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BYU looks to improve defense aqainst Colorado State

Nov 1, 2008 - 10:50 AM (17) Brigham Young (7-1) at Colorado State (4-4), 6:00 pm EDT

FORT COLLINS, Colorado (Ticker) -- Brigham Young might be wondering what happened to its defense that was so dominant earlier in the season.

After surviving a huge scare against Nevada-Las Vegas, the 17th-ranked Cougars head on the road Saturday to visit Colorado State.

BYU needed a late score last week to escape with a 42-35 victory over the UNLV and keep alive hopes for a third straight Mountain West Conference title.

But after giving up just 62 points in the first six games of the season, the Cougars have surrendered 67 in the last two games. On October 16, BYU suffered a 32-7 loss at TCU that snapped its 16-game winning streak, which had been the longest active run in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Last week, the Cougars (7-1, 3-1 Mountain West) allowed more than 300 yards passing for the first time since surrendering 454 yards to Tulsa's Paul Smith in 2006.

"We are still working to find the right identity and right mix on defense," BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "Our emphasis has been to limit points, and that's worked well up until the past two games."

BYU's offense was able to get back on track after scoring only seven points at TCU, as Max Hall threw four touchdown passes against UNLV, including a 6-yard strike to Dennis Pitta for the winning score with 1:46 remaining.

Austin Collie had seven receptions for 113 yards, setting a Mountain West record with his sixth straight game with at least 100 receiving yards.

The victory kept BYU, which is fourth in the conference standings, 1 1/2 games behind TCU.

Colorado State (4-4, 2-2) snapped a two-game losing streak with a 38-34 victory over San Diego State last week as Billy Farris passed for three touchdowns.

However, the Rams allowed the Aztecs, one of the worst offensive teams in the FBS, to gain nearly 400 yards. The game was tied, 31-31, until Farris threw a 9-yard TD pass to Kory Sperry on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Colorado State has dropped four straight to BYU, including a 35-16 loss in Provo last season.