorensen with 32 seconds left in the quarter.

SJSU added a field goal of its own, a 43-yarder that made the score 26-16 early in the fourth quarter. Sorensen added another field goal, a 45-yarder, with 7:23 left in the game. At that point it was 29-16 for BYU.

On the Spartans' ensuing possession, Faulkner was driving SJSU deep into BYU territory when Cougar safety Travis Uale recorded an interception that essentially sealed the victory.

Email: jeffc@desnews.com