WACO, Texas — Crew Wakley had a 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 had twice built three-touchdown leads as 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).
Retzlaff threw two interceptions after halftime, the second a deflection caught by 337-pound nose tackle Elinus Noel III to set up Baylor at the Cougars 45 with 4:01 left. The Bears were stopped on a fourth-and-6 incompletion from the 24 with 1:47 left but still had all of their timeouts and got the ball back with only 13 seconds coming off the clock, but BYU went three-and-out.
Baylor (2-3, 0-2) had gotten 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 officially 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 also threw two picks.
The Cougars were up 14-0 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.
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.
Find more Baylor coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.