This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
East Lansing, Mich.
BYU quarterback Taysom Hill rose from the turf and thrust his fist toward the end zone after a 2-yard run that stands as the signature play of his second shot at a senior season.
Or maybe that label should go to Hill's 2-yard pass, earlier in the fourth quarter Saturday.
Little gains added up to a big victory. BYU's 31-14 win over Michigan State stemmed from four touchdown drives that Hill led in the second half against a proud Big Ten defense, thanks to a series of clutch plays.
The result was a victory as meaningful as anything the Cougars have delivered in the program's six-season independent era. This is not a vintage Michigan State team. Yet for BYU to come into Spartan Stadium, keep battling after a frustrating first half and finish so impressively took some toughness.
This became another case of "Taysom being Taysom," said running back Jamaal Williams. "That's what we expect from him."
Yet this episode was different, coming in a Big Ten venue after Hill returned from the third season-ending injury of his career. In the old days, Hill twice shredded a Texas defense that was in disarray. Michigan State's defense is sound, which made this effort more impressive.
Multiple plays defined Hill's performance, in a game where piecing together long drives required poise and competitiveness. Those 2-yard efforts deserve their own descriptions.
• With the Cougars leading 10-7 early in the fourth quarter, coach Kalani Sitake played aggressively on fourth and 1 at the Michigan State 14-yard line. Offensive coordinator Ty Detmer called a play-action pass. Hill and an unlikely receiver made it work. "I didn't have [anything] initially," Hill said, "but I kept working and Quin kept working."
That would be Quin Ficklin, listed as a fullback/offensive lineman with alternate numbers of 44 and 55, just in case. He joined the short-yardage personnel group and ran into the flat, barely getting open. Hill waited patiently, then delivered a pass that Ficklin caught for a first down. Hill ran 12 yards for a touchdown on the next play.
• After the Cougars scored again and then Michigan State cut the lead to 24-14 in the last five minutes, BYU faced third and 1 at its 27. At that moment, the Cougars (3-3) looked like they were headed for another close finish, after having their first five games decided by three points or fewer. Hill ended those worries. He beat a defender for 2 yards, gestured dramatically and then resumed another TD drive to punctuate the victory.
His emotional displays were intended for "other people to feed off of that," Hill said, and it worked.
"I want our guys to know we're capable of doing anything," he said.
An injured Hill watched from the sideline last season as BYU's offense struggled in a 31-0 loss to Michigan, topping 100 total yards only on the final play of the game. The visit to Michigan State was different from start to finish — except for the little detail of BYU's failing to score for a long, long time.
But once they started scoring, the Cougars never stopped. Technically, they scored 31 points in the last 30 minutes, beginning with a field goal of the last play of the first half. The Cougars had wasted their best opportunity of the first half to score a touchdown when fullback Algie Brown was stuffed on fourth and inches at the Michigan State 3.
BYU responded with a well-managed drive to close the half, with Rhett Almond's 35-yard field goal as time expired cutting the Spartans' lead to 7-3. BYU's 155-yard production was mildly encouraging, but the question was how the Cougars would do in the second half when Michigan State defensive tackle Mailk McDowell became eligible after a targeting suspension.
Here's your answer: Four BYU possessions, four BYU touchdowns — and two kneel-downs. The offense would have finished with 402 yards, if not for the victory- formation plays to end the game.
After all of the Cougars' crazy finishes, here was a standard- issue ending, even with the twist of Tanner Mangum's getting his first action of the season on those two plays. Thanks to his hard-working teammates, Mangum could say he was involved in a BYU victory in Michigan.
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