No. 22 BYU needs a late pick to secure a 34-28 win at Baylor and stay undefeated

WACO, Texas — Crew Wakley had an game-clinching interception with 59 seconds left and No. 22 BYU held on for a 34-28 victory at Baylor on Saturday to remain undefeated, after the Cougars twice built three-touchdown leads before halftime when Jake Retzlaff threw for two scores and ran for another one.

Wakley made a leaping interception near midfield along the sideline in front of the Baylor bench to secure the first Big 12 road victory for the Cougars (5-0, 2-0 Big 12).

“I can't really see (the quarterback), shoutout to the D-line, they were all up in his face," Wakley said. “It's like a flyball. ... I knew as soon as it left his hand, I was like, I've got this, got to go make that play."

The Cougars' defense came up big late, including after Retzlaff's second interception following halftime was a deflection caught by 337-pound nose tackle Elinus Noel III to set up the Bears at the BYU 45 with 4:01 left.

Baylor (2-3, 0-2) was stopped on a fourth-and-6 incompletion from the 24 with 1:47 left but still had all of it timeouts and got the ball back with only 13 seconds coming off the clock while BYU went three-and-out.

“The way the guys finished, they were resilient to the end,” Retzlaff said. “That will get you a win with a fast start.”

Baylor (2-3, 0-2) was within 34-28 after Josh Cameron’s one toe-tapping 23-yard touchdown catch on the far side of the end zone with about 10 minutes left. Cameron had seven catches for 125 yards and two TDs.

Retzlaff was 13 of 17 passing for 180 yards and two touchdowns, and that didn't count a behind-the-line pass to Chase Roberts that was ruled a 2-yard TD run, as the Cougars built a 31-14 halftime lead. They were up 21-0 in the first quarter and later 28-7.

But Retzlaff was 4 of 14 for only 36 yards after the break.

Baylor's Sawyer Robertson finished 27 of 48 passing for 324 yards. He had three touchdowns and threw two picks.

The Cougars led 7-0 only 6 1/2 minutes into the game. Baylor's lone offensive snap at that point was a pass deflected straight up in the air by 290-pound nose tackle John Nelson and caught by defensive tackle Blake Mangelson.

It was 28-7 with 9:32 left in the first half after a 44-yard TD by Darius Lassiter, who caught eight passes for 120 yards.

TAKEAWAYS

BYU: The Cougars are 5-0 for the third time in five seasons, after reaching that mark only two others times (2001 and 2008) since their undefeated 1984 championship season. BYU matched the two conference wins it had last year after playing as an independent the previous 12 seasons.

Baylor: Playing at home on the banks of the Brazos River has been no advantage for the Bears in Big 12 play. Two weeks after ending a nine-game home losing streak against FBS teams with a 31-3 win over Air Force, the Bears lost their eighth consecutive conference home game since beating Kansas on Oct. 22, 2022.

ANOTHER HEARTBREAKER

The loss at home came a week after the Bears' 38-31 overtime loss at Colorado, when they had a missed field goal late before the Buffaloes had a Hail Mary completion on the final play of regulation and then won when Baylor fumbled going into the end zone on its OT possession.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Cougars certainly will be ranked for a second week in a row. But they may not move up much, or at all, after having to go down to the wire instead of turning those big early leads into a lopsided victory.

UP NEXT

BYU: Has an open date before hosting Big 12 newcomer Arizona on Oct. 12.

Baylor: Plays at No. 18 Iowa State next Saturday night.