Florida State Routs BYU
Seminoles Burst Brigham Young's BCS Bubble with 54-28 Football Win
Quarterback Christian Ponder accounted for three touchdowns, and the Seminoles forced five turnovers en route to a 54-28 win over No. 7 Brigham Young on Saturday, Sept. 19, at Provo, Utah.
Florida State (2-1) dropped a 38-34 decision to Miami in its season opener, then rallied late to beat upset-minded Jacksonville State 19-9 the next week. And on Saturday, the Seminoles were playing their highest-ranked opponent yet, and were doing so on the road.
But coach Bobby Bowden's crew responded with its best performance of the season to snap BYU's 18-game home winning streak. The win vaulted Florida State to No. 18 in The Associated Press poll, and knocked BYU all the way down to No. 19.
Ponder was especially sharp. The sophomore completed 21 of 26 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. He also ran 11 times for 77 yards and a TD.
BYU (2-1) entered the game with its highest ranking since 1996, and what seemed to be realistic hopes for Bowl Championship Series bowl berth. But those were blown away forever in a whirlwind of interceptions and fumbles.
The Cougars moved the ball well effectively, gaining 473 yards. But coach Bronco Mendenhall's team, which had played stout defense in its wins over Oklahoma and Tulane, had no luck stopping the Seminoles. Nor could they hold on to the ball.
BYU's Max Hall was 20-for-31 passing for 306 yards and two touchdowns, but he was intercepted three times. One of the picks was returned 63 yards for a TD by freshman defensive back Greg Reid.
In all, the five turnovers led to 24 Florida State points.
Not that they Seminoles really needed the help. They had 313 rushing yards among their 513 yards of total offense.
Florida State, which was 7-for-7 on third down conversions in the first half, played turnover-free ball and punted only once.
BYU Comeback Bid Shattered
Even after giving up 23 points during a frantic second quarter, BYU still had hope at halftime, trailing 30-14. But Reid's interception return ended a promising Cougars drive and put the visitors up by 23 with 12 minutes, 52 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
After a Florida State punt, Ponder capped a 10-play, 70-yard drive with a 6-yard scoring run to make it 44-14 with 5 minutes, 11 seconds remaining in the third.
BYU struck back just 12 seconds later on an 80-yard TD pass from Hall to McKay Jacobson, but the Cougars could get no closer. Their next three drives came up empty -- one was stopped on downs, and the other two ended in Hall interceptions.
Florida State used a field goal by Hopkins and a 16-yard touchdown pass from Ponder to fellow sophomore Jarmon Forston to put the game away.
Ty Jones Spearheads Florida State Rushing Attack
The Seminoles' Ty Jones ran 12 times for 108 yards and a touchdown. The sophomore scored on a 4-yard run in the first quarter and his dazzling 47-yard run set up the second of two second-quarter TD runs by freshman Lonnie Pryor.
Forston led Florida State receivers with six catches for 62 yards. Tight end Caz Piurowski had five catches for 38 yards, including a 5-yard TD, and Pryor ran seven times for 50 yards.
Freshman cornerback A.J. Alexander and sophomore linebacker Nigel Bradham also had interceptions for Florida State. Safety Jamie Robinson posted a team-high seven tackles.
Logan, Bradley Lead BYU in Tackling
Two junior defensive backs led BYU in tackling. Brian Logan had 11 tackles, including eight solo. Brandon Bradley added 10 tackles, nine of which were unassisted.
For the offense, Jacoboson finished with two catches for 111 yards, and tight end Dennis Pitta had five receptions for 60 yards. Manase Tonga caught a 3-yard TD pass from Hall, and J.J. Di Luigi brought in a 29-yard scoring pass from BYU backup Riley Nelson.
Harvey Unga ran 10 times for 98 yards, including on a 12-yard TD, for the Cougars.
Florida State Faces South Florida Next Week
Florida State returns home to face South Florida on Saturday, Sept. 26, before returning to Atlantic Coast Conference play Oct. 3 at Boston College. The Seminoles are 0-1 in the ACC.
BYU will play its Mountain West Conference opener next week, meeting Colorado State at home.
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