The BYU Cougars improved to 5-2 on the season as they picked up a 38-28 win over Oregon State in Corvallis. For me, this was easily the most complete game we have sen the Cougars play all season. The offense sustained drives and scored touchdowns. The defense caused turnovers and made things difficult on a young Sean Mannion.

Riley Nelson continued his inspired play. He was darn near perfect throwing the ball in the first quarter and a half. He finished the game with 217 yards passing with 3 touchdowns and an interception. The interception was a pick 6 but in the end it obviously didn’t cost BYU the victory. Once again, Riley’s ability to feel pressure and run with the ball proved huge. Nelson rushed for 87 yards on 12 carries to lead the team on the ground.

Speaking of rushing, BYU has found their running back. Michael Alisa proved that last week against San Jose State wasn’t a fluke. The former Timpview star rushed for 84 yards and had the games first touchdown. I’m not saying Alisa is Harvey Unga, but he is the closest thing we’ve seen to him since Unga left. It’s not just the yardage Alisa gets, it’s how he runs. He hits the hole very hard and quick plus he doesn’t let the first defender get him down.

The other bright spot for the offense was Cody Hoffman. he was brilliant today. It’s not just his 162 yards on 9 catches or his touchdown reception. It was the type of effort he gave today. Several of his catches were made off poorly thrown balls. He simply wanted it more than the defender. We found out a few weeks ago that Cody and Riley were roommates last year. It looks like that friendship has translated onto the field as well.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Cougars forced 4 turnovers. They were opportunistic in picking off Mannion as well as being in the right place to scoop up a couple of fumbles. The biggest question mark for the defense is how many will be able to play next week. At certain points in the game BYU lost Kaveinga, Fuga, Fangupo and Pendleton. BYU’s depth on defense was looked at as a strength and it may be tested if anybody is hurt long term.

All in all, BYU and their fans should be very proud of the win today. It was a road game against a BCS school and the Cougars walked away knowing that they were the better team.

Another reason Cougars fans should be happy today is that Tom Holmoe said the door wasn’t closed on the Big 12…but that’s for another blog at another time.

Shep