PROVO, Utah (AP) — Lopini Katoa barreled into the end zone on a 3-yard run to lift No. 21 BYU to a 26-20 victory over No. 9 Baylor in double overtime on Saturday night.
Jaren Hall threw for 261 yards and a touchdown, and added a 22-yard TD catch, to lead BYU (2-0). Chase Roberts had a career-high 122 yards and a touchdown on eight catches for the Cougars. Roberts also threw a touchdown pass to Hall in the third quarter.
Blake Shapen threw for 134 yards and a touchdown while Qualan Jones added a pair of touchdown runs for Baylor. Jones and Craig Williams combined for 135 yards on 33 carries.
Shapen’s incompletion on fourth down in double overtime sealed the upset win for BYU. The Bears (1-1) were one of three Top 10 teams to lose on Saturday along with No. 6 Texas A&M and No. 8 Notre Dame.
Bears kicker Isaiah Hankins missed a 43-yard field goal attempt in the first overtime after missing a PAT on Baylor’s only first-half touchdown. Cougars kicker Jake Oldroyd missed a 35-yard attempt with 8 seconds left in regulation and then missed from 37 yards to force a second overtime.
After combining to go 3-and-out on five straight first-half drives, Baylor and BYU traded touchdowns right before halftime.
The Bears jumped in front 6-3 after Jones punched it in on a 1-yard run. His touchdown capped off a 13-play, 68-yard drive where Baylor converted a pair of third downs.
BYU answered with a quick strike to go back in front 10-6. The Cougars covered 75 yards in eight plays, culminating in a 20-yard touchdown pass from Hall to Chase Roberts. Hall completed five of six passes on the drive. Each play gained at least 11 yards.
Both teams carried their offensive momentum into the third quarter.
Jones shed tacklers to score his second touchdown on a 7-yard run and give Baylor a 13-10 lead. He kept the drive alive two plays earlier with a 12-yard catch on third down.
After tying the score on a 39-yard field goal from Oldroyd, BYU dug into its bag of tricks to retake the lead. Roberts tossed a backward pass back to Hall and he raced 22 yards to put BYU back in front 20-13.
The Bears knotted it up at 20-20 on Ben Sims’ 4-yard catch with 10:01 remaining. Sims’ touchdown capped off a 12 play, 79-yard drive that burned nearly 6 ½ minutes off the clock.
THE TAKEAWAY
Baylor: Success on third down helped the Bears get through some tough stretches on offense. The Bears went 9 for 18 on third downs. Defensively, Baylor saw equal success denying BYU on that pivotal down. The Cougars went 3 for 14 on third down.
BYU: Starting receivers Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney were sidelined with injuries and their absence removed a pair of much-needed playmakers from the BYU offense. The Cougars made up for it by getting tough on defense. BYU sacked Shapen four times for a loss of 22 yards and had six tackles for loss overall.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Baylor will likely drop in the AP Top 25.
BYU will climb several spots after upsetting a Top 10 foe at home.
UP NEXT
Baylor: Hosts Texas State on Saturday.
BYU: Visits Oregon on Saturday.
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