No. 3 Utah stayed perfect on Saturday, beating No. 9 BYU 28-20 in the Holy War at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City in the first-ever top-10 meeting between the rivals.
Utah led 14-0 early before BYU scored 20 straight points to lead 20-14 at half-time, but the Utes scored the final 14 points of the game to win, according to theScore and Bleacher Report. Quarterback Devon Dampier was involved in all four Utah touchdowns — two passing and two rushing.
The win takes Utah to 9-0, their first 9-0 start since 2008, and extends their winning streak to 15 games. BYU fall to 7-2, having lost two of their last three after a 6-0 start.
Dampier does it all
Dampier threw for 177 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 87 yards and two more scores, carrying Utah’s offence on the biggest day of the season so far. His four-touchdown performance was the difference in a game where BYU actually outgained the Utes 391-328.
BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier threw four interceptions, including one at the Utah 2-yard line with 4:39 left — picked off by Trey Reynolds — and a final end-zone heave intercepted by Nate Ritchie. The turnovers, more than anything else, decided the game.
A rivalry game that lived up to it
The Holy War is one of college football’s fiercest rivalries, and the first top-10 meeting between the sides did not disappoint. BYU’s 20 unanswered points turned a 14-0 deficit into a 20-14 half-time lead, and for a while it looked like the Cougars would end Utah’s perfect season.
But Utah’s response in the second half was championship-calibre. The Utes scored twice without reply, their defence held firm, and the Rice-Eccles crowd celebrated a win that keeps their College Football Playoff hopes firmly alive.
What comes next
Utah, at 9-0 and 6-0 in the Big 12, are now firmly in the playoff picture, with the conference title race in their hands. BYU, at 7-2, will need help to reach the Big 12 title game — and will rue a game they led at half-time but lost on turnovers.
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