BYU Football Answered Questions In Loss Against Notre Dame

LAS VEGAS – The No. 16 BYU football team traveled to Las Vegas to play in the “Shamrock Series” against the Notre Dame Irish and fell short losing 28-20.

Let’s answer some burning questions from a tough loss in the desert.

Who was the most valuable player for BYU Football?

Kody Epps was a ray of sunshine in what was the cloudiest offensive performance of the season.

He caught four passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns.

Kody Epps is a ⭐️

That’s exactly what this #BYU team needed. #BYUvsND #BYUFootball @kslsports

— Matthew Baiamonte (@baiamontematt) October 9, 2022

The wide receiver room is as talented as it’s ever been with the emergence of Epps, Chase Roberts, and Keanu Hill.

It’s unfortunate that Romney left the game with an injury in the second half.

However, the Cougars have proven they have the depth to overcome injuries.

Epps has emerged as a playmaker that needs to be on the field as much as possible.

Most impactful play of the game?

I thought the 53-yard touchdown pass from Jaren Hall to Kody Epps in the third quarter changed the football game.

After Notre Dame took a 25-6 lead early in the third quarter, the BYU offense needed a big play to keep things from getting ugly.

Epps showed great agility and speed after the catch to take that pass from Hall to the house.

The Cougars had momentum for most of the second half after that play, but it wasn’t enough in the end.

Interesting stat from the game?

Up to this point in the season, the BYU passing game was the strength of the team.

That wasn’t the case against Notre Dame.

The Cougars only passed for 11 yards in the first half and they were outgained by 196 yards.

It got a little better in the second half, but Jaren Hall only completed nine passes for 120 yards.

Aaron Roderick shared with KSL Sports during pre-game coverage that Hall took his biggest hits of the season against Utah State.

Kalani Sitake on #BYU QB Jaren Hall:

“He was definitely not 100%.”

Hall played banged up after taking a few hard hits against Utah State. #BYUvsND #BYUFootball

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2022

After the game, Hall said he felt like he was still at 100 percent.

It’s something to monitor heading into the Arkansas game.

When was the game lost for BYU football?

There were very few penalties in this game. Two to be exact.

In fact, there should have been more penalties called.

After turning the ball over on downs near the red zone, the BYU defense was given a gift after Notre Dame was called for their first penalty of the game.

It appeared that BYU would give the ball back to quarterback Jaren Hall for one final chance to send the game to overtime.

Final: Notre Dame 28, No. 16 BYU 20 pic.twitter.com/Rl0SDNjqsI

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2022

Instead, Fighting Irish running back Logan Diggs had other plans, ripping off a 33-yard run that ended the ball game.

I thought it was the best defensive performance of the season considering the time of possession discrepancy.

Notre Dame possessed the ball for nearly 41 minutes.

However, when you know the opponent is going to run the ball on second and 17, the defense has to make a play and force a punt.

You can hear Matt Baiamonte every Saturday on KSL Newsradio for Cougar Sports Saturday from 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. or you can find him on Twitter.