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Albuquerque, N.M. » Andrew George will find it difficult to top the first birthday gift he gave his newborn son.
The BYU tight end capped a "kind of crazy" weekend on Saturday by catching a 27-yard touchdown pass from Max Hall in the Cougars' 24-19 win over New Mexico.
It all started Friday afternoon in Provo, where George left his expecting wife, Tawny, and boarded the team's charter flight to Albuquerque. When the plane landed, George learned his wife's water had broke, so he immediately jumped on a charter flight back to Utah, with a stopover in Denver.
Jack Andrew George was born around 10:15 Friday night, and the senior was there to witness the event.
After a couple hours sleep, George boarded a 6 a.m. flight, and made it to the stadium at 10:30 a.m., just 90 minutes before kickoff.
"Tiring, No. 1," George said, summing up the ordeal. "I am exhausted. It was unforgettable, definitely. I mean, I will never forget the birth of my first child. And to have it like this, as well as to score a touchdown, to give him a big birthday present, was fun as well."
The touchdown gave the Cougars a 17-7 lead with one minute, 56 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
"It is funny, because we all said he needed to get one," BYU quarterback Max Hall said. "On that play, they ended up playing man coverage, and we audibled to a man play, and he popped open and made a great catch
Hall said it "was destiny" that George scored.
"I was happy to see him get a touchdown, especially this weekend," Hall said. "It was a big weekend for him."
George said mother and baby are doing fine, or he wouldn't have made the decision to return to Albuquerque. He had two catches for 30 yards.
"If there had been any complications, I probably would have stayed. Everything looked good, so I am glad I came back," he said.
Now he's hoping the NCAA will allow BYU to pay for the unexpected flights.
"I bought the ticket. If it gets reimbursed, great. If not, that's fine, too, because we won the game," he said. "I am happy I played. It is my senior season, only a few games left. I wanted to be here."
In all, nine receivers caught passes for BYU, with McKay Jacobson's 50-yarder in the second quarter the longest. The reception set up a 42-yard field goal by Mitch Payne that gave the Cougars a 10-7 lead.
Friday
3 p.m. » Team leaves Provo for Albuquerque on charter flight
4:30 p.m. » Learns wife, Tawny, has gone into labor
8:30 p.m. » Lands in Salt Lake City on commercial flight after stopover in Denver
10:15 p.m. » First child, Jack Andrew George, is born in Provo
Saturday
6 a.m. » Flies back to Albuquerque, rejoins team at 10:30 a.m.
Noon » Catches a 27-yard touchdown pass in 24-19 win over New Mexico
6 p.m. » Rejoins his family in Provo
