LUBBOCK, Texas\u00a0\u2013 For the first time this season, BYU football has suffered a loss.<\/p>\n
The seventh-ranked Cougars were hammered on Saturday against the No. 8 Texas Tech Red Raiders in a game that was BYU\u2019s first-ever Top 10 matchup.<\/p>\n
The final score was 29-7.<\/p>\n
BYU falls to 8-1 overall and 5-1 in Big 12 play. Texas Tech improves to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in Big 12 action.<\/p>\n
Texas Tech is elite on defense<\/p>\n
BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said earlier in the week that Texas Tech had the best defense BYU would go up against since Texas in 2023.<\/p>\n
That might have been underselling it on the Red Raiders.<\/p>\n
Texas Tech is the best defensive front BYU has faced since joining the Big 12 in 2023. The Red Raiders were every bit as good as advertised. There\u2019s an argument to be made that they have the best defensive front in college football.<\/p>\n
From the opening play of the game, Tech edge rusher David Bailey was in BYU\u2019s backfield. He was a terror on BYU\u2019s offense the entire afternoon.<\/p>\n
Star linebacker Jacob Rodriguez was everywhere for the Red Raiders, including an interception on BYU\u2019s Bear Bachmeier when the freshman quarterback was trying to keep a play alive.<\/p>\n
Then Rodriguez recovered a fumble late in the fourth quarter after a backwards pass from Bachmeier.<\/p>\n
Red Raider fans began chanting \u201cHeisman\u201d for Rodriguez in the third quarter, who is a senior leader for Tech.<\/p>\n
BYU\u2019s offense knew they had a thin margin for error against an elite defense like Tech\u2019s, and that was exposed in every way on Saturday. The methodical attack posed little threat to the Red Raiders.<\/p>\n
BYU\u2019s defense did everything it could to give them a chance<\/p>\n
Texas Tech had four trips to the red zone in the first 30 minutes of the game and only had 13 points.<\/p>\n
BYU combined for four sacks, all of which were from their star linebackers, led by Jack Kelly with two of the sacks.<\/p>\n
The Cougars closed the first half with some momentum as Raider Damuni forced a pass breakup on fourth down for a goal line stand heading into the half.<\/p>\n
Entering the third quarter, BYU\u2019s defense maintained the momentum with a three-and-out against Tech\u2019s uptempo attack. But BYU\u2019s offense couldn\u2019t get anything going.<\/p>\n
Entering the fourth quarter, BYU\u2019s defense still allowed only 19 points, despite the game having a feel that BYU was trailing by 40.<\/p>\n
The Cougar defense put up a valiant effort, but they had no help.<\/p>\n
For a team that prides itself on complementary football, there was no complementing the defense on Saturday in West Texas.<\/p>\n
Texas Tech erased Bear Bachmeier\u2019s ability to make plays on the ground<\/p>\n
A key piece to BYU\u2019s offensive success this season has been freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier\u2019s ability to run, particularly up the middle of defenses.<\/p>\n
That wasn\u2019t happening on Saturday against Tech.<\/p>\n
For the first time this season, Bachmeier looked every bit like a true freshman.<\/p>\n
It didn\u2019t help matters that when Bachmeier and the BYU offense went to the air, his receivers didn\u2019t always help him with drops from some of his key receivers in Parker Kingston and Jojo Phillips.<\/p>\n
However, there were mistakes, such as in the fourth quarter with four minutes remaining, when Bachmeier threw a pass while being hit behind the line of scrimmage. It resulted in a fumble. Bachmeier had two turnovers in the game.<\/p>\n
Brutal day for the BYU football special teams<\/p>\n
BYU\u2019s opening series of the game was capped off by a shanked punt by Sam Vander Haar giving Tech excellent field position. The Red Raiders couldn\u2019t capitalize on that field position, having to punt on their own opening series.<\/p>\n
But they quickly regained momentum as BYU punt returner Parker Kingston muffed a punt return, giving Tech the ball at BYU\u2019s 18-yard line.<\/p>\n
The miscues for BYU\u2019s special teams didn\u2019t stop there, as the Cougars had a kickoff return by Cody Hagen that should have been fair caught. Instead, he returned it to the 15-yard line, costing BYU 10 yards.<\/p>\n
There was also a missed field goal of 51 yards by Will Ferrin.<\/p>\n
A brutal day all around for BYU\u2019s special teams unit, which has typically lived up to its name dating back to last season.<\/p>\n
BYU football could take a big hit in the CFP rankings<\/p>\n
Throughout the entire season, BYU football has been viewed as a lucky team by national pundits. Despite that narrative, BYU opened with a respectable No. 7 ranking in the initial College Football Playoff rankings.<\/p>\n
After what took place on Saturday, BYU could take a big tumble in the poll. Following last year\u2019s loss to Kansas, BYU dropped eight spots in the rankings.<\/p>\n
What makes this interesting is that Utah, a team BYU beat, is ranked No. 13. Could the Cougars drop below the Utes, who have been blowing out teams? It\u2019s something to monitor as we approach Tuesday\u2019s reveal.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s still a path to Arlington<\/p>\n
Unlike the years in Independence when BYU lost a game, the hopes of making the Playoffs and playing in big games were over; that\u2019s not the case in the Big 12.<\/p>\n
Going into the game against Texas Tech on Saturday, it was known that if BYU went 3-1, they would control their destiny to reach the Big 12 Championship Game in Arlington.<\/p>\n
The challenge for BYU is not letting one loss turn into multiple setbacks. Last year, when BYU lost to Kansas, they laid an egg against Arizona State, and the hopes of Arlington were gone.<\/p>\n
If BYU wins out, they can still reach the title game, but this is the type of loss that might start raising questions about how good this team truly is.<\/p>\n
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE<\/a>).\u00a0Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12\u20133 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.<\/p>\n Follow Mitch\u2019s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on\u00a0X (formerly Twitter)<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram:<\/a>\u00a0@Mitch_Harper.<\/p>\n Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go.<\/p>\n