Boxscore - HTM | PDF
Provo, UT - Portland State took BYU to the fourth quarter of their season-opening game, leaving the 55,000 fans at Lavell Edwards Stadium with some doubt in their minds. But the Cougars hung on, tacking on two late field goals for a 20-6 win.
The Vikings knew they were up against one of the nation's top defenses - at least based on last season's results - and BYU defense lived up to expectations. The Vikings defense showed up as well and that's what made it a close game until the late-going.
"We executed the plan (today)," said Viking Coach Bruce Barnum. "We are young but I feel we really have a good football team. This team played a helluva game today and we are going win a lot of football games.
"I knew we had a young defense, but today they showed me they can fight. They showed me they are tough. That was my question (going in)."
Brigham Young out-gained the Vikings 365 yards to 220 overall on a 96-degree day. PSU's young defense showed tremendous growth over last year's team that allowed 478 yards per game.
Most of the first quarter was an exchange of punts. The Cougars finally broke through on a drive with a pair of big pass plays by quarterback Tanner Mangum. He hit Matt Bushman for a 36-yard gain, then Neil Pau'u for a 28-yard touchdown with 2:01 remaining in the quarter.
BYU scored again midway through the second quarter. Tailback Squally Canada scored on a one-yard touchdown run. It was the culmination of an eight-play, 66-yard drive for the Cougars and the Vikings trailed 14-0.
Portland State got on the board late in the half, going 17 plays and 87 yards for a score. Twice in the drive, freshman quarterback Jalani Eason completed passes on fourth down to keep the series alive. He threw his first college TD pass a moment later with a four-yarder to senior wide receiver Darnell Adams.
The defensive struggle continued through the third quarter as neither team could score. BYU finally got back to a two-score lead on a 27-yard field goal by Rhett Almond at the 13:22 mark of the fourth quarter. Still, trailing 17-6 with just under four minutes to play, the Vikings had a glimmer of hope. That is until Zayne Anderson intercepted Eason on a tipped ball at midfield.
The Cougars tacked on a late field goal for the final 20-6 score.
Eason completed 16-36 passes in his first career start. He had 134 yards, one touchdown and one interception. His main target was sophomore tight end Charlie Taumoepeau, who caught six balls for 73 yards.
Za'Quan Summers led the running game with 20 carries for 55 yards.
On defense, senior linebacker Beau Duronslet had 11 tackles. Senior safety Tyler Foreman made nine stops. Senior defensive end Davond Dade made four tackles, including a sack and forced a fumble.
For the Cougars, Mangum completed 16-27 passes for 194 yards and one TD. Fred Warner made 10 tackles on defense.
GAME NOTES: As a team, the Vikings broke up six passes, including three by Chris Seisay… the Vikings had eight true freshmen on the trip to BYU, five of whom played… Portland State travels to Oregon State next Saturday for an 11 a.m. game at Reser Stadium. The contest will be televised on the Pac-12 Network and air on Rip City Radio 620 AM.
