Defense keys Utah win over BYU in ‘Holy War’

Sunia Tauteoli had two interceptions as the Utah defense saved the day in a disjointed 20-19 win over rival BYU on Saturday.

The Utah defense was routinely put in bad positions as the offense committed six turnovers. Troy Williams threw had 194 yards passing with one touchdown and three interceptions. Starting running back Joe Williams was benched for a spell after losing a fumble in the first quarter. The Utes totaled six fumbles, losing three.

But the Cougars didn’t take advantage.

The Utes’ defense dominated up front and forced three turnovers of its own. BYU’s Taysom Hill threw for 176 yards and had two touchdown runs, but threw three interceptions.

Pittsburgh 42, Penn State 39: James Conner ran for 117 yards and a touchdown and caught another and cornerback Ryan Lewis intercepted Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley in the end zone with just over a minute to play as the Panthers held on against the visiting Nittany Lions.

Fullback George Aston ran for a pair of scores for Pitt (2-0), which nearly let a 21-point lead slip away only to hold on late when Lewis stepped in front of an underthrown pass by McSorley as the majority of the largest crowd to ever watch a sporting event in Pittsburgh erupted.

Montana 20, Northern Iowa 13: Jerry Louie-McGee returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter and the Grizzlies (2-0) held on to defeat the Panthers in a matchup of FCS powers in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

East Carolina 33, North Carolina State 30: Anthony Scott scored the go-ahead touchdown with 5:49 left to help the Pirates beat the Wolfpack 33-30 on Saturday.

Navy 28, Connecticut 24: Will Worth scored two touchdowns in his debut as the Midshipmen’s starting quarterback, and Navy survived a hectic finish in a win over the Huskies in Annapolis, Maryland.

After Navy let a 21-0 lead become a 24-21 deficit, Worth bulled in from the 1-yard line with 3:08 remaining following a 26-yard punt return to the UConn 17.

Illinois State 9, Northwestern 7: Sean Slattery connected on a 33-yard field goal as time expired to give the Redbirds an upset over the Wildcats in Evanston, Illinois.

Slattery had missed a field goal and an extra point earlier.