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From LaVell Edwards to Bronco Mendenhall, John Beck to Max Hall, and Curtis Brown to Harvey Unga, the 2000s were good to BYU football. Here are the Cougars 10 best wins of the era.
BYU football has had its ups and downs, but the 2000s certainly brought more ups. The Cougars have racked up 139 since 2000, and the future looks bright under Kalani Sitake.
But for now, let’s take a stroll down memory lane and revisit the best Cougar wins of the 2000s.
Honorable mentions: vs Texas (2013), vs Utah (2009), vs Oregon State (2009) and vs Nebraska (2015).
10. BYU at Utah State, 2002
The Aggies put together a 31-point second quarter and went into halftime leading 34-7. The Cougars seemed doomed.
Curtis Brown ran for 217 yards and three touchdowns, and Brett Engemann hit Toby Christensen on 3rd-and-15 for 27 yards on the game-winning drive. Engemann then found Gabriel Reid for an 18-yard touchdown. Matt Payne’s extra point with just under seven minutes left gave BYU football its first lead of the game. The Cougars would hold on for a 35-34 win, capping off the largest comeback in school history.
9. BYU vs Oregon, 2006 Las Vegas Bowl
Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti famously turned heel during the Vegas Bowl press junket, saying that BYU football “wouldn’t even be a mid-level Pac-10 team.”
Oops.
The Cougars trounced the Ducks 38-8, making an emphatic statement on the talent-level in Provo.
John Beck threw for 375 yards and two touchdowns. Curtis Brown ran for 120 yards and two touchdowns. Johnny Harline caught nine passes for 181 yards and a touchdown, and the Cougars shut the Ducks out through three quarters.
The win was the first bowl victory for BYU football since the 1996 season.
8. BYU at Utah, 2000
This was the final game of the LaVell Edwards era of BYU football. Brandon Doman hit Johnathan Pittman on 4th-and-13 for 34 yards, then the duo connected again for 36 yards. Doman scored from four yards out, giving LaVell one more win. The Cougars carried the legend off the field at Rice Eccles Stadium.
Interesting note: Kalani Sitake amassed 70 total yards in the victory.
7. BYU vs Texas, 2014
Oh Hill yeah.
This was the game that put Taysom Hill in the national spotlight. His incredible hurdle of a Texas defender is the best highlight of his career, and it began what was very legit (but ultimately short lived) Heisman discussion.
Hill ran for three touchdowns as the Cougars shellacked the Longhorns 41-7.
BYU vs UCLA, 2008
The Cougars handed UCLA its worst loss in 73 years, with a 59-0 walloping in Provo.
Max Hall threw for a BYU football record seven touchdowns and the No. 16 Cougars cruised to a win. Austin Collie caught 10 passes for 110 yards and BYU extended its win streak to 13 games – good for tops in the nation.
5. BYU vs Utah, 2001
BYU football defeated the Utes 24-21 in Provo, improving to 11-0 on the season.
Luke Staley rushed for 169 yards and scored two total touchdowns in the come-from-behind victory and Brandon Doman threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns.
Representatives from the Fiesta Bowl were in Provo, but after Staley was injured in the next game, BYU got shellacked by Hawaii. The Cougars ended up losing in the Liberty Bowl, but that can’t take away from the significance of the Holy War win.
4. BYU vs Utah 2007
Magic happens.
Facing 4th-and-18 from his own 12-yard line – and playing with a separated shoulder – Max Hall found Austin Collie for a 49-yard gain. Harvey Unga finished the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run.
BYU football ended the Utes’ seven-game winning streak and improved to 9-2 with the win. The Cougars also won the Mountain West title outright.
Hall’s conversion will forever remain in the pantheon of BYU football’s greatest moments.
3. BYU vs TCU, 2006
BYU football traveled south the Fort Worth to take on the No. 17 TCU Horned Frogs. The Cougars hadn’t beat a ranked team in eight years, but walloped TCU 31-17.
John Beck completed 23-of-37 passes for 321 yards and three touchdowns, and BYU forced three turnovers en route to Bronco Mendenhall’s first marquee victory.
2. BYU vs Utah, 2006
This game provided one of the best moments – and best calls – in BYU football history.
Beck to Harline.
Beck threw for 375 yards and Harline reeled in seven passes for 118 yards, including the game winner with no time left on the clock. The Cougars won 33-31.
BYU vs Oklahoma, 2009
First college game in Jerry World. Big-time opponent. Matchup of top 20 teams. Nationally broadcast. This game had everything a classic game needs.
The No. 20 Cougars were going up against Sam Bradford, DeMarco Murray and the No. 8 Sooners. Bradford was knocked out of the game late in the first half and BYU corralled Murray to just 58 rushing yards.
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Max Hall led the way for the Cougars, throwing for 329 yards and two touchdowns en route to a 14-13 BYU win.
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