Reader comments
BYU football: Big block for Cougars

456 comments   |   Read story

BleedCougarBlue | 11:36 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
Ah....the old "we wuz robbed" whine. Yeah, we're getting it from the Huskies and Utes.

I agree with the predominant sentiment around the country; there's no way that UW's QB should have been called for the unsportsmanlike penalty. It might be a rule to throw the flag for celebrating but it sure is a stupid rule. In my mind, "excessive celebrating/unsportsmanlike behavior" is what you see after that dweeb Owens scores for the Dallas Cowboys. Now THAT is uncool. But what Locker did? Give me a break.

HOWEVER!!!.....even after UW's last touchdown, BYU was still up by one. And how hard is a PAT from 15 extra yards out? That's not exactly in "iffy" range for any college kicker. As soon as we blocked the PAT I just KNEW that Cougar haters around the world would be saying that the refs gave us the game.

To that I say, get a clue....

The BLOCKED PAT gave sealed the win, not the flag at the end.
Worried? | 11:39 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
Anyone a tad bit worried that our DBs got beat a couple of times today?

Somewhere in the 4th quarter one of UW's WRs got about 3-4 yards behind one of our DBs and the Huskies QB overthrew his WR.

We got lucky there....

BYU DBs, don't hang your heads, guys!

Keep swinging!
Greg | 11:41 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
I am a Ute fan (Crimson Club) and I don't like the Cougars. However, good teams find a way to win, even when not playing their best. Great players make plays and there is no question Jan Jorgensen is a great player and he made a great play. Everyone forgets how important special teams are, but BYU beat UCLA with a blocked kick and now beat Washington the same way. Isn't all this fun? Thank goodness the season is here! All of this just makes our future victory over BYU that much more impressive.
Comments continue below
MWC Refs | 11:39 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
We will get even with those cheating Pac 10 refs next week!! We will call the game "our way"!
top 20 and others | 11:41 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
WV lost, Ohio State looked bad, Wake won on a late field goal, South FL barely won in OT, WI was down 2 TDs early, and AL was not impressive.

ND almost lost to SDSU. TX was not doing that well with UTEP.

I even heard one commentator say he thought the Mountain West was a better conf than the Big East.

We will see how OK does in WA next week.

The wins by BYU, UT and a respectable showing by SDSU are starting to get some recognition.
DAWG FAN | 11:47 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
UW LOOKED PRETTY DARN GOOD AGAINST A TEAM WHO THINKS THEY ARE ELETE. BEWARE: "PRIDE GOETH BEFORE THE FALL." SOME DAYS YOU WILL WIN, SOME DAYS YOU WILL LOSE. ENJOY THE SPORT AND KNOCK OFF THE CONTENTION.
Richlander | 11:47 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
From the comments, it is hard to tell that most of you watched the same game I did. I was at the game, and here is what I saw: (1) The Cougar offense was not flashy but was extremely efficient, 12 of 14 on third down conversions, notwithstanding Collie's uncharacteristic drops and Unga's fumble at the goal line. Hall, Unga, and Pitta were outstanding.

Between the sobs on the UW post-game broadcast, the commentators admitted that UW got the best of the calls on the day as a whole.

Locker is a multi-talented athlete that put huge pressure on the BYU defense. On a more experienced team, he would be a national star. But he missed some open receivers, and some receivers dropped balls. There was no taunting intended when he threw the ball at the end--no big wind-up and heave into the stands.

BYU's defense was mostly good but gave up a couple of big plays and would have been burned more if UW's receivers could catch. They are still better than lots of BYU defenses of old.

Finally, if you had a 35-yard field goal to force overtime, you'd probably think your chances were 75%. Kick blocked.
re"re"everybody | 11:49 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
"listen to what Lou Holtz said about Locker on ESPN, he is dead on, the rule itself needs to be changed. BYU should not feel awesome about this win and should not move up."

Right...

Until Lou Holtz gets on the rules committee, it doesn't matter what Lou Holtz says.

The rule needs to be changed, I also think that field goals should count zero points, therefore Utah should have lost the game against Michigan last week, because they kicked too many fieldgoals.

Holtz is right in that the rule needs to be changed, since it isn't, BYU gets the WIN.

Blocking a kick to win it SHOULD make them feel AWESOME, because they won within the rules. No one who has seen it says the call is wrong, just the rule.

So stop whining, change the rule.

Anyone who wishes to tarnish a win in a hard fought battle because someone broke a rule, and says the rule is stupid, therefore the win is tanished, is an idiot (Lou Holtz can be a sometime idiot).

Scoreboard read 28-27 at 00:00, end of discussion for those who can play within the rules.
Good Call Bad Luck | 11:50 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
Locker through the ball up over his shoulder so high that they were done celebrating by the time the ball came back down. Refs as stated in their statement made the right call as required by the rules. Refs are required to make that call whether it is the first play or the last play of the game. There have been numerous excessive celebration calls for less over the years. Besides, BYU blocked the kick.
Weak | 11:50 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
BYU can't be blamed for the refs giving them a gift at the end of that one, but they can be blamed for the weak defense they've shown up with for 2 weeks in a row. The offense of BYU will need to put up like 42 on UCLA to give their weak defense a shot at not losing the game for them. East Carolina is by far the best non-bcs team, they would knock the crap out of BYU or UTAH right now.
Haka | 11:54 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
I missed the Haka, my favorite part of the game, so I turned the game off.

Who won?

BYU???

Great, I like them.
cougar hunter | 11:53 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008

BYU struggles to beat the worst team in the PAC 10 and believe they are BCS worthy? Get real. BYU went almost six years without winning a non-conference game on the road; if BYU played in a real conference with a tough schedule they would be mediocre at best. It would be interesting to watch BYU play LSU, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Georgia...any Cougar fan who believes BYU could compete in a conference like the SEC has been in Provo too long.
SoCal Andy | 11:54 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
Homers crack me up. It was a bad call. The extra point was blocked, but anyone who knows anything about the technical aspects of football knows that the approach to a 19 yd extra point is different from a 35 yd field goal.

It's all about trajectory. From a longer distance the kicker needs a lower trajectory to get the distance.

Congrats to the Cougs for blocking the kick, but the extra 15 yards was most likely the difference.

PS
In any event I think BYU would have won in OT. UW had no answer for Pitta. Great job Denny.
Texan | 11:56 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
The Ball was THROWN in the AIR and not over his shoulder behind his BACK. The replays during the game made it look as though it was behind his back and I thought it was a horrible call. Watching a replay more closely on the game recap...I saw the QB make his throwing motion and actually flipped the ball up as he followed through with his hand over his shoulder pad. About FOUR SECONDS later you can see the ball drop to the ground.
Faith has little to do with it | 11:58 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
Bergstro Right on with your comments. I think it's safe to say reguardless of our recordeven if we do go undefeated that a BCS bowel is way out of reach. We HAD to make a statement in these first two games and we flat out didn't. I mean let's be honest if the almighty really was into sports we would never loose. Let's face it I wish Bronco would spend a few more hours with the team reviewing the play book or practice then another fireside! I mean my tithing isn't paying for all those football scholarships for that team so they can sit in a fireside. Clue in BYU. I pay, I expect to win.
Quit | 12:02 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
BYU needs to quit scheduling PAC 10 Teams. BYU is a truly international University. All of the emphasis on the PAC 10 makes them regional at best and the games rarely make national TV. Besides BYU will have PAC 10 refs in Provo next week (bad idea).

Schedule a Big 12, Big 10 or SEC team and you may get respect. Except for USC the PAC 10 is not respected in the rest of the country.
hmmmmm | 11:59 p.m. Sept. 6, 2008
247 comments and counting for the BYU game....
16 for the article about the Utes unimpressive home win against a UNLV team that would struggle against the likes of Northern Iowa.
Hero of Canton | 12:03 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
BYU got lucky. They didn't cover the spread so this should be as good as a loss to those who pontificate with polls. They should move down a few notches for this one...
PAC 10 refs | 12:04 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
The referee did not block the kick! BYU did so the refs didn't cost Wa. the game!
AL | 12:02 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
The whining on this blog is unbelievable. If you throw the ball, it say in the rulebook, the officials have no option but to make that "unsportsman like" call, and they officials did their job. All three of the officials saw it the same way. I don't like BYU to win this way but you can not take it out on the players. BYU has had bad calls called for and against them before, and so has other teams. You can't do anything about this so grow-up and stop complaining.

By the way good win for BYU against a PAC-10 team on the road, and a good win for Utah. Congrats to both teams........

Who ever said the Bronco stated that was a bad call, is telling a falsehood. He did not say that. He said that it was in the rulebook and let it go, and Locker apologized to his team and the fans for the loss.
Defense | 12:06 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
To all who think BYU defense was bad. The irony is that it was BYU defense on the block PAT that secured the game.
Geaux Tigers | 12:07 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Hall threw for 300+, Unga ran for 120+, and the Defense allowed only ~330 yds, and blocked an extra point. Cougars won the game. Funny, that sounds alright to me.
My two cents | 12:16 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Let's see: Ute fans hate BYU and find anything they can to put them down, humm... Coug fans hate Utah and find anything they can to put them down, humm.... who would have thunk?

All this predictions of how teams will end up is just as funny. Nobody knows how a any team will end, but lets stop complaining about fans being fans. It's ok for the fans to dispise their hated rival, that's what makes the rivalry a rivalry.

Teams match up differently against other teams so this comparison garbage is just ridiculous.

And as for the BYU/UW game today, it was unfortunate for the game to end the way it did, nobody got snubbed.

Let's keep up the smack, keep playing the games, and both BYU and Utah keep winning to make a great game at the end of the season.
Paradox | 12:16 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Let me get this straight ...

1. UofU fans often accuse BYU fans of whining about officiating
2. PAC 10 officials make a bad call in a game BYU played in
3. UofU fans are whining about the call

Hmmmm ... I just can't wrap my head around this.
Defense | 12:23 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Cougs, I laugh at those who think the Coug D will come together. I saw many missed opportunities (open receivers) from the Washington offense. BYU just doesn't have speed on the defensive side of the ball to compete with BCS teams (not every team that belongs to a BCS conference is a BCS team in my book). I hate to say this but I think the loss of Bryan Kehl and his speed and energy is underestimated by Coug fans. BYU's offense is great (especially Unga and Hall) but that D will cost the Cougs 2 games before the bowl game.
ZOOBIE | 12:25 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Speak it real: BYU came away with an well-exectued finish. Even if the defense was sloppy throughout the game, they came up big when the big plays were needed--at the end. Go Cougars
i find it funny | 12:26 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
how yewt fans deem it necessary to stand up for the poor husky football team...brothas you have your own problems, just check the half time score with your unlv game...all great teams have at least one or two games that are gut checks, this happens to be one of those for the cougs. Fact is our offense is down right scary! Every team in the conference should be up late losin sleep tryin to gameplan for those boyz, just some friendly advice
QUEST FOR PERFECTION! | 12:31 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Nice defence BYU and good luck stopping UCLA
the facts | 12:45 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
The ball went about 25 feet in the air. It had a hang time of 2.8 seconds. Check the youtube video you can see it come down and hit him in the head. Using Newton's laws its quite easy to determine the height.

80% of people believe the rule is stupid. The refs made the right call. ITS IN THE RULES! If you disagree with the rules thats fine, but the refs made the correct call.

Third Willingham before he saw the flags already had his finger up in the air signaling go for 1. They were not going to go for 2.

Fourth #77 of BYU on the last drive on one the third down plays got past the dline and was going for the quarterback when a Dlineman pulled his jersey from behind! You could see it stretch. It was the most obvious holding call in the world and it went unnoticed.

Lastly ESPN made this a much much bigger deal than it should have been. Mark May is an idiot and saying the refs "took this game out of the hands of the players" is stupid.

BYU WON BECAUSE WE BLOCKED THE KICK!!
Okay | 12:45 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
If tackling our our pass rushers isn't illegal and drilling our defenders in the back after the whistle was blown isn't illegal, what is?

It's funny how UW fans rip on the refs that cheated for them all game long when the calls go their way, but actually whine when a call goes against them. On top of all of it was, they still had a chance to tie the game and they blew it.

What if the score was tied, it was a field goal from the 35, a potential game winner, and then it was blocked? Then would there be the same complaining? Probably not.

Combine this with the fact that the "mighty" USC trojans came to this same stadium last year, and squeaked out with a three point win, and OSU squeaked by with a couple of scores. We went in with our "slow, eight new starters, MWC defense" and still won. That I think shows a lot of credibility to Bronco Mendenhall and our program. Not to mention, we have the whole season to get better.
Check out YouTube | 12:48 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
For those of you who can't be convinced that the ball went straight up in the air, whether you had great seats, bad, seats or weren't at the game. Go to the replay, you can catch it on YouTube. Unless there are some really creative genius out there that have altered the video, he threw the ball straight up in the air. I know I didn't think he did either because the instant replay on TV seemed to indicate that he just tossed over his shoulder. Not the case. Luckily there will be another game next week, so we will all have new things to celebrate or whine about.
I'm mad | 12:53 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
BYU was cheated. The refs missed the call. At least 2 holding calls in the final drive. BYU was cheated.
BYU!! | 12:54 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
quest for perfection baby!!! yeah!!!! cougars!!
RE: Gary | 12:57 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Hill is the defensive Coord. look it up....Or just continue to spit out uneducated comments to make you look like you graduated
Anonymous | 12:58 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
PAC 10 refs have been homers for years, so now ONE TIME they killed their own team. Too bad, so sad!

Stoops and Oklahoma probably think this is a great call, after the PAC 10 refs gave the game to OU in 2006.

Remember that one?

Sorry Washington, no one cares if you got messed. Now you know how it feels.
East Carolina Rocks | 1:00 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
I like both Utah and BYU. The rule is bad, the call was correct.

East Carolina will be the next BCS buster!

BYU, don't overlook TCU or UCLA or Utah or Air Force or Wyoming on your special "Quest".

Big heads and two wins don't make a perfect season. Utah State put up 24 on an impressive Oregon squad.
High Ball | 1:06 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Any doubt about why the penalty was called, watch replay, go to Youtube if you have too. If you watch carefully you see the ball come down and hit the players celebrating. Must have been pretty high in the air to do that. If it had been just a flip over his shoulder that wouldn't have happened.
Mike | 1:09 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Like the referee said: "It is a celebration rule that we are required to call. It was not a judgment call."
pac 10 refs | 1:15 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
threw one flag the whole game on Washington. One flag.
Eddie Utah | 1:26 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Blame the Kicker!
After BYU blocked a 35-yard PAT to seal a 28-27 win over the University of Washington, all I heard was whether the unsportsmanlike penalty on Jake Locker was appropriate or not. If it was your team and your QB, you�re likely to think the penalty was bogus. If your team benefitted, then rules are rules. But why has no one focused on (1) the inability of the Washington field goal unit to kick a straight-on 35-yarder, or (2) the clutch block of the PAT by BYU? Think about it this way: If your team only has to kick a 35-yard field goal to take the game into overtime, and the kick is from the middle of the field�not from either hash, then your field goal team better damn-well make that kick, right? And if they don�t, are you blaming anyone but the field goal team and the kicker? I say no. The way BYU pushed back the UW line on the PAT, I don�t think the result would have been any different if it was a traditional 20-yarder. Give it a rest on the celebration, the ref and the call. Blame the kick, credit the block.
Referee Larry Farina | 1:24 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
I can't believe me and my fellow PAC-10 crew are getting all of this abuse. Talk about ungrateful. All day long we ignored UW holding. We called a late hit out of bounds on BYU that wasn't. We ignored a late hit by UW right in front of us. We routinely spotted the ball poorly for BYU. We ignored illegal picks and pass interference by UW. In every way possible we homered for our guys. And then, when we are finally forced to make a call, because it is so blatant, they blame a blocked PAT on us. What now? Do they want us to start blocking for them? We are referees. Give us a break. We kept them in the game. What more do they expect?
Great game - perfect call at end | 1:25 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
After listening to the sportscasters on ESPN I thought "that must have been a worse call than I thought." So I turned on the tivo and watched the toss by the WU QB again. On the replay you could see 20 feet above his head on the screen and when the ball shot up off the screen it was still moving pretty fast. Everybody keeps asking "Why the panalty when he just flipped the ball over his shoulder?" He threw it WAY up in the air, at least 25 feet - and like it or not the rule says that an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty shall be issed if a player tosses the ball high in the air after a touchdown. So change the rule if you don't like it, but the ref was following the rules. This was no judgement call like the WU fans keep saying. Do you also want the officials to not call a pass intereference late in the game because it "affects the outcome."??!! The rules are the rules from start to finish. Even the QB at fault said that he got caught up in the emotion and made a mistake.
AK Cougar | 1:26 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Put this one in the W column. Get prepared for UCLA.
No more refs!! | 1:58 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
Good point! You guys are all right....no more refs....who needs them....keep the "emotion" in the game and "let the kids play".....they can call their own fouls!!! Down with all refs!!!! ;)
Weak Call | 2:06 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
How do you make a lame call of excessive celebration at the end of a game. Basically the Refs decided the game. TDS is over ranked.
Jim | 2:15 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
BYU finally plays a real team next week in UCLA. I don't expect it to turn out well for BYU. They've been riding their usual arrogance against a bad team (who was, North Iowa Junior High) and a mediocre team, which was a one-point win decided by the refs. Keep thinking you're the greatest, and that "magic happens," zoobies, ha ha. See you next week -- can't wait for your excuses.
RICH | 2:15 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
One network sports channel asked sport fans in all states to vote concerning the offical's call at the end of the Washington game. EVERY STATE BUT ONE VOTED AGAINST THE CALL. GUESS WHO VOTED FOR IT?
AzByuFan | 2:59 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
BYU controled the game offensively, they had their way. Unga frequently got 5+ yards a pop and Hall was rarely pressured. Yes BYU's D looked soft that last series, but prior to that the WA offense sputtered. Overall BYU was the much better team throughout the game.
Congrats BYU!!! | 3:52 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
on a great win!

ignore the whiney ankle biters. Their opinions are meaningless.

Jan's blocked PAT was the play of the day!!! on ESPN.

I've never liked the excessive celebration rule, but until the rule is changed, whether it's the first play of the game, or the last, the officials are bound to call the penalty consistently.

Washington has no one to blame but themselves for the penalty.

Besides, Washington still only needed to make a relatively easy 34 yard kick to tie the game and send it into overtime where there was no guarantee that BYU wouldn't have one the game anyway.

Washington will probably start the season 0-3, after playing Oklahoma, but, they'll finish in the middle of the PAC 10 and play in a bowl game this year.

Locker is the real deal and he'll make many defenses look slow this year. He just needs to learn to throw the ball more accurately.

Hall, Pitta, Unga, and Jorgansen had outstanding games. I'll looking forward to the UCLA game.

Magic happens.

The Quest is still alive.

Go Cougars!
ultimate zoobie | 4:17 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008
bronco wanted to take us back to the good old days, guess what we made it. great offence, arm tackling, lucky defence. welcome to the cougs of the 80's (except 84) even tye's heisman year the cougs lost on the road to the Pac10. speaking of yewts and cougs, it
appears that Utah has a couple of high school games coming up in Logan and then two weeks against Harrison High from Ogden. well we all have to play our easy ones dont we. see ya in November

Add your comment

Comments are monitored. Any comments found to be abusive, offensive, off-topic, misrepresentative, more than 200 words or containing URLs will not be posted.

Words Remaining

E-mail address: For internal use only. We may want to contact you to publish your comment (not your e-mail address) in the newspaper or for a separate story idea.

Image

BYU's Jan Jorgensen (84) blocks the extra-point attempt of Washington's Ryan Perkins to seal the Cougars 28-27 win over the Huskies on Saturday in Seattle.

previousnext

Latest comments

It sounds from the description, and well written,by the way, this young girl...

Most Utahns unhappy with Obama

President Obama is mostly a fictional character. This is due because...

Interesting comments. My observation as a LDS convert from outside of Utah...

Most Utahns unhappy with Obama

You are right, that person did nothing to refute the claims. And I'd be more...

Letters: Y.-U. summit needed

they should all get together and have a beer at the white house with the...

Utes prepare to go bowling

Even though I hated that Utah lost Saturday, it was kind of nice to see that...

I always tell people to stay away from Utah. Based on the actions of...

Woods says he let family down

Let him deal with it. Meanwhile, its time for the rest of us, especially...

Why is Y. ignoring spew of hatred?

Why can Utah fans get away with crude and offensive behavior directed towards...

Letters: Public option needed

We were BORN into this world with a National Debt, we'll all die with one, no...

Advertisements