BYU Wins If...BYU Doesn't Lose

This week is the big game in Austin, Texas where the Cougars will go and face the 24th ranked Longhorns. I believe this is a winnable game for BYU and I believe these things will make the factors in us winning.

BYU Wins If...
Jake Heaps plays against Texas the way he played against Ole Miss in the second half. In the second half, Heaps' statistical output was much better (other than the interception he threw). He completed 15 of 18 passes for 150 yards. Many of those completions were for bigger plays, as they went to our wide receivers rather than to fullbacks, etc. Beyond statistics, though, he was decisive and threw accurate strikes. He also displayed mental toughness and confidence that was absent from our team all of last year.

BYU Wins If...
We can control the time of possession, again. Our defense played outstandingly, no question, and our offense was not putting the ball into the end zone for much of the game. However, BYU dominated time of possession (34:37 to 25:23) with its methodical drives. While it unfortunately didn't end with many points on the board, it did allow the defense plenty of time to rest, which I believe was a major factor in their play. You could see that Ole Miss' defense was gassed by the time the offense broke through and scored the first touchdown (and like David, I believe we would have scored again if needed).

BYU Wins If...
The defense can continue to cause turnovers. The two fumbles we recovered were major game changers. Their was the winning touchdown by Van Noy on one, but also the first fumble ended a Mississippi threat in BYU territory. Texas only committed one turnover against Rice. Then again, a turnover against Rice is like committing a turnover against West High School.

BYU Wins If...
We force Texas to pass. Garrett Gilbert threw only ten touchdowns compared to seventeen interceptions last year. Against paltry Rice, he completed only 13 of 23 passes. He was also sacked twice. In contrast, Texas ran for 229 yards and for 5 yards a carry. If we can take away the element of the run (particularly big plays) I don't think that Gilbert has the ability to beat us (or anyone really) when the team becomes one dimensional.

BYU Wins If...
We can run the ball better. Last week, we had a few good runs, particularly by Di Luigi. However, it was not a consistent threat. We averaged less than 3 yards per attempt. Not only does that make us one-dimensional, but it also takes away the viability of doing play action passes (which our new offense seems to do VERY often).

Then again, we're playing in Austin, Texas against a ranked team. This could go bad and I think these might be the reasons why it would.

BYU Loses If...
Jake Heaps plays like he did in the first half against Ole Miss. He was only 9 for 20 for 74 yards. Many of those completions were dump passes and he didn't even loko particularly good on those. Beyond the statistics, he looked bad. His decision making was poor, he looked rattled after the big hit on the blitz and his throws were erratic (even the ones he completed). Nothing kills drives like overthrowing wide open swing passes and crossing routes.

BYU Loses If...
We allow Texas to run consistently on us. Texas won the time of possession against Rice in a dominating fashion, as well. Much of this has to do with how well Texas ran the ball. If we cannot keep the defense off the field, Texas might be able to wear us down just like we wore Ole Miss down.

BYU Loses If...
Texas stops our run and makes us one-dimensional. As I stated before, our offense is built around play action. If we cannot run the ball, at all, we will become extremely predictable and it will take away easy throws to get Heaps in a rhythm.

My prediction: BYU 24 Texas 14. Also, I predict we will wear all white again, as this seems to be the trend. I actually dig the all white but I'm not crazy about the all blue.