Cougars On The Go In Upset
Canada Scores Two TDs, Gains 118 Yards
MADISON, Wis. — Squally Canada ran for 118 yards and two touchdowns and BYU handed mistake-prone Wisconsin its first nonconference home loss since 2003, giving the No. 6 Badgers fits with its motion offense in a 24-21 victory Saturday.
The Cougars (2-1) tossed in a trick play, too, when receiver Aleva Hifo found open tight end Moroni LauluPututau for a 31-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.
Wisconsin (2-1) had one last chance to avoid an upset with a drive that started with 3:55 left at the 8. But normally reliable senior kicker Rafael Gaglianone’s 42-yard field goal attempt to tie with 41 seconds left went wide left.
“BYU! BYU!” yelled the small contingent of Cougars fans in the stands. BYU’s last victory over a top-10 team came in 2009 with a 14-13 win over third-ranked Oklahoma.
“We just wanted to win the line of scrimmage and be physical,” coach Kilani Sitake said.
The Badgers’ 41-game nonconference winning streak — the longest active in the nation — came to an end. Their hopes to make the College Football Playoff probably did, too.
“Win as a team and everyone can own their part equally in a loss,” Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said. “We’ve all got to take a look at the things we can control and take those steps to get better.”
Skyler Southam’s 45-yard field goal with 9:58 left, set up by Canada’s 46-yard run on the first play of a five-play drive, gave BYU the lead for good, 24-21. The Cougars followed the Badgers’ blueprint, punching right back after Wisconsin tied the game at 21 on Taiwan Deal’s 5-yard touchdown run.
Deal rushed for two short scores. Star sophomore Jonathan Taylor had for 117 yards on 26 carries, but Wisconsin couldn’t hit many big plays against a defense that was giving up 156 on the ground coming into the afternoon.
The Badgers also sputtered for much of the day through the air. Alex Hornibrook was 18 of 28 for 190 yards, throwing an interception deep in Wisconsin territory on the team’s opening drive of the second half.
Tanner Mangum was 12 of 22 for 89 yards, but deftly operated an offense that used spread formations, motions and sweeps to find holes.