Tulane University
BYU
Green Wave Falls To BYU 70-35
Aug 25, 2001 | Football
Aug 25, 2001
PROVO, Utah (AP) - In 29 seasons under LaVell Edwards, BYU threw for almost 60 miles of yardage. The Cougars might end up running that far under new coach Gary Crowton.
Brandon Doman was 25-of-31 for 286 yards and three touchdowns in Crowton's debut as BYU's coach, leading the Cougars to a 70-35 victory over Tulane on Saturday in the Black Coaches Association Classic.
BYU's rushing attack, which produced 437 of 734 yards, set the tempo and wore down the Green Wave. Luke Staley ran for 142 yards and Brian McDonald had 103, each scoring three touchdowns.
"I knew the game plan going in," Crowton said. "I didn't reveal any of that, but I just felt like we have two strong running backs and our quarterback also can run the ball."
It was the first time since 1972 that Edwards wasn't coaching the Cougars. He retired after last season, capping a 29-year career where he won 257 games, 20 conference titles and the 1984 national championship.
"It's good to see them play well. It's very exciting," said Edwards, who watched from a suite. "They've got a chance to be a real good ballclub this season if they stay healthy and keep scoring touchdowns."
Twenty years ago, the Cougars (1-0) dominated opponents with the passing game. But led by Doman, a high school option quarterback who also ran for 115 yards and one TD, BYU inflicted its damage with the rush.
"Probably midway through the second quarter I started licking my chops because I could see those guys were getting worn down," Doman said. "They weren't enjoying our game plan very much."
Tulane (0-1) struck first, needing five plays before Mewelde Moore broke to the right on a counter that went 75 yards for a TD. But Staley had six carries for 102 yards and three scores in the first quarter as BYU led 21-14.
The first half was more like pingpong than football, as the teams scored on most of their brief possessions. At one point there were four straight scoring drives, each consuming less than one minute.
"We both came out bang, bang, bang," Moore said. "That's what you'd expect from the types of offense both teams put together. We just didn't have the juice to keep up with them."
The Cougars seized control with Doman's three second-quarter scoring passes, two of them to Spencer Nead. On the second, two Tulane defenders tipped the ball before it bounced to Nead and he ran in for a 27-yard play.
"That was a well-executed offensive machine," Tulane coach Chris Scelfo said. "They really hit on all cylinders and the ball also bounced their way."
That gave BYU a 42-21 lead with 5:52 before halftime. Tulane's Patrick Ramsey answered with a 10-yard TD strike to Moore, but McDonald gave the Cougars a 49-28 halftime lead with his 26-yard scoring run with 42 seconds on the clock.
"At halftime we were at 49 and I was thinking to myself, `This is crazy,"' Doman said. "BYU is supposed to put up points. We're supposed to throw a lot of different things at the defense, and we did that today."
It was a big day for Crowton, who puffed his cheeks and blew out a big sigh after running onto the field at LaVell Edwards Stadium ahead of his players. Then Crowton donned a headset to call plays, something Edwards never did.
The fiery Crowton also barked at referees when they approached the BYU sideline. Another time, he ran over to point at the ground where a Tulane runner went out of bounds.
"It was an exciting day and an exciting win," Crowton said.
The easygoing Edwards usually strolled the sidelines with his arms crossed and his face folded into a scowl that belied his friendly personality.
The teams combined for 1,242 total yards, but the crowd of 49,008 was the smallest since the 65,000-seat stadium was expanded from 28,812 in 1982. About 55,000 watched BYU's win over Texas A&M in the 1996 Pigskin Classic.
